There are times to reach out and times to withdraw. Times to advance and times to retreat. Times to connect and times to disconnect.
On this date I removed about 90 days worth of blog entries about the Creative Pursuit and the Artistic Endeavor. It seemed like the right thing to do at the time. I was faced with some circumstances beyond my control which required my full attention. I put the needs of others before my own. I "packed my bags and walked away" from the blog to facilitate the deliberate focusing of my Life's Energy for a purposeful, needful, short-term objective. There is a sense of Duty and Survival in my Detour. To some degree, I lost a part of myself in the Re-routing. Nobody knows.
I can say that I have missed the blog writing and the daily painting jaunts.
This week I spent some time reading my favorite art blogs and orienting to the reasons why I started writing and sharing in the first place. Today's edited entry is a small stumbling step back to the land of the living art.
Friday, March 16, 2012
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
Setting Expectations Towards Renewal: 120 Paintings
Jeff Mahoney, a member of the Daily Painting initiative, has a great website that chronicles the progression of his early art. One of the Larry Seiler Lessons Learned, that Jeff embodies, and that he has chronicled in his blog, is that one has to complete 120 paintings to know anything about painting. I will be taking that observation to heart as I move forward.
Monday, March 12, 2012
The Old Homestead: An 1896 Farmstead
I lament the loss of old New England. Much of the farming landscape, along with the homesteads and barns, the stone walls, the old fruit orchards, and the lifestyle, has gone the way of the past. We had the good fortune a number of years ago to buy a small 1896 farmhouse that had been updated. The barn was long gone and the woodland and fields sold off to developers for modern cookie-cutter living abodes. We found out from a local old-timer that we had purchased the original "Jones sheepfarm".
Once upon a time when I was much younger, I had wanted to have a self-sufficient farmstead. In my older age with occasional aches and pains, I surmise that due to the prolonged and extensive manual labor required for a successful farming enterprise, I would only be able to sustain a farm in my dreams...and I now encourage only the fantasy role of being a gentleman farmer...essentially limited to pointing my finger and getting someone else to do the actual work. Regular yardwork, remodeling, and personal landscaping has become my limit. And as hard as it is, it's so much easier to paint! The paint is still wet on this one.
Once upon a time when I was much younger, I had wanted to have a self-sufficient farmstead. In my older age with occasional aches and pains, I surmise that due to the prolonged and extensive manual labor required for a successful farming enterprise, I would only be able to sustain a farm in my dreams...and I now encourage only the fantasy role of being a gentleman farmer...essentially limited to pointing my finger and getting someone else to do the actual work. Regular yardwork, remodeling, and personal landscaping has become my limit. And as hard as it is, it's so much easier to paint! The paint is still wet on this one.
Original Art: Newborn Lamb - Copyright James E. Martin 2012
Springtime is a'coming. Because of my longstanding interest in the subject matter, I might expect rural and farming content to be part of my artistic genre in the future.
Sunday, March 11, 2012
Harbinger of Spring: The Crocus
This is my impressionist rendition of the crocus photo provided a few days ago.
Original Art: Harbinger of Spring - Crocus 01 Copyright James E. Martin 2012
For signature attribution, lots of time spent on the (E)xpression of the image. The (i)nsight was provided by the photo and the formulation of the approach in this (j)ourney was rather straightforward and progressing from recent findings and lessons learned.
Friday, March 9, 2012
Harbingers of Springtime: Early Seasonal Color
Unseasonably warm weather for the Boston MA -Providence RI corridor in March at 60+ degrees F but breezy. The first harbingers of Spring have blossomed forth with crocuses poking out of the mulch under the birdfeeder.
Original Photo: Harbinger of Spring 07 - Copyright James E. Martin 2012
Been wanting to decorate a holiday wreath by adding on forsythia for years. Today is the day. Winter may appear to be but a shadow on the wall but I remember the adage about the month of March - In like a Lamb then Out like a Lion!
Original Photo: Spring Fever 01 - Copyright James E. Martin 2012
We may not be done with the wiley ways of winter yet. This was the year that our only snowfall worthy of a snowman roll was back in October 2011! But what fun was to be had to roll 'em and build 'em! Two Artists in Endeavor and Creative Pursuit of multimedia sculpture below and obviously Living the Moment. Snowman stylish in Abercrombie wear, don't you think? Fun to demolish and destroy as well.
Original Photo: Winter Fever 01 - Copyright James E. Martin 2012
So I start wearing my wild color Hawaiian shirt collection today while attending to the outdoor forsythia work.
Thursday, March 8, 2012
Evidence of a Struggle: Authenticity
I am listening to the still, small Inner Voice. Look for the royal color in future blogs and see where I venture.
"For all artists the problem is one of finding one's own authenticity of speaking in a language or imagery that is essentially one's own, but if one's self-image is dictated by one's relation to others and all one's activities are other-directed, it is simply not possible to find one's own voice....The painter cannot expend their precious energy in polemic.... Every painting by anyone is evidence of a struggle...." from The Obstacle Race by Germaine Greer.
Eowyn Wilcox maintains a nice art blog with numerous links to other interesting resources. One of her entries provides the above-mentioned quote. That last sentence is a great insight. I enjoyed surveying her blog and links in my early hours over the last few days. She seems to like the Van Gogh story as well as I. She got the Greer book for three dollars so she is a bargain hunter too. A kindred spirit. Her melodius name from the Old English means "delightful charger" as in "joyful horse". She also located a great Vincent quote about the Artistic Endeavor in the early venture....
"Do you know what has come into my mind, that in the first period of a painter's life one unconsciously makes it very hard for oneself - a feeling of not being able to master the work - by an uncertainty as to whether one will ever master it - by a great ambition to make progress, by a lack of self-confidence - one cannot banish a certain feeling of agitation, and one hurries oneself though one doesn't like to be hurried. This cannot be helped, and it is a time which one must go through, and which in my opinion cannot and should not be otherwise. In the studies, too, one is conscious of a nervousness and a certain dryness which is the exact opposite of the calm, broad touch one strives for, and yet it doesn't work well if one applies oneself too much to acquiring that broadness of touch. This gives one a feeling of nervous unrest and agitation, and one feels an oppression as on summer days before a thunderstorm. I had that feeling again just now, and when I have it, I change my work, just to make a new start." from Vincent Van Gogh letter to his brother Theo, February 1883
"For all artists the problem is one of finding one's own authenticity of speaking in a language or imagery that is essentially one's own, but if one's self-image is dictated by one's relation to others and all one's activities are other-directed, it is simply not possible to find one's own voice....The painter cannot expend their precious energy in polemic.... Every painting by anyone is evidence of a struggle...." from The Obstacle Race by Germaine Greer.
Eowyn Wilcox maintains a nice art blog with numerous links to other interesting resources. One of her entries provides the above-mentioned quote. That last sentence is a great insight. I enjoyed surveying her blog and links in my early hours over the last few days. She seems to like the Van Gogh story as well as I. She got the Greer book for three dollars so she is a bargain hunter too. A kindred spirit. Her melodius name from the Old English means "delightful charger" as in "joyful horse". She also located a great Vincent quote about the Artistic Endeavor in the early venture....
"Do you know what has come into my mind, that in the first period of a painter's life one unconsciously makes it very hard for oneself - a feeling of not being able to master the work - by an uncertainty as to whether one will ever master it - by a great ambition to make progress, by a lack of self-confidence - one cannot banish a certain feeling of agitation, and one hurries oneself though one doesn't like to be hurried. This cannot be helped, and it is a time which one must go through, and which in my opinion cannot and should not be otherwise. In the studies, too, one is conscious of a nervousness and a certain dryness which is the exact opposite of the calm, broad touch one strives for, and yet it doesn't work well if one applies oneself too much to acquiring that broadness of touch. This gives one a feeling of nervous unrest and agitation, and one feels an oppression as on summer days before a thunderstorm. I had that feeling again just now, and when I have it, I change my work, just to make a new start." from Vincent Van Gogh letter to his brother Theo, February 1883
Photo Courtesy: Artist on the Road to Tarscon - Van Gogh 1888 - Internet Commons Fair Use
So we shall struggle along in this Artistic Endeavor. Knowing that other's greater than us have gone before us in the same manner. Weigh the anchors. Set the sails. Look for favorable winds. Charging forward to find the momentary joy. Focusing the nervous agitation and unrest of precious energy expenditure in a purposeful direction to the extent that we can. A new season may be emerging. Spring forward.
Thank you Germaine Greer. Thank you Vincent. Thank you Eowyn.
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
The Creative Pursuit: Loosen Up to the Opposite Extreme
The last study from yesterday's blog entry was a darker somewhat monotone palette consistent with the subject matter of Hoarders and Spendthrifts in a subterranean Purgatory pushing bags of Accumulated Wealth up a hill in the moonlight.
Today's study brightens the color palette more consistent with the Impressionist legacy and selects still another position and posture from Gustave Dore's engraving for Dante's Inferno.
"Justice of God, ah! who heaps up so many; New toils and sufferings as I beheld?; And why doth our transgressions waste us so?" Dante's Inferno Canto VII, lines 19-21
Today's study brightens the color palette more consistent with the Impressionist legacy and selects still another position and posture from Gustave Dore's engraving for Dante's Inferno.
"Justice of God, ah! who heaps up so many; New toils and sufferings as I beheld?; And why doth our transgressions waste us so?" Dante's Inferno Canto VII, lines 19-21
Original Art: From Dante's Divine Comedy: Hell, Purgatory, and Paradise
Wealth and Fortune - Heaps Up So Many - Study 04 Souvenir of Dore
Copyright James E. Martin 2012
I like the color value and shade-shape modeling of the money bag much better and may use a similar approach in the larger work. The original color values that I used in the larger work for the bags of wealth were much too dark even for a subterranean aura with reflected hellfire and lost a lot of feeling and impact so they were scraped down and left until I identified a better alternative in the studies. Not convinced yet of the body color values for the context.
It's taking a little longer in this Journey to get this Artist's hands to execute towards the Artist's vision in the head and the Artist's feeling in the heart. Getting it all in Alignment.
It's taking a little longer in this Journey to get this Artist's hands to execute towards the Artist's vision in the head and the Artist's feeling in the heart. Getting it all in Alignment.
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
The Creative Pursuit: Trial and Error
So I attempt a different pose from the several in Gustave Dore's engraving for this portion of Dante's Inferno and change the palette.
"For all the gold that is beneath the moon, Or ever has been, of these weary souls, Could never make a single one repose." Dante's Inferno Canto VII, lines 64-66
"For all the gold that is beneath the moon, Or ever has been, of these weary souls, Could never make a single one repose." Dante's Inferno Canto VII, lines 64-66
Original Art: From Dante's Divine Comedy: Hell, Purgatory, and Paradise
Wealth and Fortune - Under the Moon - Study 03 Souvenir of Dore
Copyright James E. Martin 2012
I may have worked this one too long not stopping when the image and the color was a bit fresher. The color values started to get muddier and the brush strokes less definitive over time. I finally decided to just get to a stopping point consistent with another reading of the source material and not let it get away from me.
It does constitute a different data point and interpretation from the other former studies. It is not yet the approach I wish to use in the larger work. I have a sense however that I am starting to surround the target point in the total visual space with alternatives that each have something that I might want to capture in the end result.
Sunday, March 4, 2012
Modernism in Art History: An Outline Pointing to the Future
Over the last three days, I have been reading and re-reading Christopher L.C.E. Whitcomb's excellent essay on Modernism in the art history timeline. He begins and ends his article with references to Suzi Gablik's Has Modernism Failed? (1984) with her view towards the hypothetical conclusion that "the end of Art is near". In particular, she asserts that if we as an art community and society hold that "anything can be considered art", then Innovation is no longer possible or desireable. I am not sure I see the connection. I have considered it axiomatic for quite some time that "anything created by man is formed for the purpose and use of man." That would even include art as an Occupation, art as a Statement, art as an Aesthetic, or art as a Recreation. Different purposes.
I liked the model of "Thesis-Antithesis-Synthesis" propounded in the paper and it appears to be suitable for the dynamic of art's social-political impact throughout history. Does Art only express and reflect current events through the eyes of the artist or can Art Change the World? Action or reaction? How much is this a chicken-and-the-egg syndrome?
The proposed objective of Modernism is the "creation of a better society". There are two alternative Antithetical reactions to the Thesis "society is better": (1) society is actually better or (2) society is not better. To make a judgement on that issue is a matter of opinion, is it not? If society has reached its epitome and reached the ideal of human actualization and full potential, then the influence of art has been accomplished. Perhaps then, Art as Celebration would become a genre. If society still has room for continuous improvement, then Art can still have a potential impact on creating a better world through Art as Statement.
Perhaps the Synthesis is that (1) the world isn't completely better if Artists need to earn a living with Art as Occupation; (2) Perhaps the world isn't better if Artists want to Change the World through Art as Statement; (3) Perhaps for some but not all recreational Artists, Art as Recreation is an escape and avoidance from other less relaxing and more taxing endeavors; or (4) Perhaps Art as Aesthetic allows us to portray Beauty and Truth as noble ideals in a world that isn't quite as Utopian.
So if Art isn't ended, where is Art heading in the future and what Innovation might be on the horizon? If we accept the Thesis that "Art is Original Expression" and contains symbols, icons, and meaning that reflect who the Artist is at a point in time and culture, then Art is Never Done. Rather, it reflects current social-political dynamics for the Artist as Creator. For instance, mention is made in the article about Earth Art and Performance Art that redefines Art into genre that is difficult to categorize into historical genre. Each of these types is Art that is Fleeting and Momentary. A sign of the times that reflects an Artist's Worldview of Expression.
Perhaps then, I could propose that we would expect to see the (continued) influence of a number of Thesis-Antithesis-Synthesis dynamics in Art in the future reflecting current social-political influences:
I liked the model of "Thesis-Antithesis-Synthesis" propounded in the paper and it appears to be suitable for the dynamic of art's social-political impact throughout history. Does Art only express and reflect current events through the eyes of the artist or can Art Change the World? Action or reaction? How much is this a chicken-and-the-egg syndrome?
The proposed objective of Modernism is the "creation of a better society". There are two alternative Antithetical reactions to the Thesis "society is better": (1) society is actually better or (2) society is not better. To make a judgement on that issue is a matter of opinion, is it not? If society has reached its epitome and reached the ideal of human actualization and full potential, then the influence of art has been accomplished. Perhaps then, Art as Celebration would become a genre. If society still has room for continuous improvement, then Art can still have a potential impact on creating a better world through Art as Statement.
Perhaps the Synthesis is that (1) the world isn't completely better if Artists need to earn a living with Art as Occupation; (2) Perhaps the world isn't better if Artists want to Change the World through Art as Statement; (3) Perhaps for some but not all recreational Artists, Art as Recreation is an escape and avoidance from other less relaxing and more taxing endeavors; or (4) Perhaps Art as Aesthetic allows us to portray Beauty and Truth as noble ideals in a world that isn't quite as Utopian.
So if Art isn't ended, where is Art heading in the future and what Innovation might be on the horizon? If we accept the Thesis that "Art is Original Expression" and contains symbols, icons, and meaning that reflect who the Artist is at a point in time and culture, then Art is Never Done. Rather, it reflects current social-political dynamics for the Artist as Creator. For instance, mention is made in the article about Earth Art and Performance Art that redefines Art into genre that is difficult to categorize into historical genre. Each of these types is Art that is Fleeting and Momentary. A sign of the times that reflects an Artist's Worldview of Expression.
Perhaps then, I could propose that we would expect to see the (continued) influence of a number of Thesis-Antithesis-Synthesis dynamics in Art in the future reflecting current social-political influences:
- Western Cultural Imperative on Third World Countries versus Emerging Global Cultures and Diversity
- Individual Imperatives for Freedom versus Rule of Authority and Tyranny
- Bipolar Schisms, Separateness, and Isolation versus Unity and Connectedness
- Haves versus Have-Nots
- Art for the Elite versus Art for and of the Masses
- Fundamental Religions versus Cultism versus Atheism versus Nihilism
- Big Government versus Big Business versus Big Religion versus Individual Self
- Centralized Power versus De-centralized Power
- Original Art versus Copy Art (The China Influence)
- Control versus Chaos
- Quality of Life versus Survival
- Found Art with Recycling-Upcycled Materials versus Traditional Media
- Charitable Giving versus Art for Investment Return
- Disenfranchised Extremism Topics versus Mainstream Art Topics
- Great Master Works versus Art as Occupation versus Daily Painting Initiative versus Amateur Art
Friday, March 2, 2012
The Creative Pursuit: Experimentation
Although I am currently working on a "larger" work, I am ever mindful of the Daily Painting initiative and the benefits to be gained by working and completing smaller works each day to experiment, stretch, draft an idea, or review the basics on a frequent, repetitive basis. Most of the Artists who have committed to the daily effort have cited the benefits including the building of a portfolio for creating and offering a more affordable art market and to build a personal genre. Currently, my work efforts are characterized as Spurts and Bursts. Although I have not yet committed myself to a formal endeavor in the Daily Painting venue, it is ever present in my thinking to be sure. For me, there are sketches, research, reading, along with the actual work on Artifacts in the course of daily living.
Part of the Experimentation towards the current larger work is included below, an adaptation and evolution from this week's earlier post regarding Dante's Inferno. In the Canto VII, at Virgil's request, Plutus, the god of material wealth, dissappears into thin air. The strolling observers watch noisy Hoarders and Spendthrifts rolling huge weights at one another. The poets discuss Fortune's distribution of temporal riches.
"Not causeless is this journey to the abyss; Thus is it willed on high...." Dante's Inferno Canto VII, lines 12-13
Part of the Experimentation towards the current larger work is included below, an adaptation and evolution from this week's earlier post regarding Dante's Inferno. In the Canto VII, at Virgil's request, Plutus, the god of material wealth, dissappears into thin air. The strolling observers watch noisy Hoarders and Spendthrifts rolling huge weights at one another. The poets discuss Fortune's distribution of temporal riches.
"Not causeless is this journey to the abyss; Thus is it willed on high...." Dante's Inferno Canto VII, lines 12-13
Original Art: From Dante's Divine Comedy: Hell, Purgatory, and Paradise
Wealth and Fortune - The Transient Riches - Study 02 Souvenir of Dore
Copyright James E. Martin 2012
There are attributes that I like and don't like about this small Study. I like the feeling. I like the contrast. I like the background. In isolation, I like the color of the sack of gold. I like the position and posture of the person rolling the wealth up the hill. I like the highlight and flow of the hair. The body tone is an experiment with the blue of depression and the red of muscular effort but I don't think I will use it in the larger work. The dark outline of forms is a trial and has been used by other and greater Artists than I. I have never used it before. It works OK here in the Study but I probably won't retain it in the larger work. I want to continue experimentation on the body tones compared to the sack tones in the overall context. This Study was an experiment in the blue and gold mindful of my ever present love of Van Gogh's palette which was my earliest intuitive approach for this content. I am not yet convinced of obtaining the overall effect I am aiming for at the date of this oil sketch. Within a day, I had matured my approach to the blending method used in the foreground colors in the exposition of the larger work to a degree to which I was pleased and reminiscent of Renoir.
As I exhibit this Study today, I am mindful of the earlier blog on the Apollinaire-Matisse interview:
- "I found myself or my artistic personality by looking over my earliest works. They rarely deceive. There I found something that was always the same and which at first glance I thought to be monotonous repetition. It was the mark of my personality which appeared the same no matter what different states of mind I happened to have passed through." [Matisse]
- "But this took place at its own good time." [Apollonaire]
- "I made an effort to develop this personality by counting above all on my intuition and by returning again and again to fundamentals. When difficulties stopped me in my work I said to myself: 'I have colors, a canvas, and I must express myself with purity, even though I do it in the briefest manner by putting down, for instance, four or five spots of color or by drawing four or five lines which have a plastic expression.'" [Matisse]
Thursday, March 1, 2012
The Creative Pursuit: A Personal Lens to Focus Life's Energy
I have given some extended thought to what I think the elements are in the Creative Pursuit. For me, this is a model, a construct that works for me currently, that can be discussed and talked to, and can be grown and adapted over time. It's been helpful to me because when things go wrong in my Artistic Endeavor and Creative Pursuit, I can reach back to these elements and perhaps figure out the Causes and Effects. As you can observe from the list of elements, they become very personal and indicative of the Self. In not any particular order, I propose that the elements of the Creative Pursuit are:
- Beliefs
- Values
- Vision
- Drive
- Exploration and Experimentation
- Serendipity
- Encouragement
- Inspiration
- Awareness of one's Comfort Zone (Gifts, Talents, Knowledge, Ability, Skills, Experience, Habits)
- Stretching Outside One's Comfort Zone
- Freedom and Openness
- Increasing Affect, Feeling, and Emotion
- Introspection
- Leveraging Outside Influences
- Mentors and Coaches
- Competition
- Unlock Restraints
- Minimize Stifles
- Minimize Fear
- Manage Critiques
- The Forge
- The Crucible
- The Fire
Perhaps, Dear Reader, this "model" of elements will be helpful to evaluate either your own Creative Pursuit supporting your Artistic Endeavor or the observations you have of other Artist's results or potential. How each of us pours these elements into our process and manages them determines the type of Lens we have for our own use at any given time. We can individually compare and contrast to observe effectiveness.
There is more to be exposited for many of these elements, of course, but I share them today as a seed to be planted.