Catching up News

So I had my first painting in the Rochester Contemporary Art Center (RoCo) Member's exhibit called "Summer Boats" It was on view December 5th through January 17th. Its not a big whoopla, all members can exhibit this one time during the year but I'm very proud for fitting it in the schedule and actually following through. The schedule meaning: pregant, work full time, taking 2 classes, a 3 year old and one in college.

So my first public gallery. I was so excited after dropping it off I went out an bought more canvases. An older woman standing in line behind me asked "Are you going to paint your way to having this baby" (I probably had 8 canvases) I laughed and said "Yes, I just might try."

Art & Fear

pages 1-23. The Art & Fear book has a bunch of topics about making art, the fun and exhilerating feeling to the trouble, frustration you discover. A few quotes from the book I want to remember.

"Artmaking involves skill than can be learned" I agree, art for some is not a gift, anyone can paint if they want to. "In large measure becoming an artist consists of learning to accept yourself, which makes your work personal, an in following your own voice, which makes your work distinctive" Finding your own voice is a problem. Most everything I paint already has been done, or relates to a familiar style so it is hard to feel you are an individual, distinctive voice. This next sentence contradicts how I make a painting. I like to make a perfect piece and have it serve as my current direction. " The function of the overwhelming majority of your artwork is simply to teach you how to make the small fraction of your artwork that soars" and the statistics for graduates quiting after they finish school was sad so I need to remember, "Basically, those who continue - or more precisely, have learned how to not quit" and that Fatalism, a species of fear - the fear that your fate is in your own hands, but that your hands are weak.

Gerhard Richter

I now see all the fuss about Gerhard Richter when it was suggested I take a look at his work. I have selected a few of his paintings from the oil on paper series where he sometimes will combine oil and watercolor. I particularly enjoy his choice of colors and gestural painting style. Love them! Photos from: http://www.gerhard-richter.com/art/

Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin

KIBERA, NAIROBI,Kenya

RUBBISH DUMP RECYCLING, Phnom Penh, Cambodia

GARMENT FACTORY, India

PHONE RECYCLING, Mumbai, India

SOLDERING CIRCUIT BOARDS, Toy factory Shantou, Guangdong, China

SHIP DISMANTLING, Alang Shipyard, India

Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin is an Irish artist who paints cityscape's of Dublin and Irish history. His most recent works concentrate around the harsh working conditions in other countries.

Photo's from: http://caoimhghindublin.tripod.com/

Karin Daymond

Karin Daymond documents the South African landscape where she lives. Her paintings contain patterns, rhythm and color. They are a beautiful record of how she views the changing landscape and environment.

In another set of her paintings, maybe due to the more subdued color choices, she is able to give the impression of the landscapes being alone, untouched and left alone but she lets us know this often has not been the case. She says "Life in South Africa is always controversial, ironic, violent, absurd and tragic. Debates rage and yet the land is always there regardless of to whom it belongs. Natural elements reassert themselves through the seasons, patterns and contrasts."

Photo's and quote from: http://www.artprintsa.com/karin-daymond-landscapes.html

Fred Tomaselli

This is definitely a case where viewing a reproduced copy of the images does not convey the 2D aspect of the paintings. Tomaselli's paintings should be viewed in person, taking a far aways glance and also upfront view of the intricate detailed arrangements of the compositions. I find his artwork interesting in the fact he uses preformed materials (pills) which will always be part of the underlying message in his artwork.

"...Ever the idiosyncratic collector, Fred Tomaselli amasses pills, herbs and other drugs, along with a range of images—plants, flowers, birds, anatomical illustrations—cut from books and organized by color, to create multi layered baroque paintings that encompass elements of the real, the photographic, and the painterly. Drawing upon art historical sources and Eastern and Western decorative traditions—like quilts and mosaics—Tomaselli's works explode in mesmerizing, psychedelic patterns that appear to grow organically across his compositions...Tomaselli’s influences can be traced to both by the manufactured unreality of theme parks, and the music and drug counter-cultures of Los Angeles during the 1970s and 80s." quote from: http://www.artknowledgenews.com/2009-07-25-23-42-44-aspen-art-museum-features-fred-tomasellis-largest-museum-survey-to-date.html

Photo's from 1. http://www.aspenartmuseum.org

and 2. http://www.artknowledgenews.com

Miguel G. Sanchez

While my interest lately has been in finding ways to express myself and trying to paint emotions rather than an actual image. I found Miguel Sanchez who says his modern art approach has been influenced by Willem de Kooning and Jean-Paul Riopelle. His large scale paintings reflecting memories of the places he has lived, such as South American jungle environment of Suriname and the Brazilian Amazon region. "His art reflects his feeling more by color than design and his objective in painting is not to make a statement or send a message, but rather to have people look at his art to get enjoyment in their own private way." Photo's and quote are from the website www.mgsanchez.com.