Good-bye Number 9

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It's hard to believe that the first decade of the new millennium, which is now being called the Aughties, is over and done and a new section of time begins. As each year passes away we take time to reflect and redouble our effort to do better in the new year. This process is even more special when we mark the passing/beginning of a ten year period. I hope you've enjoyed the Holidays and wish you a wonderful New Year. Thank You for your support.



This tilt/shift, time-lapse video of Mardi Gras by Keith Loutit seems quite apropos.
Turn up the volume and enjoy !
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Flights of Fancy

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I've got plenty of great artists to post about, but what with the Holidays and all, it's been hard to focus on the regular posting routine. Hopefully with the coming of the new year and the return to normality I can resume sharing some great art with you that's more in line with what this blog is all about. But I did want to share this image with you; for me it's just a simple reminder of how easily an artist can take the simplest things and craft something to jog our mind and make us momentarily reconsider life and the world we live in.

This is by Marcus Bunyan and you'll find more on his Website.
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about ABMB

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Each year when Art Basel Miami Beach happens, I scour the blogesphere trying to find pics, vids and whatever coverage I can about the fair. As usual it was a little disappointing to have to go here, there and everywhere to find enough images to get a fair idea of what was going on. Joanne Mattera did a good job with 24 posts about the fairs, which in their totality gives you a flavor of what it was all about. You can start with her post - The Wrap-Up Awards - which also has links to all the other ABMB Posts.



Thanks Joanne.
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Speaking of Newspaper . . .

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Artist Gordan Cheung uses the Financial Times stock listings as the ground for all his mixed media works. You can find out why, in an interview at myartspace. When you visit Gordan's Website, there's a nice video from one of his shows. His site provides plenty of images of his work, but it's nice to see the works in-context.

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First Masterpiece

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It's a pretty neat story, actually; I had moved to Georgia, gotten a job and after staying with friends for a while, got my own place. Hopped on the old bicycle to check out my new neighborhood and around the corner was this dumpy ole shop/warehouse. That's how I met Dieter and believe me, there are plenty of other great stories to tell too. I popped in - introductions - and then he got back to work and I suddenly felt creative.



I found this piece of paper and started rummaging through a huge stack of magazines to find these pieces of collage and just threw this thing together. Where the silver and gold came from, I have no idea.
Titled "Torn Between The Sun and The Moon", it doesn't take a PHD to see the psychology here. The background is a graphite rubbing of his worktable and the blue circle and lines are tracings of rough events that happened on/to that table. I would say with out a doubt that this was my finest work - completely thrown together with no preconceived idea; a spur-of-the-moment masterpiece of great import.

click to enlarge

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Wrapping-up Christmas

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Here's a short, funny Christmas story for you;
When I was in my teens it was all about gourmet this and genuine that and I was enthralled with the life of high society and everything hoiti-toiti. And my very special Christmas presents had to be fitfully wrapped; everything was very high class. Fast forward 40 years and now I try to get gifts that are fun and are Christmas-morning-memorable for under $20; which makes the shopping fun for me. I then wrap these treasures in newspaper, choosing pics(ads) that bring a smile or contain a sly joke and then simply write their name and apply a bow.

(Click pic to enlarge)

The gift in the front that says LIFE, is for Carol, my brother's wife and in the bottom right corner is a picture of a many layered cake. I wrapped it so the other section of the paper with the recipe is on the back and easily saved. Instead of the usual "oh isn't that pretty" about the gift wrap, the conversations go in other fun directions. So once I hand them their gifts and they have a little chuckle, it's rip & tear time with no compunction.
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Hit & Run Painting

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This is a bit off-topic for this blog but it's one of the few really good videos of an artist painting in their studio. Brendan Cass seems to be the real deal with a genuine oeuvre and personality.



And you absolutely must watch the Studio Visit videos of Wolf Kahn Part I and Part II.
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Floral Inspirations

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There's still a bouquet of cut flowers, flanked by two half-burned candles on the dining room table. They're now faded and wilted and they remind me of the story behind a series of paintings by Fereydoun Ave, titled Lal Dahlias. I can't seem to find the original story which paints the picture of a depressed artist who's mother passes and he fills his apartment with dahlias and suddenly finds inspiration and begins a manic whirlwind of artistic activity focused on the now wilted and dying dahlias.



This image is from a review of that Show, in the DubaiLime. You'll find 6 more images from that Show Here and a picture of the artist with several of the works Here. It takes quite a bit of searching several search engines to come across any more images from that Exhibit, which then gives you a better feel for the variety of styles and materials he used.
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You might also want to check out his Persian Miniatures.
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Mark Making and Erasure

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The work of Christopher Wool certainly falls into the Category of Marks, Gestures & Scribbles and I've wanted to do a post about him for quite some time now. Famous and notable, others have waxed eloquent about his oeuvre and there's little I could add to what's already been said. But some of you may not be familiar with his work and this is probably the best way to introduce it to you.



(There's no sound until the annoying, little commercial ends)
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Wool is also known for his text works which you can see in a very fascinating video over at CastYouArt that covers the Warhol, Newman, Wool “Barney is now at another party.“ Exhibition at Kunsthaus Graz. This is an interesting juxtaposition of work by these three titans.
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Tip: If you don't have High Speed Internet - click the arrow to start your video and then click the appropriate button to stop it. It will continue to load so that later you can again click the arrow and play it without interuptions. You probably have tabbed browsing, so just use your other tabs to surf the Internet while you're waiting for the video to load.
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Brush Strokes and a Color

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Regardless of what style of painting you like, please take the time to read this interview with Alan Ebnother. Aside from explaining his oeuvre, it's amazing to read how this artist came to his career. He's interested in texture and color and couldn't be more serious in his pursuit. Another interview has pictures of works from his blue series and you must scroll to the bottom and see his studio in New Mexico.

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He's represented by the George Lawson Gallery where you'll find a sampling of his paintings in different colors and you'll find more images at Galerie Gisele Linder. You'll definately want to go through his photos at MySpace.

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Image is from Minus Space.

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Blooming Sansevieria

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Snake Plant, Sword Plant and Mother-In-Law's Tongue are all common monikers for the Sansevieria but few people know it blooms; much less smell like an Easter Flower.

(The flower stalk is just left of center - click images to enlarge.)

I was going through many of my photo albums this evening, looking for images of recent paintings that I could exhibit and came across these pictures of my sword plant. Deciding it would make for an interesting addition to the landscaping, I planted it outside for the summer. Later that summer a closer look revealed that it was blooming. The buds remind you of little bananas and there are small droplets of sap or nectar on the stems. When the blossoms pop open they look like tiny fireworks and have the loveliest smell. Each of the Easter Flowers that we love have a distinct and sweet smell and this is just one more. It soon starts fading though and you catch yourself burying your nose in the blooms for any last whiff of that intoxicating perfume.

This hardy little plant-that-could will sometimes take such abuse and just keep on going. It can go unwatered and in bad lighting and hold it's own. It's striking presence fits any decor and to see one bloom is quite a treat.

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Lines, Dots, Flowers & Stripes

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You need to experience the ever evolving oeuvre of Thierry Feuz for yourself. Just one or two images doesn't do him justice nor does it begin to relate how he feels about color and form. In the top image from his interview at DE51GN, we're not sure if what we're seeing is micro or macro. There's plenty of line, gesture, color and contrast in this lacquer and acrylic on canvas from his Gulfstream Series and it reels us in and causes us to ponder. Although it makes so much sense, you'll be surprised by the different directions he chooses to explore. Visit his Website where he's divided his work into 6 categories or Series. And reading the interview/reviews at these 3 Links from his site gives insight into his personality and work.

He's represented by Limn Art Gallery, with images from his exhibition.

Six images at Une Gallery.

And Kashyahildebrand New York has some installation shots of his stripe paintings.


Top image from DE51GN.
Bottom image from Limn Art Gallery.
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Collage Dots

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I'm having a hard time understanding the oeuvre of Patrick Michael Fitzgerald. For the most part, for me, it's like an unfinished dish with the wrong seasonings. And then I come across this work that just blows me away. How do you combine ugly and charming with a dash of depth and perspective ? There's something hauntingly seductive about this drawing/collage that makes me want to rethink my own work.

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Image is from his Blog.

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Blond Dots

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Julie Nelson's Statement is very closed and personal and sheds no light on the process of making these lovely, intriguing works. Visit her Website to see more.

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Dots & Patterns

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Christopher French discovered braille paper one day and it opened up a whole new territory of ideas for him. You'll find that story and more images at the Marsha Mateyka Gallery.

He's represented by the Holly Johnson Gallery where you can again read about the braille papers' influence in his Bio and see his more of his work , including the patterned pieces. The installation shots show the range of sizes in the work.

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Both images are from the Holly Johnson Gallery.
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Lines In The Sand

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It's been a wonderful Thanksgiving and Scrubs is about to come on, so I won't try, nor do I need to wax eloquent about the fascinating ephemeral work of Jim Denevan. Quite simply he draws in the sand at low tide. The works are simple, huge and usually geometrical.

Both images are from, and please do visit his Website to see more.

Additional images can be found on Google Images and others still, on Yahoo Images.
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