Recognize this?
I now realize that years ago I watched Power RAngers with my young son, and guess what? The transformers (see below) looked a bit like Boccioni sculptures? He was way ahead of his time and a genius in my eyes...
Saturday, August 9, 2014
Hans Arp
Hans Arp
Arp told the story of how, when he was notified to report to the German consulate, he avoided being drafted into the German Army: he took the paperwork he had been given and, in the first blank, wrote the date. He then wrote the date in every other space as well, then drew a line beneath them and carefully added them up.
He then took off all his clothes and went to hand in his paperwork.
Monday, July 28, 2014
Adolph Gottlieb, Mark Rothko and Barnett Newman
Letter to Editor New York Times 1943
1. To us art is an adventure into an unknown world, which can be explored only by those willing to take the risk.
2. This world of imagination is fancy free and violently opposed to common sense.
3. It is our function as artists to make the spectator see our way, not his way.
4. We favour the simple expression of the complex thought. We are for the large shape because it has the impact of the unequivocal.
1. To us art is an adventure into an unknown world, which can be explored only by those willing to take the risk.
2. This world of imagination is fancy free and violently opposed to common sense.
3. It is our function as artists to make the spectator see our way, not his way.
4. We favour the simple expression of the complex thought. We are for the large shape because it has the impact of the unequivocal.
Saturday, May 24, 2014
Maria Blanchard
Maria Blanchard (1881 - 1932)
"Jeune fille lisant"Maria Blanchard was born horribly disfigured from a fall that her mother took while she was pregnant. Her disfigurements included enanismo, which is like dwarfism, a hump on her back, much like a polio victim would have and cojera, which is a deformity in the hips, making walking very difficult. She was often referred to as "the witch". This led her to live a life of solitude. However, this did not stop Maria from becoming a great artist.
"Enfant aux pâtisseries" 1924
"Fillette endormie" 1925Maria Gutierrez Blanchard was the first-born child of Conception Blanchard and Enrique Gutierrez. She was born in March of 1881, in Santander, Spain. In 1903, Maria moved to Madrid so she could study to become a painter. Her teachers included Fernando Alvarez de Sotomayor, Manuel Benedito andEmelio Sala.
In 1909, Maria's hard work and training won her a grant to continue her studies in Paris, at the Academy Vitti (Academie Vitti), where she studied under Hermengildo Anglada Camarasa, and Kees Van Dongen. While at the Academy, Kees taught her how to break out of the constraints on her artwork that she was taught while studying in Spain. It was during this time that she was introduced to Cubism, after meeting artists such as, Jacques Lipchitz and Juan Gris. These two artists greatly influenced much of Maria's future works.
"Maternité"In 1910, while in Paris, Maria received a medal in the National Exhibition of Beautiful Arts. She took second prize for her work titled "Nymphs Chaining to Sileno".
Maria returned to Madrid in 1914, where she would participate in an art exhibition called Pintores Integros. The exhibition was organized by Ramone Gomez de la Serna, a Spanish writer, and featured artwork from Jacques Lipchitz, Juan Gris, and Diego Rivera.
From 1914 to 1916, Maria taught drawing to select students in Salamanca. In the later part of 1916, she returned to Paris and began painting in the Cubist style with works such as "Woman with Fan" and "Woman with Guitar". With these two paintings, she fully embraced the methods of Cubism, using flat interlocking shapes. It is said that you could see the influence of Juan Gris and Jacques Lipchitz in these paintings.
"Repas"
"Still life with bananas" 1920In 1920, Maria began to paint in a more traditional style. Her colors were more poetic and the characters in her paintings reflected the sadness and melancholy feelings that Maria felt in her own life.
In 1921, Maria achieved success with her painting titled "The Communicant", which was displayed at the Salon des Independants in Paris. She began to sell many of her artworks after this showing. But Maria's bad luck caused her to lose the support of many of her patrons due to the financial hardships of that time.
Frank Flausch came to Maria's aid by paying her a monthly contract. This aid lasted until 1926, when Flausch died.
"Jeune Fille à la Fenêtre Ouverte" 1924
"L'Enfant au Bracelet" 1922-23
"L'Enfant à la glace" 1925Maria's health began to deteriorate from tuberculosis and the stress of day to day life, and Maria's sister Carmen and her children came to live with her. In spite of all of these challenges, Maria continued to paint, selling her paintings to the director of the Valvin Gallery in Paris, Max Berger. She also had several private patrons. This helped solve Maria's financial problems but not her health problems.
"Mujer sentada" 1928
"Le déjeuner"
"Le déjeuner" 1919
(detail)Maria sought help for her deteriorating health in religion. It is said that she even considered entering into a convent but was persuaded not to by the leaders of the convent.
During the last few years of her life, Maria once again experienced financial problems since she had to create more paintings to sell to patrons that would help her pay for her sister and her nephews. This caused Maria's health to rapidly deteriorate until she died in April of 1932. (via)
"La convalescente"
"Jeune fille à la robe blanche"
"Mujer con abanico" 1916
"Mujer ante el espejo"
"La tasse de chocolat"
"L'Enfant au chapeau" 1925Tuesday, May 20, 2014
Gerhard Richter
Gerhard Richter
Gerhard Richter is a German visual artist. Born in 1932, he 1947 he attended
Gerhard Richter is a German visual artist. Born in 1932, he 1947 he attended
night classes to study art, and worked as a sign writer in 1949. In 1950 he
decides to become a professional artist and in 1956 he had enough
commissions to be financially independent. He mainly painted murals, and
was impressed by the painters
Jackson Pollock
and Lucio Fontana.
In 1962 he made his first photo paintings. Richter first began exhibiting in Düsseldorf in 1963. In 1966 he paints his first colour charts.
Richter has produced abstract as well as photorealistic paintings, and also photographs and glass pieces. His art follows the examples of Picasso and Jean Arp in undermining the concept of the artist's obligation to maintain a single cohesive style.
In October 2012, Richter's Abstraktes Bild set an auction record price for a painting by a living artist at £21m ($34m).[4] This was exceeded in May 2013 when his 1968 piece Domplatz, Mailand (Cathedral square, Milan) was sold for $37.1 million (£24.4 million) in New York.[5]
His journey was not an easy one but at the age of 82 he is still enjoying and producing art.
Tuesday, February 25, 2014
Georgina Ormiston - a short but brilliant career
- Georgina Ormiston's artistic career was tragically short. She exhibited for the first time in 1958, but by 1967 was dead, having painted less than one hundred works.
1962 saw her paint some of her finest work; Ritual Dance, which hangs in the Pretoria Art Museum, andExtra-terrestrial Vision, which hangs in the Rupert Collection, are perfect examples of her mature style of this year and eloquently show the intensity of her Abstract Expressionism.
By 1963 Ormiston was reaching the end of her sad and strange artistic career, and encroaching illness made continuation impossible.
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
H. Martienssen, 'Georgina Ormiston', in Our Art III, (Pretoria, 1978)
Monday, February 24, 2014
Robert Motherwell
Robert Motherwell (1915-91)
Contents
|
Biography
The
American painter and printmaker Robert Motherwell was part of the New York
School of Abstract Expressionism, which also encompassed a
range of other artists including Mark Rothko (1903-70), Barnett Newman (1905-70),Philip Guston (1913-80) and Willem de Kooning (1904-97). Stylistically
Motherwell was highly changeable, and explored several different modern art movements, including Cubism, Collage,
Primitivism, Surrealism and Minimalism. Although attracted to abstract art from
the beginning, his work contains traces of figuration, as well as an
intellectual narrative inspired by history, philosophy and personal biography.
Motherwell began by studying philosophy at Harvard before taking up painting.
Unlike the shy Rothko, Motherwell was highly communicative: in
addition to a prolific painting career he also wrote essays and books which
discussed non-objective art. Switching from oil toacrylic painting in the 1960s, he often
painted large areas of canvas in his distinctive blue or black. His
long-running series of abstract paintings, entitledElegy to the
Spanish Republic are considered to be his most important work,
although he is also noted for his collage
art and prints. He is regarded as one of the finest
narrator-type abstract painters, and one of the great modern
artists of the American school
credit wikipedia.org/
credit wikipedia.org/
JMW Turner
Turner...from Expressionism to Abstraction
Turner, the artist
Short Name:
Turner
Date of Birth:
23 Apr 1775
Date of Death:
19 Dec 1851
Focus:
Paintings
Mediums:
Oil, Watercolor, Prints
Subjects:
Landscapes, Scenery
Art Movement:
Romanticism
Hometown:
London, United Kingdom
Joseph Mallord William Turner Page's Content
Joseph Mallord William Turner is often described as the 19th century's greatest landscape painter. He was fascinated by the powers of nature and transferred this passion onto canvas.
In his later works he focused on the new abilities of the machines of the industrial revolution and he led a long and successful career.
As a leading Romantic painter focusing mainly on color and lighting, Turner's works went on to later influence the Impressionist movement.
In his later works he focused on the new abilities of the machines of the industrial revolution and he led a long and successful career.
As a leading Romantic painter focusing mainly on color and lighting, Turner's works went on to later influence the Impressionist movement.
Joseph Mallord William Turner
Though Neoclassicism is generally associated with the history genre, Turner is credited with having embarked on a subject matter so great that it actually rivaled the history genre. His subject matter accounts for recording history, but in a different style than ever seen before. He used color to intensify emotion in portraying the passing of events.
Throughout his career Turner remained highly sought-after and he acquired a very large fortune from his commissions. He is remembered as an influential painter and is said to be the best landscapist of the 19th century. Turner was also a key inspiration for the Impressionist movement. He is most well-known for his original interpretations of bringing light and color to his paintings.
Joseph Mallord William Turner Biography
Style:
Early Years:
In Turner's early paintings he executed dramatic, Romantic subjects by emphasizing luminosity, and atmosphere. One can observe a more precise attention paid to architectural and natural details in his early years, as compared to his later years.
During this time, he played around with all the styles of landscape composition including historical, architectural, mountainous, pastoral and marine. His series of 71 etchings, inspired from his existing paintings and watercolors, show all of these styles (1807-1819).
Middle Years:
Turner's painting style shifted during the 1880s. His painting became more luminous and atmospheric. He began to focus more on color than the details of the actual topography. St. Mawes at the Pilchard Season (1812) is an example.
Frosty Morning (1813) is based solely on the effects of light. As time progressed he paid less attention to specific details and more to atmospheric quality created by the natural elements, such as the sun.
Advanced Years:
Still, less and less attention is given to detail, while his canvas now begin to assume a suggestion of movement. His Norham Castle, Sunrise and With A Boat Between Headlands are both examples of slightly brushed canvases, mere color notations.
Some of his more famous later paintings, he approaches the subject of modern technology. He pays a tribute to the passing age of sail ships that were soon to be replaced by steam-powered vessels. He moves away from marine subject matter, and focuses now on the railway in Rain, Steam, and Speed-the Great Western Railway (1844). This is a prime example of how Turner focused mainly on colors and the idea of fluidity through his whirling colors.
Method:
Turner's watercolor paintings provided a later influence on his technique with oil paint. He started to use oil paint in a translucent manner, similar to the effect of water color, which helped produce his original style.
Before painting a vast majority of his work, as many of his subjects (mainly water) changed so quickly, he had to do preliminary sketches. He later turned his sketches in to watercolor or oil paintings.
John Robert Cozens
London
London
Richard Wilson
Penegoes
Penegoes
Chronological Order of Influences:
As a young artist Turner (circa 1797) was employed to make reproductions of the unfinished work of the late landscapists, John Robert Cozens. Cozens, a fellow English romantic painter, had a lasting influence on Turner by his use of watercolors to create his luminous atmospheres. The similarities can be seen in the light treatment between the two artists.
Fellow landscapist, Richard Wilson, is credited as having revealed to Turner a more poetic and imaginative approach to landscape. Wilson was greatly commissioned by the aristocrats and even the royal family. His love for landscapes was said to be the cause of the loss of his fortune, as they were the least commissioned of his work.
Aside from style, his travels were the main inspiration for the content of his work. His travels throughout England, to Wales, Scotland, and through the European continent profoundly affected his work. His tour of Switzerland and France resulted in 400 drawings, which he later drew from to create beautiful painted landscapes. During his time in France he studied the Old Masters of art at the Louvre.
He took a strong liking to the marine activity, a subject often encountered in his work.
Joseph Mallord William Turner Works
Turner Quotes
"I did not paint... to be understood. I wished to show what such a scene was like."
Claude Monet
Paris
Paris
Contemporary followers:
Though his talent was widely recognized during his day, not much is said of Turner's followers during his lifetime.
Posthumous:
A widely recognized group of Turner's followers were the Impressionists. Turner is said not only to have influenced Impressionist painters, but also Impressionist musicians.
Turner's abstract portrayal of light and the elemental forces of nature laid the ground work for impressionism and post impressionism. His observed nature and he challenged the conventional formulas of representation. His fascination with light is a concept said to have transcended from the canvas to even influence Impressionist musicians.
Impressionist art is characterized by the impression of objects or a scene through reflected light. It may be obscure, repetitive in effect and displays the appeal of color. The same goes for music, which also can be vague but still somehow demonstrate color.
Followers Today:
Turner continues to be talked about in blog pages and websites. Fans continue to praise his art and comment on how influential he has been to their own art.
John Ruskin
London
London
During Life:
As a young emerging artist of the early 19th century, conservative critics disapproved of Turner's "dynamic compositions" and shocking colors. This critical outlook did not influence the public however; Turner had enough commissions to last him a lifetime. His popularity increased further during the mid 19th century after John Ruskin, English art critic, pronounced Turner as superior to all previous landscape painters in his book Modern Painters (1843).
As a young emerging artist of the early 19th century, conservative critics disapproved of Turner's "dynamic compositions" and shocking colors. This critical outlook did not influence the public however; Turner had enough commissions to last him a lifetime. His popularity increased further during the mid 19th century after John Ruskin, English art critic, pronounced Turner as superior to all previous landscape painters in his book Modern Painters (1843).
After Death:
Turner's work was still admired after his death mostly so by fellow artists, the Impressionist. They admired his work for Turner depicted a moment in an ever-changing scene (turmoil of a storm, a sunset etc) masterfully, and with a beautiful attention paid towards color and light. These characteristics greatly influenced the Impressionist movement. The rebirth of interest in Turner's art occurred in the 20th century. He is recognized today as an innovative and technically accurate painter. Appreciation for his abstract qualities and use of color and light continues to grow even today.
Volumes have been written about Romanticism and Turner's contribution to this exciting movement. Below is a selection of some recommended works for further reading about this fascinating movement in art.
Books:
• Brennan, Matthew. Wordsworth, Turner, and Romantic Landscape. Columbia, SC. : Camden House, 1987
• Finley, Gerald. "Turner and the Steam Revolution. " Gazette Des Beaux-Arts 112 (1988): 19-30
• Gaunt, William. Turner. Oxford: Phaidon Press, 1971
• Klingender, F. D. Art and the Industrial Revolution. 1947. Ed. Arthur Elton. London: Evelyn, Adams & Mackay, 1968
• Lindsay, Jack. J. M. W. Turner: A Critical Biography. London: Cory, Adams and Mackay, 1966
• Reynolds, Graham. Turner. New York: Harry N. Abrams
• Rothenstein, John, and Martin Butlin. Turner. New York: George Braziller, 1964
Books:
• Brennan, Matthew. Wordsworth, Turner, and Romantic Landscape. Columbia, SC. : Camden House, 1987
• Finley, Gerald. "Turner and the Steam Revolution. " Gazette Des Beaux-Arts 112 (1988): 19-30
• Gaunt, William. Turner. Oxford: Phaidon Press, 1971
• Klingender, F. D. Art and the Industrial Revolution. 1947. Ed. Arthur Elton. London: Evelyn, Adams & Mackay, 1968
• Lindsay, Jack. J. M. W. Turner: A Critical Biography. London: Cory, Adams and Mackay, 1966
• Reynolds, Graham. Turner. New York: Harry N. Abrams
• Rothenstein, John, and Martin Butlin. Turner. New York: George Braziller, 1964
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