20 April 2009

etsy:
“Falling” by Kathy Panton, etsy seller KathyPanton

This is a print of a gouache painting by Kathy Panton entitled “Falling.” The composition acts on three main elements: color, shape, and movement. The color is quite striking. It’s bold, bright, and saturated. The red, magenta, orange, yellow, and green are present in their purest most saturated hues. And these colors pop because they are presented against each other in the context of how they mix as colors. The muddier, duller, earthier tones that occur when saturated colors mix cause contrast. Another form of contrast is shape: the globular dot-like clusters of color that occur on the top half of the picture plane. They are organic and almost cellular. And they morph into a plane of a different and more abstract presentation of color at the bottom half of the composition. This morphing of shape and simultaneous change of color creates movement within the piece. It’s a device that directs the viewer’s eyes from one end of the composition to the other, from top to bottom.
available at:
KathyPanton: http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=6554486

On a technical note for those of you wondering what the difference between gouache and watercolor is: gouache paint is like watercolor paint but has a chalk substance added to it so that the paint is more opaque as opposed to being transparent.

song:
“Roam” by the B-52s from the album “Cosmic Thing”

artist: Wassily Kandinsky
Wassily Wassilyevich Kandinsky 16 December 1866 – 13 December 1944) was a famous 20th Century artist, known primarily for his abstract paintings, he was also a print maker and art theorist. He was born in Moscow, Russia. He studied law and economics at the University of Moscow. He became a professor at University of Dorpat, but had become so fascinated by art that he left for Munich to enroll in Anton Azbe's private painting school. He went on to study at the Munich Acedemy of the Arts. He formed Der Blaue Reiter (translation: The Blue Rider) with Franz Marc and other German expressionists. He is best known for his expressionist works, focusing on color and abstract patterns, and for the theory he postulated in his published book “Concerning the Spiritual in Art” about the relationship between music and painting.
artcyclopedia
artchive
wikipedia
wassilykandinsky.net
Kandinsky
Glyphs

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30 March 2009

etsy:
“All Life is An Experiment” by Blenda Tyvoll, etsy seller blendastudio

This piece is a limited edition print of a mixed media painting by Blenda Tyvoll, etsy seller blendastudio. The piece depicts two birds on the plane of a 4 X 5 grid of squares which is presented with collage elements and lettering that reads “all life is an experiement.” Color is one of the primary active visual components of the piece. The viewer’s eye is drawn to the pure cerulean blue and crimson red hues of the birds. The clarity with which those colors are presented contrasts with the overall tone of the background grid of squares, which while is contains many isolated areas of pure color is mostly a combination of beige, gray, and ochre tones. The background, while it has blips of bright color, is duller and more subdued. However, those bright blips of color in the background, many of which are floral patterned elements of collage, act in concert with the color of the bird to keep the composition active, drawing the viewer’s eye throughout the entirety of the piece. Further directing the eye of the viewer is the contrast presented between light and dark color through the use of black outlines or the visual suggestion of black outlines. The selective use of black draws the eye towards certain areas; were every square of the grid or every contour of the birds outlined with the same intensity, then the outline would be less effective in drawing the eye to certain shapes with a certain emphasis. In other words, black outline is presented in the form of intellectual line. Black or dark color is also presented in a limited fashion, which makes it visually emphatic, like the presence of sepia tones at the top and bottom of the piece (more so than in the middle of the composition). The application of emphatic colors is very selective and capricious; it’s intentional or intrinsic without being patterned or clichéd. It also contributes to the emotional tone of the piece, which is capricious and whimsical, but also mature and sublime.
available at:
blendastudio: http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5748726

song:
“True Colors” by Cyndi Lauper from the album “True Colors”

artist: Henri Matisse
Henri-Émile-Benoît Matisse (31 December 1869 – 3 November 1954) was a French painter known mostly as a Fauvist. He was born in Le Cateau-Cambrésis, Nord-Pas-de-Calais, France. He studied law in Paris, and worked as a court administrator in Le Cateau-Cambrésis. He became interested in painting while convalescing from a bout with appendicitis. In Paris he studied at the Académie Julian. He painted in a style that emphasized color, line, and two-dimensionality. And exhibited with artists using a similar style; they came to be known as Fauvists through the critique of an art critic, referring to the work of one of their shows as "Donatello au milieu des fauves!" (translation: Donatello among the wild beasts). He is best known for such works as “ The Dessert: Harmony in Red (The Red Room)”, oil on canvas 1908, and “The Dance” oil on canvas 1909.
National Gallery of Art
Matisse Museum
artcyclopedia
artchive
wikipedia
artelino
Matisse.net

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23 March, 2009

etsy:
“Rooted” by Jen McCleary, etsy seller JenMcCleary

This is a print of a digital collage by Jen McCleary. Stylistically, it is an abstract landscape. The visual cues of color planes in the work suggest the dichotomy of a ground (the green portion at the bottom) and a sky (the bluish-white portion at the top). Those two primary planes of color juxtaposed with the electrical tower, organic objects, and the suggested visual of sedentary rock or brick further the indication of a landscape. The electrical tower, brick / rock, and organic matter are all things naturally found outside. That the electrical tower and the shape created by the rock / brick are the darkest components of the piece. In that they contrast against the other visual elements and present in such a linear fashion, they work to direct the eye of the viewer to the point of the composition on which they intersect. The organic matter is what exists at that point; where the electrical tower permeates the ground, as though it were a cross-section, and morphs into organic matter which moves through the rock / brick. An apt visual, in that the title of the work is “Rooted.”
available at:
JenMcCleary: http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=95241

song:
“The Hissing of Summer Lawns” by Joni Mitchell, from the album “The Hissing of Summer Lawns”

artist: Raoul Hausmann
Raoul Hausmann (July 12, 1886 – February 1, 1971) born in Vienna, Austria, was a founding member of the Berlin Dada movement. He was a poet, painter, photomonteur, pampleteer, and partner to fellow Dada artist Hannah Hoch. He claims to have invented photomontage, and is possibly best known for his ‘poster poems.’ Examples of such being: “ABCD” (collage, 1923-4) and “The Art Critc” ( photomontage, 1919-20)
raoulhausmann.com
artcyclopedia
artchive
wikipedia
dadasoph

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16 March 2009

etsy:
“sprouts” by Caroline Moore, etsy seller sixhours

This piece is a photograph by Caroline Moore, etsy seller sixhours. The photograph is entitled “sprouts.” It’s a visual metaphor, where the title of the piece acts on the visual components to evoke the surreal. The image is of a bowl that is filled with brussel sprouts and doll heads, sitting on a table. That the bowl has an ornate and symmetrical pattern imprinted on it’s soft white surface, and that the table on which it sits is covered with a white lace tablecloth are visual cues. They indicate a setting which is formal to some degree. And that the bowl is filled with brussel sprouts (and doll heads of the same scale) is also indicative of symbolism congruent with the atmosphere of the setting. Furthermore, that the doll heads are representative of a style and a time, through their shape, the style of their hair and accessories, and their blink-eyes. All these visual cues connote a symbolism of time or an era, particularly mid-twentieth century. However, the image is surreal in that it presents an image of a course of a meal juxtaposed with traditionally non-edible items which fit visually on the basis of scale.
available at:
sixhours: http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5600674

song:
“Doll Parts” by Hole, from the album “Live Through This.”

artist: Terry Gilliam
Terrence Vance Gilliam (born 22 November 1940) is a writer, illustrator, animator, director, filmmaker, and member of Monty Python. He was born in Medicine Lake, Minnesota. He attended Occidental College in Los Angeles, CA, where he majored in political science. He worked briefly as a writer / illustrator for Mad Magazine before emigrating to Britain. He obtained British citizenship in 1968; he held dual American / British citizenship until 1996, when he renounced his American citizenship. In 1969 he joined Monty Python. He directed or co-directed many of their movies. He has directed such notable films as “The Fisher King” (1991), “Twelve Monkeys” (1995), “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas”.
terrygilliam.com
wikipedia
tideland
imdb
Dreams
pythonline

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9 March 2009

etsy:
“Since I came back” by Jennifer Z. Roszell, etsy seller jzroszell

This piece is a print of an original mixed media painting by Jennifer Z. Roszell. The image acts on a dichotomy of that which is soft and romantic and that which is modern and exact. The modernity is expressed primarily through silhouette forms with different treatments in the same shade. The hummingbird and flowers contrast most from the lightness of the background, acting equally as graphic elements, but the hummingbird is patterned where as the flowers are not. And the pattern of the hummingbird is modern; even as a very truncated and cropped sample it displays a stylized shape of peonies in flat contrasting tones. In contrast the background of the image is a menagerie of pattern elements that are softer and more classical in their image canon and presentation. There is sheet music on paper that is yellow with age, soft muted floral patterns, muted pastel paint treatments, text presented in a typewriter font also on aged paper, a fleur de lis, and a large portion graphically elegant handwriting also presented on aged paper. And these separate pattern elements of the background are presented in different and abstract shapes, portions, and juxtapositions to blend together and contrast from one another. And yet in the larger composition, these elements remain primarily in the background, allowing the bird and flowers (and bubbles) to occupy the foreground.
available at:
jzroszell: http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=108075

song:
“Comin' Back Soon (The Bereft Man's Song)” by Crash Test Dummies from the album “The Ghosts That Haunt Me”

artist: Edward Hopper
Edward Hopper (July 22, 1882 – May 15, 1967) was an American artist who painted in a “realist” style. He was born in Nyack, New York. He attended the New York Institute of Art and Design. His paintings are often characterized by their realistic portrayal of contemporary American life. His most famous work is ‘Nighthawks” (oil on canvas, 1942).
artcyclopedia
artchive
wikipedia
National Gallery of Art
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Museum of Fine Art (Boston)

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2 March 2009

etsy:
“Storybook Romance” by Alyson Jones, etsy seller AlysonJonesPrints

This piece is a print of a photo composite by Alyson Jones. The image depicts an open book sitting on a wooden surface, where two characters are liberating themselves from the confines of the pages of the book. It is a visual metaphor. Since the image is a photo-composite, the majority of the detail of the print is literal. The dichotomy of the metaphor is the juxtaposition of that which is photo-realistic and that which is illustrative. The image literally depicts photo-realistic characters removing themselves from an illustration — as the characters leave the two-dimensional plane of the page they transition from a flat illustrative treatment to a literal photo treatment. Once they have left the page, in part or as a whole, a white silhouette of their shape indicates their absence. Another visual indicator of the metaphor is the use of shadow. The illustration from which the characters are leaving depicts no shadows. Where as the portions of the characters that have left the plane of that illustration cast a shadow on it. This works in concert with the fact that the book itself casts a shadow on the surface on which it sits. The overall composition presents a consistent treatment of the depiction of light on form. The use of title “Storybook Romance” provides additional symbolism, in that this is a happy story.
available at:
AlysonJonesPrints: http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=6851520

song:
“Take On Me” by a-ha from the album “Hunting High and Low”

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artist: Maxfield Parrish
Maxfield Parrish (July 25, 1870 – March 30, 1966) is an American artist best known for his illustrations and prints. He was born as Frederick Parrish in Philadelphia, PA. but took on the surname of his paternal grandmother, Maxfield, as his professional name. He attended Haverford College and the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. He began his career as an illustrator with a commission to illustrate Kenneth Grahame’s The Walls Were as of Jasper in 1897. His works are characterized by their realism, clarity, and technical mastery. His pieces, being illustrative, often combined the fantastical with the tangible. The phrase “Parrish blue” is an homage to the intense cobalt hue that is characteristic in many of his works.

artpassions.net
The Parrish House
Maxfield Parrish Online
artcyclopedia
wikipedia

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23 February 2009

etsy:
“From Me to You” by Shelley Lane Kommers, etsy seller OiseauxNoir

This piece is a print of an original collage by etsy seller Shelley Lane Kommers. The composition depicts a cropped silhouette of a woman with four hearts positioned on the image plane so that they appear to be coming out of her mouth. The overall shape of the image plane is essentially square. However, a thread outline continues outside the boundaries of the square image plane. On the image plane this thread outline is just that — an outline — it follows the shape of the silhouette of the woman. But outside of the image plane this thread outline meanders abstractly; instead of doing something visually typical like completing the outline of the silhouette. The white thread acts differently outside the image plane than it does within the image plane. The silhouette of the woman presents itself as separate from the background by virtue of pattern. The silhouette consists of a shape cut out of an object, particularly a map of central France; where as the background appears to be a piece of paper with mechanical notes altered with paint to contrast the silhouette in terms of lack or obfuscation of pattern. In that the map is visually obvious as a map; it presents a typical pattern of interconnecting lines, geometric and abstract shapes, and words. The map as silhouette is presented sideways (so that the traditional text is vertically oriented instead of horizontally). From a visual standpoint the most dominant lines on the map trisect the entire shape of the silhouette, ultimately intersecting at the cheek of the woman. Also present near their point of intersection is a portion of the map that graphically represents a metropolitan area; this is visually located at the part of the silhouette where the eye would be. This creates a focal point. Also, from a point of color contrast works in collusion with another visual focal point: the four hearts. Where as the lines are red and the metropolitan area is a block of beige, the hearts are orange; as opposed to everything else on the image plane which is essentially white or very light in tone so that it’s almost white. The hearts are visually notable by means of color contrast, shape, and placement. They are juxtaposed to the silhouette so that they appear to be descending from the mouth. In this visual treatment the parts if the image act in concert with the title of the piece: “From Me to You.” As if to indicate that the silhouette representative of a woman is wishing someone by virtue of the visual presentation of symbolic hearts some communication of love.
available at:
OiseauxNoir: http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5890086

song:
“From Me to You” by the Beatles, from the album "Past Masters Volume 1"

artist: Jasper Johns
Jasper Johns, Jr. (born May 15, 1930) is a contemporary American artist known mostly for his paintings and their iconography of flags, targets, letters & numbers. He was born in Georgia, and grew up in Allendale, South Carolina. He attended the Universiy of South Carolina for three semester before leaving for New York and a brief stint at the Parsons School of Design. In New York he met Robert Rauschenberg, with whom he became a friend & contemporary. Having come to prominence during the movement of Abstract Expressionism, he is sometimes referred to as that, he is also known as a Pop Artist or Neo-Dadaist. He is most famous in art history tomes for his painting “Flag” (1954) of an American flag, and for “Painted Broze” (1960), his bronze casting of two Ballantine Ale cans.

artcyclopedia
artchive
wikipedia
MoMA
Matthew Marks Gallery

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