THE THINKING MAN'S ART

CONCEPTUAL ART

Conceptual art is just that, it is based on a concept or idea. For many years I was not sure how to define myself or my art until I read about conceptual art. I have always been a teacher and a researcher.  I have loved both and often one generates the other.  I love thinking about how to relay an idea or concept to others.  Though much of my art is done intuitively that only happens when I get to the actual act of putting the material together.

Rene Magritte, Surrealist  

 Actually much research and thought goes into my art, as if I were writing a paper to present, or a class to teach.  I love learning and sharing what I have learned.  Being an art teacher for 37 years I do a good bit of both.  I learned early on the more I researched a lesson or a unit to teach students the more excited I was and the more the enthusiasm carried over to the students.  My research and my act of learning excited them and made them want to investigate and create.  

Ai Weiwei   Chinese Conceptual Artist
 from google image for  educational purposes

For all the years I taught I was an artist before and after, it was essential to me to always do art and share what I made. Working with conceptual art let me go back and forth between my world of teaching and my world of being an artist.  So I learned what I was doing was called Conceptual art and the realm I was working in was Surrealism.  These two areas gave me the path to doing intellect based art.  I could never be nor want to be a representational artist.  
Below are pictures form the Dali Museum in St. Petersburg, Florida.  The architectural firm that designed the new Dali museum incorporated his interest in the double helix that is often found in his paintings. But the building design only allowed for one helix though.  

Of the last three conceptual art pieces I have done, one was 2 dimensional and two were  3 dimensional assemblage.  Both were created working from a theme for art membership shows at the Morean art center and one for the Dali Museum for a benefit. The piece for the Dali was done with Dali's complete history of Surrealism and his different periods in mind.  The theme was "Liquid Desires" working off many levels of meaning.  I responded with a piece named "Wet Dreams".  Freud's psychological theories were very prominent in the work of the surrealists. And in the piece I entered I included many symbols that would trigger unconscious meaning in the viewers mind. 

details of  assemblage "Wet Dreams"

The present piece I am working on will be conceptual and have multiple levels of meaning as well.  I am beginning with an African head and headdress base and then moving into universal themes and present day issues.  At least that is where my mind is now.  I am working with a sub theme of aphasia in on a personal level and on a universal level of the challenges of communication. The head itself lends one to think of speaking, communication, and reasoning.  African headdress often convey additional meaning in the details of what is woven or sewn or sculpted into the headdress.    Bits and parts of pieces of everyday life, a bit of a metal tag, a piece of cloth, a watch band, bullet casings, and what ever seems of value or to be honored.  It is a part of the celebration of life in the African culture where art is not a separate entity unto itself.  
I have been very interested in the concept of the brain, its function and how the separate parts of the brain can work independently when damaged.  My Mother had a stroke at 90 and had been having small TIA's for a few years before, my Grandmother also had a stroke and had brain damage.  In both cases I was and am intimately involved.  In addition half my career dealt with teaching special education with multiple handicaps and levels of thinking.  How the human brain functions is of great interest to me and I am in awe of how complex an organ it is.  
The piece I am working on now will at some level respond to all of  these issues.  It is still forming in my mind until it begins to form a shape and gel.  How will I work in all the ideas I have in mind and on all the varying levels at this point is still a mystery to me.  I would would like to incorporate a video loop somehow and/or layers of transparencies of images. The pieces below are the beginning of the collection of items I have collected or bought that I will be working with.

Head for designing hats

Antique Gas Mask

Ship building molds

*all highlighted areas are to click for more information

An Artist Date Day

Cortez, Florida is on Florida's West coast, the best coast us West Coasters think. The sand is white and like powder, the water often a turquoise clear blue and always warmer allowing one to swim almost year round.  This little fishing village is still a working village.  On this day it was crowded with tourists that no doubt had read the article in the New York Times about Cortez and the Starfish Co.  restaurant and seafood market and about Captain Katie and her boat tour of the mangroves with her two  cocker spaniels who accompany her.  We ate on the docks and had smoked mullet either fried or blackened, a corona beer with a wedge of lime and with this view and friends a perfect day! 

Cortez, Florida  on the docks of Starfish Co. Restaurant and Sea Food Market on the West Coast of Florida

I almost always have my camera with me and if I don't I have my iPhone camera.  I take shots that draw my interest or attention for any reason.  I never know if they will show up in my art work or not, but I keep them in iPhoto in case I might want to go back and use them as a resource. The pictures below are from the dock and area around the Starfish Co. Restaurant and seafood market.  I loved the no dogs sign.  There was something childlike and primitive about it, but allow tattoo like.  I don't do tattoos, but this would interest me if I did, but mine would say dogs, yes!  

The next series of photos were of a beautiful elegant Great Blue Heron.  They are almost like a statue or sculpture. They can stand so still for so long, concentrating on their next meal that is usually very unsuspecting of its fate.  Their colors and patterning could not have been better designed as if a master artist created it.  They travel by themselves and can be very aggressive with other birds.  That sharp long orange beak can become a very effective spear for fish and other birds.

The first photo was from further away showing more of its surroundings, the second was a closer shot concentrating on the texturing of the next feathering and subtle change in coloration.  It almost looks like a still life at this point.

This third photo of our Great Blue has been worked a great deal on iPhoto.  I tuned up the saturation of color level as high as I could and increased the contrast.  I also upped the exposure level so the colors all show clearly.  Now it almost takes on a post card or cartoon look.  It looks more real than real.

This series of photos is in the seafood market itself.  It is so old time Florida, fishing village coastal.  I was on my way to the bathroom and still had my camera with me.  I guess that is obsessive, but look at the interesting shots I got. 

It was so rustic and yet someone was having fun being creative and playful.  I love the creative spirit of the individual..you do not need to be an artist to be an artist.  Anyone can be creative and any one can allow themselves to play with 

color, texture, elements and shapes.

This became a wonderful still life  of propeller with skeleton, an odd pairing.

Leaded weights on a line…shapes, line, and color

Wharf rope, thick and braided 

This is just one day of shots, playing with what interested me.  You can do the same.  There are many new programs out for iPhone like juxtaposer and snapseed.  Just google phone photo apps and find the ones you like.  There is so much out there to choose from that allows everyone to have advanced photo programs at their fingertips for lots of play and creativity.

rusted texturing on a barrel evidently exposed to salt water

PLAY, LET YOUR SELF EXPRESS 

YOURSELF, BE YOUR OWN ARTIST…GO 

ON AN ARTIST DATE ALA JULIA CAMERON 

AND THE ARTIST WITHIN!

BE AN ARTIST TODAY!

TODAY IS A DAY TO DO ART, TO BE AN ARTIST, TO THINK LIKE AN ARTIST, TO GO TO A MUSEUM, TO VISIT A GALLERY, TO GO TO YOUR STUDIO, TO GO ON AN ARTISTS' DATE, TO WALK IN NATURE AND OBSERVE, TO LOOK AT THE WORLD IN A DIFFERENT WAY!  

17 WITH FLAT GREEN AND RUST

RIVETS 

FALL LANDSCAPE

ART HISTORIAN AT GEORGE OHR MUSUEM 

GEORGE OHR MUSEUM

ANHINGA 

OXFORD EXCHANGE TAMPA

RESTORATION, LOOKING CLOSELY

SKIMMERS  WITH SAND AND SHADOW

MANGROVE BAY

CREATE  ASHEVILLE SIGNAGE

JACOB LAWRENCE 

WASHINGTON D.C. WINTER SEPIA

TODAY YOU CAN BE AN ARTIST, TODAY YOU CAN CREATE, TODAY YOU CAN APPRECIATE BEAUTY, TODAY YOU CAN LOOK CLOSELY AND SEE IN A WAY YOU NEVER HAVE!

WASHINGTON D.C. PUBLIC SULPTURE

FIRE FOR RAKU FIRING

RAKU 

SEAN STARWARS 

SEAN STARWARS

BUBBLE DOG NEW ORLEANS

OGDEN MUSEUM

HIBISCUS AND STAMEN IN PINK

SUNSET OVER THE BLUE RIDGE MOUNTAINS

FALL LEAVE IN REPOSE

LOOK  SEE EXPERIENCE FEEL OBSERVE

THE ART WALK

Community and Art-A Very Good Thing!

from google image for educational purposes only

I am not sure whether your community does this or not, but it is a great idea.  Get art shops, galleries, artists studio's, and museums to all open up on one night a month.  It promotes community gathering and it helps a town economically.  So it is a win-win situation.  Tonight my area is having one of their monthly art walks and I plan to attend and take friends.
Even if you live in a very small town or village you can organize something similar to this.  Get people who sell food, their crafts and art, get people in your neighborhood out to meet, eat and talk.  I don't care how small a gathering is, you can make it work.  And it is a good thing, a positive thing, and a peaceful thing.  It doesn't have to involve politics, arguments, violence or disagreement-all things our world is too full of.  Build positive good things in your town or village and I promise you it will reap rewards, like a pebble dropped in a pond, the good will ripple outward wider and wider.
And tomorrow my in my post I will share my experience with you.

THE OUTDOOR ART SHOW, AN ADVENTURE

Gasparilla        Art            Festival(click)

Largest Outdoor Art Festival

Photography booth

I admire anyone who does outdoor festivals.  I did shows for many years. I did them for  years on top of a full teaching career.  I remember it very well.  On Wednesday nights after working all day at school I would come home and start the loading of my fan.  The process took two evenings, then I would be ready to head out on Saturday morning to where ever the show was to set up early before the judges came around.  Usually I arrived at 7am because the booth set up took two hours.  Then you wait for the judges to come around and view your work.  You are already tired before the show starts.  Once the booth is set up and the public comes, you are on stage talking about your work, answering questions of all kinds, and pretending not to listen to criticism or remarks that could have been made out of your presence.  Next your job is to sit with your work all day and be a meeter greeter and translator of your work.  It is not for the thin skinned, people will say anything and oddly enough that is a good thing.  Once you learn to know the remarks people make come from their level of understanding of art, and that not everyone is going to like everything then you learn not to take the criticism personally.  It builds a strength and self confidence in you as an artist that is hard to get anywhere else. 

I think the  statue is  Balancing, but I just love the whole photo,
like she is on a runway taking off and the man to left is so unaware.

Showing your work whether at outdoor shows, galleries, or other venues is an important step in being an artist.  You can paint or sculpt your heart out, but only when you take the risk to show to others that you truly gain self confidence in your self and your work.   for several years on top of a full teaching career.

  I remember the process very well.  On Wednesday nights after working all day at school, I would come home and start the loading of my fan.  The process took two to three evenings, then I would be ready to head out on Saturday morning to what ever town the show was in to set up early before the judges came around.  Usually I arrived at 7am because the booth set up took two hours and judges walked around before 9am.

  Then you wait for the judges to come around and view your work.  You are already tired before the show starts.  Once the booth is set up and the public comes, you are on stage talking about your work, answering questions of all kinds, and pretending not to listen to criticism or remarks that could have been made out of your presence.  Next your job is to sit with your work all day and be a meeter greeter and translator of your work.  It is not for the thin skinned, people will say anything and oddly enough that is a good thing. 

 Once you learn to know the remarks people make come from their level of understanding of art, and that not everyone is going to like everything then you learn not to take the criticism personally.  It builds a strength and self confidence in you as an artist that is hard to get anywhere else. Showing your work whether at outdoor shows, galleries, or other venues is an important step in being an artist.  You can paint or sculpt your heart out, but only when you take the risk to show to others that you truly gain self confidence in your self and your work.  

Another element in showing outdoors is the elements, the weather.  It can be cold and windy, hot and still, it can be raining and wind gusts that blow your work and tent down.  The sun can beat down and humidity can make a small atrium out of your glass framed work.  

Lover looking the minarets of Tampa University the art show is packed.

So, when I did outdoor shows, after the set up, I sat with my work until closing on Saturday, then came the securing of the tent before you could leave and go stay in your hotel.  On Sunday up again, off to the show to sit to closing.  I would then take it down, pack it in the van, drive home and unload.  About 9pm I was finished and ready for bed, and up at 5:45am the next day for school.  It was quite a routine, so I lasted about 3 years and then decided it was indoor shows from then on for me.  

I enjoyed meeting other artists and sharing.  I enjoyed meeting people who truly loved art and talking with interest and curiosity about my work. I also knew I was growing as an artist to show and take criticism in stride.

But it was not easy, so I truly admire people who do this for a living.



Mary Proctor (click for more information) is what we call an Outsider Artist.  She is self taught and her works her truly her own unique vision and expression of her creativity.  She is in several books on folk artist in America.  She is a charming, bubbly, smiling person who works hard to show her work, no matter great personal challenges in her life.  I love her work and you will too.  She lives in Tallahassee, the capital of Florida, so close to Alabama it is oft called lower Alabama. 

Mary Proctor is an Outsider artist of some renown.

Lyn Whipple(click) is a delightful person who is very engaging and a very creative artist.  Her husband John Whipple is a wonderful painter!  John's Mother is a jeweler and artist.  It is all in the family!

Lyn Whipple tries out a banjo while I buy a piece of her work

A cool windy day, storm clouds gathering, but the show is still packed with people.  The arts win today!

Large hand thrown and hand built piece.df    

Gasparilla Art Show is one of the South Largest Outdoor
Art Shows, packed even on stormy days.

Even Dogs become works of art.

I hope when you go to outdoor shows this has given you an appreciation of the hard work the artists go through to be able to share their work with you.  And if you wonder why art cost as much as it does then it helps to know fees for booths and judging are high, that hotels and gas are part of the artist cost, as well as materials, time in the studio, advertising of work, and many other hidden fees.  And if you still think it is too much, look in where the artist park their cars and see what they are driving.  There are no Mercedes or Jaguars there, usually old vans that bump along and carry lots of art!