I've been having a discussion with a friend involving aesthetic perception and speaking a language that goes beyond words with our art. We were talking on how difficult it is to define the aesthetic moment - that moment when the spirit of the art, touches the spirit of the viewer. How does one define the language of the spirit? I don't know exactly but that's what is stated within a work of art. Stated may not be the correct word to use... it is a visual language, one that words or definitions cannot describe. I think that there is a subjective quality within a work of art that speaks to the spirit. Yes, there are the elements and principles of art and design that when arranged evoke a certain response but I think that there is something that goes beyond the formal elements that helps to create a deep level of response or reaction. Why do people respond to visual art in such viseral ways? Why is someone moved to tears or is speechless when standing before a painting/drawing/sculpture? There are emotions, feelings, yearnings that are brought forth when viewing a work of art and these are very real and valid. It is touching something within the spirit, something that instinctively knows how to respond to it -that needs to respond to it. Of course, not every work of art elicits such a response and not everyone will respond the same way to a work of art but at some point, art moves people.
Why is it necessary for humans to create? It is necessary for it is a part of our nature. We are the only creatures on the planet who create - the rest of the animal kingdom does not create like humans do. It is intrinsic to the human condition. I truly believe that it is because we are created in the image of God and and share His creativity. When we create, we share in that creative force that has been given to us - all of us. While not everyone is an artist who paints, draws, plays or creates music, sculpts, writes, dances, etc..., everyone has the creative ability within them. Just look at the cave paintings and sculpures from ancient history to validate this point. They were not 'trained artists' but the creativity came forth in painting, clay, weaving plus other art forms. The idea of art wasn't even a concept then, it was just something natural for our ancestors to do. Craft is what we term it today for ever since the Renaissance the idea of fine art has seperated the two catagories. But within the craft distinction, they had the language of the visual. The idea of realism and abstraction were evident. Even within the customs of many different peoples around the world, craft such as weaving, basketry, painting were symbols of the spiritual. In some cultures, abstraction was the depiction of the spiritual. So these ideas are not new or belong to just the 'Fine Arts'. It is a language that has been around since the beginning of our creative being.
Why is the visual so powerful? I believe that it is because art is a spirit to spirit communication and it resonates within our being (the same could be said for other art forms but I am talking specifically of the visual arts today). As I stated previously, we were made to create and I think the visual engages our imagination in a unique way that is intrinsic to itself. It communicates so much within a short amount of time - in an instant we can receive the power of its message. As trite as it may be, the old addage is correct, a picture is worth a thousand words - and more because it speaks a language that is its own.
Well, that's enough for today. Thanks for bearing with my rambling.... until next time, take care, enjoy, and God bless.
Saturday, January 10, 2009
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Jan. 8, 2009
Well, my daughters are going back to their different schools tomorrow which makes me a little sad. I love having them home.... We'll get back to 'normal' soon but it's always a little hard when they leave.
I've been working on the horizonal format with my work and instead of creating 'totems', which has been interesting, they are looking and feeling more like books. I've been stitching pieces of thai bird's nest (tbn) paper together and then cutting the stitching open in order to see inside the 'book'. Inside the 'book' is another piece of paper that has metal pieces glued onto it. I'm finding, at least for myself, a mystery within the book by covering the metal. The metal pieces are not very visible, you really have to look inside to see what they are. That doesn't bother me because I'm trying to achieve that mystery, that ellusive quality that collage sometimes offers.
With one of the 'books' I'm using gold and iridescent white for the covers and red for the inside. The combination of colors evokes for me a sense of heaven and humanity. The stitching is with raffia grass which gives it a fun texture. I haven't decided which colors to use for my next book; I have a feeling it will be a darker one. I'm drawn to the darker palette although I do love the metalic colors.
I use metal lids from food cans for my work. I age them by burning them and then rusting them in salt water, although not every lid is rusted at this point. It hit me tonight that these lids are a very humble object - something that people just throw away without a second thought. Fr. Bill Moore, SS.CC. spoke at APU last summer and mentioned how he uses materials of the lowest denominator and I realized that these lids fall within that catagory too. The redemptive act of transforming these lowly pieces into art is so similar to what God does in our lives - when we let Him. The creative act itself joins with the creativity of the Maker of the Universe. Not that I would equate myself or any other artist for that matter as equal with the Creator, but engaging in the creativity that we've been given as humans mirrors that of the Father.
I'll post pics of them as soon as I get a good photo of them. I'm sending one of them with my pieces to APU for review from my committee. Hopefully, they will like them. I'm fascinated with them right now and find them engaging. I haven't forgotten about the totems - I have some of them in the works as well.
Well, that's it for now... take care, enjoy, and God bless.
I've been working on the horizonal format with my work and instead of creating 'totems', which has been interesting, they are looking and feeling more like books. I've been stitching pieces of thai bird's nest (tbn) paper together and then cutting the stitching open in order to see inside the 'book'. Inside the 'book' is another piece of paper that has metal pieces glued onto it. I'm finding, at least for myself, a mystery within the book by covering the metal. The metal pieces are not very visible, you really have to look inside to see what they are. That doesn't bother me because I'm trying to achieve that mystery, that ellusive quality that collage sometimes offers.
With one of the 'books' I'm using gold and iridescent white for the covers and red for the inside. The combination of colors evokes for me a sense of heaven and humanity. The stitching is with raffia grass which gives it a fun texture. I haven't decided which colors to use for my next book; I have a feeling it will be a darker one. I'm drawn to the darker palette although I do love the metalic colors.
I use metal lids from food cans for my work. I age them by burning them and then rusting them in salt water, although not every lid is rusted at this point. It hit me tonight that these lids are a very humble object - something that people just throw away without a second thought. Fr. Bill Moore, SS.CC. spoke at APU last summer and mentioned how he uses materials of the lowest denominator and I realized that these lids fall within that catagory too. The redemptive act of transforming these lowly pieces into art is so similar to what God does in our lives - when we let Him. The creative act itself joins with the creativity of the Maker of the Universe. Not that I would equate myself or any other artist for that matter as equal with the Creator, but engaging in the creativity that we've been given as humans mirrors that of the Father.
I'll post pics of them as soon as I get a good photo of them. I'm sending one of them with my pieces to APU for review from my committee. Hopefully, they will like them. I'm fascinated with them right now and find them engaging. I haven't forgotten about the totems - I have some of them in the works as well.
Well, that's it for now... take care, enjoy, and God bless.
Sunday, January 4, 2009
Jan. 4, 2009
Well, I've already been busy with things of the new year. We're going to take down the Christmas decorations this week - I hate doing that - the house is so pretty with them. I'm getting ready for the last push to create work for my thesis show in July.
Grad school has been difficult - I would expect it to be so - if it wasn't I wouldn't be getting my money's worth! But it has also been one of the most fruitful and beneficial times of my creative life. If any of you are thinking about continuing your education and pursuing a MFA - go for it. I have so enjoyed the intensity and fellowship of being in a small group of artists working to achieve the same goal. The friendships that I've created during this program have been wonderful and the artistic comradery - both from the student and teacher perspective - have been equally gratifying.
The work I'm creating now is based on the totem idea, like Grace Totem and Weighted Down. I've been stitching Thai Bird's Nest paper (which is a wonderful paper if you haven't tried it). The stitching is reminiscent of a visual journey, one that is open to interpretation. These stitches are then covered with wax leaving them obscured. My concern is not so much that the viewer know that they are there directly but that the textures and presence of them is felt within the work. I like to play with things that are hidden and revealed and covering the stitches with the encaustic does just that.
I'm also playing with the format of the totems, changing it from a vertical one to a horizontal one. The idea behind them is similar but the final outcome might not warrant the name 'Totem'. I'll have to see how it develops. I love to work in an intuitive manner, not planning out everything in the beginning but letting the ideas flow as the piece develops. I've discovered that the artwork speaks and helps me to finish it.
Well, that's it for now. Until next time... Take care, enjoy, and God bless.
Grad school has been difficult - I would expect it to be so - if it wasn't I wouldn't be getting my money's worth! But it has also been one of the most fruitful and beneficial times of my creative life. If any of you are thinking about continuing your education and pursuing a MFA - go for it. I have so enjoyed the intensity and fellowship of being in a small group of artists working to achieve the same goal. The friendships that I've created during this program have been wonderful and the artistic comradery - both from the student and teacher perspective - have been equally gratifying.
The work I'm creating now is based on the totem idea, like Grace Totem and Weighted Down. I've been stitching Thai Bird's Nest paper (which is a wonderful paper if you haven't tried it). The stitching is reminiscent of a visual journey, one that is open to interpretation. These stitches are then covered with wax leaving them obscured. My concern is not so much that the viewer know that they are there directly but that the textures and presence of them is felt within the work. I like to play with things that are hidden and revealed and covering the stitches with the encaustic does just that.
I'm also playing with the format of the totems, changing it from a vertical one to a horizontal one. The idea behind them is similar but the final outcome might not warrant the name 'Totem'. I'll have to see how it develops. I love to work in an intuitive manner, not planning out everything in the beginning but letting the ideas flow as the piece develops. I've discovered that the artwork speaks and helps me to finish it.
Well, that's it for now. Until next time... Take care, enjoy, and God bless.
Friday, January 2, 2009
Happy New Year!
Happy New Year and welcome to my blog. For those of you who don't know me, I'm an artist, an artist who works with wax and who collects. I collect rusted metal, bottle caps, sticks, bones, feathers, rocks. I like finding these little treasures and bringing them to my studio. The collecting is a ritual, a practice, something that is intrinsic to my nature. They remind me of a journey, a life’s journey, the history, the passage, and the end of it. The surprise of finding these objects engages my imagination and inspires me to create.
These objects are also discarded, thrown away without value. They are weathered, worn, and
aged. They show the passage of time in their appearance – the whitened smoothness of bone, the discolored and torn borders of cardboard, the subtle color changes of browns, rusts, and yellows with the broken and bent edges of metal. They speak the language of what once was; they speak the language of time passed. It is through this language that I give value to these objects. I engage them through my art while my art transforms them (hopefully!) into objects of beauty.
The work I create is with encaustic pigments (pigmented bees wax with damar resin). I am fascinated with the way the wax melts, moves, and submerges with itself as the heat is applied. I love how the wax sinks into the layers and the illuminosity of it. I can't get the results with any other medium. I find the combination of the natural wax and the man made rusted metal significant to our modern existance. Making art is something that I not only love to do but is something that I must do. It is a sacred act for me, like a prayer or devotion.
Well, that's it for now. Take care, enjoy, and God bless!
These objects are also discarded, thrown away without value. They are weathered, worn, and
aged. They show the passage of time in their appearance – the whitened smoothness of bone, the discolored and torn borders of cardboard, the subtle color changes of browns, rusts, and yellows with the broken and bent edges of metal. They speak the language of what once was; they speak the language of time passed. It is through this language that I give value to these objects. I engage them through my art while my art transforms them (hopefully!) into objects of beauty.
The work I create is with encaustic pigments (pigmented bees wax with damar resin). I am fascinated with the way the wax melts, moves, and submerges with itself as the heat is applied. I love how the wax sinks into the layers and the illuminosity of it. I can't get the results with any other medium. I find the combination of the natural wax and the man made rusted metal significant to our modern existance. Making art is something that I not only love to do but is something that I must do. It is a sacred act for me, like a prayer or devotion.
Well, that's it for now. Take care, enjoy, and God bless!
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