Epiphany

'Due Date' - Matisse homage painting by Leith O'Malley 42 x 29cm

Oil + collage on 300gsm acid free paper.

I have a quite rare and interesting book in my collection about the French artist Henri Matisse written by John Jacobus. I bought it at a library sale many years ago. It still has (well used to have) the library borrowers card in the rear of the book along with some hand written due dates. 

There are some beautiful colour plates within the book, one of which inspired me to create my own interpretation of a painting by Matisse titled ‘The Piano Lesson’ which currently hangs in the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

I decided to include the borrowers card within the painting itself and create something that obviously references Henri’s original painting but at the same time with my own personal spin.

My homage painting is called 'Due Date'.

Hope you like it.

By the way, if you would like to purchase this work on paper, please message me here and I’ll give you anymore detail you need along with the price/postage.

“Valentine”, 2022, oil on linen

(“Braid”, 2022, oil on linen and detail shot)

The two colorful paintings above are from Andrea Belag’s 2023 solo exhibition, Currents, at Bienvenu Steinberg & J in New York.

From the gallery’s press release-

Since the 1990s, Belag has constantly modified her approach to abstraction through various transitions and mutations. Her internal genealogy matters as much as her relationship to a tradition of abstraction. In the words of artist and critic Julian Kreimer: “it’s not hard to metaphorize those traces, lines left behind by larger swaths of paint that were wiped away, lines whose own shifting colors reveal how they are made by what they’ve touched and changed. But as with so many of Belag’s paintings, the point isn’t to nail down the metaphors (…) Belag’s work becomes an edge condition for painting without flirting with minimalist near-nothingness; it tests out where beauty can emerge, and what we can get to work. It opens up from a few wiped shapes into a sophisticated object able to transport one into a reverie about slippage, slipping away, the here and not hereness of life, death, and the varieties of love”.

Geometry and order have progressively given place to swirling swaths of color, solidity replaced by suspended motion. Painting is an all consuming action. She paints standing up, leaning over and often walking around the canvas placed horizontally. It starts with the arm and as she walks around the canvas her whole body gets involved. Transparent colors on the surface are not fixed and can create form or dissolve into light. She rubs, smudges, and scraps to create translucent, softly luminous surfaces where the brushwork is strikingly visible. “My paintings are contemporary because I paint in the here and now. It’s unavoidable. The artists I feel indebted to are Henri Matisse, Mary Heilmann, Joan Mitchell, Gerhard Richter, Bill Traylor, and Japanese Zen gardens. Style is a dead-end, but I have a point of view. I love transparency and the touch of materials, so I have created a way of painting where I make this possible. I use mostly transparent pigments and fine linen, and I paint wet into wet. The marks are on one layer of the painted surface with very little overlap or pentimento. Color makes space and light come through the paint and emotion comes through as well. There is fear and desire in painting, and that’s addictive. Haptics are the touchstones.” (Andrea Belag, 2023)

Her current solo exhibition, Twombly’s Green, opened this week at Steven Harvey Fine Art Projects.

From their press release-

This grouping of work is, as the title suggests, inspired by Belag’s recollection of Cy Twombly’s use of the color Hooker’s green in his “Pond Paintings.” She writes-

These paintings are inspired by my memory of Twombly’s green and white paintings that I first saw in the Menil Collection in Houston in 2015. I was stunned by his paint handling and his use of Hooker’s Green. Since then, I learned he painted quickly and directly with his hands. Discovering the “Pond Paintings” was unexpected and I kept thinking about them. Hooker’s green is opaque and dark. But the dark value doesn’t overwhelm the hue. Instead, there is richness and depth without a trace of yellow. When I identified the pigment and started to paint with it, I felt a vibration. There was a time when painting with green was taboo and now it is ubiquitous. Is green in the zeitgeist?

All painted within the last twelve months, these works are a continuation of the artist’s practice of lush, energetic abstraction. Playing with circularity in an ongoing attempt to “get away from the grid,” Belag uses color as forms in space, bodies set in motion. Citing foundational inspirations in Matisse and Guston, who she later studied with at the New York Studio School, Belag’s work can also be related to vanguard practitioners of 80s abstraction such as Bill Jensen, David Reed and Mary Heilmann. Her immediate peers Christopher Wool and Joyce Pensato are also compass points in the stripped down dedication to raw painterly brio they share.

This exhibition is on view until 4/13/24.

Nice, day 2, part 1

I started my only full day in Nice by heading to the Musee Matisse.

Like all of the museums I went to on the trip, it was relatively small, but had a nice collection. I liked that it was all arranged in roughly chronological order, so you could trace Matisse's artistic evolution through impressionism and fauvism to the distinctive style that's associated with him now.

The museum also had a collection of his collection of art and artifacts from his travels, which was cool because you could see how his style was influenced by the things he surrounded himself with.

In addition to exhibiting Matisse's work, the museum also exhibits the work of artists who were inspired by Matisse. The artist currently being exhibited was Tom Wesselmann, who creates large, lasercut steel silhouettes that are both inspired by Matisse and also often include Matisse's paintings as background objects. I liked seeing his planning sketches, proof that even successful artists screw things up a lot before they get them right.

Matisse is buried nearby, in the Cimiez Monastery's cemetery. I visited his grave, where people have left little bits and bobs behind: rocks, pinecones, pieces of broken ceramic, and a plant.

In appreciation of the color in Japanese woodblock prints

In this season of giving thanks, I would like to jot down my appreciation for the visual spectacles that we enjoy on a daily basis here in the islands: the brilliant flora, majestic sunsets, and that curious aerial phenomenon that we call a rainbow. Vibrantly colorful artworks undoubtedly have similarly profound psychological impact, but in Asia for many centuries, such art was not always easy to find. In Japan up until the late 19th century, woodblock prints could only be displayed briefly in order to avoid their colors (derived from such organic dyes as safflower and bellflower) fading from exposure to ultraviolet light. Vibrant textile dyes, furthermore, were revered so deeply that, in order to maintain social order, government officials enacted sumptuary laws that forbade commoners from displaying them in their clothing!

Over the past two centuries, we have witnessed a remarkable evolution of color throughout the world. A particularly dramatic chapter in that history occurred 150 years ago, when German chemists discovered that the chemical aniline could be extracted from tar to produce a variety of synthetic dyes. Mauveine (mauve) was created in 1856, followed by a dozen others within the course of a few decades, including rosaniline and pararosaniline (similar shades of magenta), methyl violet, eosine (pink), and xylidine Ponceau (scarlet). From the 1860s through the 1880s, these dyes were introduced to Japan, and the palette of woodblock prints suddenly began to intensify. In 1868, when a constitutional monarchy replaced Japan’s military government, many artists were inspired to use such newly available imported pigments to document their country’s transformation.

Some of the first works to use synthetic pigments are currently on view in the Robert F. Lange Gallery for Japanese Prints. The wall text in this print rotation, as implied by its title—Celebrating the 150th Anniversary of the Meiji Restoration and Immigration to Hawaii—deals mainly with historical context. When you enter the gallery for the first time, however, the first thing that you will notice is the vibrancy of these prints. Fans of traditional ukiyo-e might find them a bit startling, but bear in mind that any technological breakthrough (in this case, the discovery of aniline dyes) is followed by a period of erratic experimentation through which artists develop mastery of the materials. Think of these prints as the Japanese equivalent to Fauvism, the avant-garde painting movement that began in 1905 and in which Henri Matisse (1869–1954) rose to fame. Not surprisingly, Matisse and his fellow Fauvists credited Japanese prints as the source of their inspiration.

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Louis as Art Meme Tag Game: Modern Version

Based on this post and this original game.

Pop Art (inspired by sources in pop and contemporary culture):

Roy Lichtenstein: Look, Mickey

Liam teaches Louis to fish

Contemporary Landscape (depictions of outdoors incorporating expressive, gestural techniques, emotional elements):

Wayne Thiebaud: Green River Lands

Louis in yellow Umbro hoodie

Contemporary Sculpture (three dimensional, often abstract, alluding to popular and contemporary culture):

Henri Matisse: nude reclining

Louis Tomlinson: Princess reclining

I’ll tag: @a-kiss-is-not-a-promise, @adam-my-adam, @nunyasthings, @currently-amazing, @mycozyjumper, @venusrobots, @thebus1, @icarusfallsforwalls, @fearlesszouis, @fearlessslive, @rainbowboy, @berlinini, @scorpiorisingdyke, @buscrimes, @copyofacopyofacopymp3, @camellia-lily, @shutterbug2012, @lwtfilm

Play - playing with time - time capsule

Photos I’ve taken of the piece of work I’m currently creating ( time capsule ) ,taking inspiration from Henri Matisse and how he explored mixing geometric shapes with biomorphic shapes , I began to manipulate,mirror and flip my images of the time capsule , duplicating multiple images, mirroring and flipping to create a mixed pattern of geometric and biomorphic shapes from the original images , top image is quiet ethereal ,a magnified image of the filaments , spray paint and wire

artiste’s statement

Hi, welcome to my little online world. I built this Tumblr as a practice in curation removed from the elitism of art institutions and their ideas of who art can be for and by. My blog is an accumulation of imagery found on this site; the product of countless hours spent seeking images that spark something within me. Originally inspired by the glory days of early 2010s blogging, my tone had an initial degree of irony and self-awareness regarding what I thought was the epitome of cool a decade ago. I acted as my own case study in the Tumblr user experience. As images began to collect, the addictive qualities of infinite scrolling began to take over. Dispassionate about the direction our 2021 social media platforms have gone it was almost a welcome return to innocent screen-addiction. The act of blogging became a time machine taking me back to my clunky family desktop in a basement so cold I would sacrifice the circulation in my toes just to feel like a tiny part of the big online world. As I racked up hours in front of my laptop in the creation of this blog, the images I selected subconsciously began to represent my current tastes instead of exclusively that of my teenage dreams. I began to fall in love with blogs representative of our current reality. I opted for a clean, minimal look that would allow the images to speak for themselves in a galley-type way. In combination they weave together facets of the blog’s maker (me) but force the viewer to draw these connections without assistance. Simultaneously, the content is offered up to act on the viewer relative to their own personal experience in both physical and online worlds.

In this act of online curation, I encountered deep nostalgia and empathy for the tween version of myself that found solace online when the “real world” around her only provided disappointment. Tumblr is a space for world-building in infinite varieties. Each and every blog on this site, whether scrutinized over or not, is a visual representation of its maker. Their fears and desires and pangs of teenage angst. It has the capacity to foster self-destructive behavior while simultaneously existing as a virtual community that can make one feel less alone regardless of who they are or where in the world they may be logging on from. There is a deeply valuable democratization of curation and art-making that lives on this website. The internet can be terrifying, but it can also be incredibly fertile ground for nurturing our fundamental human capacity for creativity. Tumblr welcomes the discovery of oneself through the self-fashioned filtration of an abundance of content. As a practicing blogger, one automatically becomes a curator of their own online gallery of found images. This collection almost takes on a life as a work of art in itself. My sub header states “curator, artiste” as a nod to this idea, the added “e” a playful jab at the notion of the genius, untouchability of renowned art-makers. Users on this site going by names such as “butterflypiss” or “cocainejuul” are, in my post-Tumblr eyes, practitioners of creativity just as valuable as Dalí or Matisse. We each have our own aesthetics, values, and lenses of experience, Tumblr just provides a specific platform onto which we can unleash this inner artistic spirit.

During this curation-driven return to tweendom I found the same comfort in online world building that so many of us used to lose ourselves in. I made a space for me by me, open to members of the public interested in its content. At the same time, I got to visit the virtual galleries of people I know nothing about yet have some inexplicable resonance with. What will the future look like if those raised by Tumblr become the artistic voices of a generation? How could these digital worlds translate into an irl gallery experience? In our dark present I find hope in the genius and passion of the online youth sprinkled around the globe.

1 to 25 writers askss <3

1) is there a story you’re holding off on writing for some reason? I haven’t wrote anything about RoR because I have been feeling more... excited about other projects. I still want to finish it tho

2) what work of yours, if any, are you the most embarrassed about existing? The Origins, but probably because it was my first work for a fandom after 3 years of basically not sharing my writing with anyone. I still love it because that’s the work that made my friends notice me x’d

3) what order do you write in? front of book to back? chronological? favorite scenes first? something else? Depends. I’m currently working on two one shots, and I’m writing my favorite scenes of one of them first.

4) favorite character you’ve written Since this is a Renegades blog I’m going to take this question as if it was asking me about my favorite character to write about, and I’m going with Hugh and Simon *norteño emoji*

5) character you were most surprised to end up writing Tbh I never expected I end up writing about Ace and David, but here we are, and I love them.

6) something you would go back and change in your writing that it’s too late/complicated to change now I don’t think there’s anything I’d change. probably I’d make The Origins’ chapters longer JAJAJAJA

7) when asked, are you embarrassed or enthusiastic to tell people that you write? Depends x2 

8) favorite genre to write Romance. But my favorite fanfic trope is Hurt/No-Comfort, does that count?

9) what, if anything, do you do for inspiration? Listen to music. Almost all my fics are based off songs.

10) write in silence or with background noise? with people or alone? Silence and alone, like a mamoncita.

11) what aspect of your writing do you think has most improved since you started writing? I think I’ve improved a lot with my sentence structure:)

12) your weaknesses as an author Physical fight scenes and scenes where I have to give explanations 

13) your strengths as an author Verbal fight scenes and... I want to think that comedy is also a big strength of mine *le pegan por payasa*

14) do you make playlists for your current wips? Only RoR has a playlist, but I do have a lot of songs for my current wips. Some of them without context are:

Todavía - Matisse

Death of a Hero - Alec Benjamin

Through your eyes - Alec Benjamin

Just Like you - Alec Benjamin

Demons - Alec Benjamin

From Now On - The Greatest Showman 

Cómo te extraño, Mi Amor - Leo Dan

Canción Sin Miedo 

As you can see I love Alec Benjamin lol

15) why did you start writing? I fully believe it had to be with the fact that I wanted to... understand certain things that happened to me when I was a kid.

16) are there any characters who haunt you? wey no mames el wero pendejo lteralmente me persigue en mis sueños hijo de su chingada madre ojalá coma pito y se ahogue

17) if you could give your fledgling author self any advice, what would it be? Keep writing. 

18) were there any works you read that affected you so much that it influenced your writing style? what were they? Insignia Series and... ngl probably Rainbow Rowell. I’m sorry. Rainbow Rowell is... not a nice person x’d

19) when it comes to more complicated narratives, how do you keep track of outlines, characters, development, timeline, ect.? Yes, I do!

20) do you write in long sit-down sessions or in little spurts? Lately I’ve been writing in very little spurts because of my current housing situation

21) what do you think when you read over your older work? “Ay Obsi you sweet thing there’s not a single thought inside that head isn’t it?”

22) are there any subjects that make you uncomfortable to write? The only thing I’m uncomfortable writing is hardcore smut. Other than that, I’m fine

23) any obscure life experiences that you feel have helped your writing? my childhood trauma definitely the most toxic parts of the relationships I have with the members of my family. I think... it makes me take a neutral position on characters I like and being neutral is pretty important for me when it comes to writing, especially because of the topics I like to write about.

24) have you ever become an expert on something you previously knew nothing about, in order to better a scene or a story? No, I’m not that smart JAJAJAJA

25) copy/paste a few sentences or a short paragraph that you’re particularly proud of Right now I’m on an edgy state of mind so I’m going to leave this question unanswered *emoji norteño x2*

(via Lucy Liu at the Napa Valley Museum: How did they get her? They asked. | Entertainment | napavalleyregister.com)

he team at the Napa Valley Museum Yountville gets asked one question more than any other these days:

“How did you ever get Lucy Liu to bring her first U.S. museum exhibition to you here in the Napa Valley?”

The answer, it turns out, is simple: “We asked.”

Museum executive director Laura Rafaty first approached Liu to be the keynote speaker at the Museum’s Feb. 25 “Phenomenal Women” fundraising luncheon.

“I began looking for someone who was an accomplished visual artist but who brought other aspects of life to her work, since I find that so many artists these days—and so many women—are involved in multiple creative endeavors. When I saw Lucy Liu’s art, as exhibited at the National Museum of Singapore, and considered it in the context of her accomplishments as an actor and director and work on behalf of children as an ambassador for UNICEF, I knew that I wanted our museum to present the first U.S. museum exhibition of her work.”

The result is: “Lucy Liu: One of these things is not like the others,” on exhibition at the Napa Valley Museum Yountville through April 26. It also brought Lucy Liu to Yountville last week, where she gave an inspiring keynote speech at the “Phenomenal Women” luncheon fundraiser, helping the museum raise more than $90,000 for the nonprofit. The Phenomenal Women event sold out quickly with a substantial waitlist of those wanting one of only 92 seats at tables tightly tucked inside the museum’s Main Gallery, surrounded by Liu’s artwork.

It helped that Liu, who has with millions of devoted social media followers (including a fan club of self-described “Liu-natics”), donated an original silkscreen valued at over $10,000 for auction at the luncheon, to benefit the Museum’s arts and education programs.

Speaking about her first U.S. museum exhibition, Liu said: “I’m so happy to collaborate with the Napa Valley Museum and to share my work with the community. Art has been an important part of my life and development since I was a child; it helps cultivate imagination and also fosters critical thinking skills. Supporting lifelong arts education is imperative and I am thrilled to be a part of this important endeavor.“

Liu’s visit to Yountville gave the museum team its first chance to meet Liu in person, and to discuss the inspiration behind her multi-faceted body of work. The exhibit was curated by Daniel Chen, director of Chambers Fine Art in New York, which represents Liu’s art, and who worked closely with Liu on the project.

Chen, an expert on modern Chinese art who helped curate Liu’s National Museum of Singapore exhibition, traveled from New York to Napa Valley to help the museum team with the installation and to attend the opening night on Feb. 1.

The exhibition is a survey of various aspects of Liu’s artwork. Included are Liu’s intricate wood sculptures, inspired by her travels, depicting individuals within a family. The most talked-about artworks are her oversized paintings inspired by Shunga, a form of erotic art based on the “ukiyo-e” or Japanese woodblock. These works are bold, provocative, and sexually explicit; a departure from the Museum’s typical exhibitions.

To put this work into larger context, the museum obtained an example of a traditional Japanese Shunga hand scroll from San Francisco’s Asian Art Museum, which it displays at the entrance to the Shunga section.

In her artist statement for the exhibition, Liu describes the genesis of the Shunga series: “My works tend to be intimate and personal; I often try to dissect things that were not explored when I was growing up. During my adolescence, I was constantly questioning things that were considered ‘taboo’ and was never satisfied with the answers I was given. Curiosity is key, and looking into the crevices of these questions and answers is something that I can express and explore through my art.”

There are examples of her silkscreens (including the auctioned work), plus pieces from Liu’s “Lost & Found” series, in which found objects are incorporated into handmade, hand-tooled books that are works of art in themselves.

“Another ongoing concern in my artwork has been the notion of security and salvation,” Lui said. “There are long-term effects that result from personal relationships, reflected in both our physical and emotional selves, and I have always used art to address these ‘effects’ and ideas. This theme is sometimes realized by the appropriation of discarded objects, which I place into handmade constructions, where the objects are protected and given a new significance.”

The exhibition also showcases Liu’s “Totem” series, in which intricate embroidered “spines” are paired with bold designs fashioned from fabric, paper and thread. The series includes “41”: individual small panels depicting each of the first 41 years of the artist’s life. Patterns and cutouts in the “Lost and Found” books are repeated in the “41” series on the wall behind them, while the spinal patterns of the Totem series adorn the spines of the “Lost and Found” books.

Large beige “Totem” works that seem flat from a distance reveal multi-dimensional and colorful connections upon closer inspection. The result is to be immersed in the world of an artist seeking intellectual order from emotional chaos.

“Although it’s only in retrospect that I discover the threads that tie my various bodies of work together, I find that no matter which medium I am working with, I often focus on the connections between people who pass through our lives,” Liu said. “Perhaps I am subconsciously seeking a closer examination of the meaning behind our personal relationships. Whether positive or negative, each interaction in our life leaves a mark on our psyche, and sometimes can manifest itself in a surprising, physical manner. These ‘marks’ manifest themselves in my work.”

In addition to the artwork, the museum offers video presentations illustrating Liu’s influences and creative processes, and a “living” title wall featuring audio and video of Liu in her studio. It shows Liu creating the giant painting: “Hunger,” which at nearly 12 feet tall takes up the entire back wall of the Main gallery.

The reaction to Liu’s work has been overwhelmingly positive, Rafaty said. “Visitors enjoy learning more about Lucy, who reveals so much about her interior life through her art. People seem to connect to the vulnerability on display, and to the work’s essential humanity.“

Due to the adult themes in the exhibition, the museum recommends that a parent accompany visitors younger than age 18. Other exhibitions currently on display include “The Yates Collection” of masterworks by Picasso, Pissarro, Chagall, Matisse and others, on long-term loan to the Museum from the Yates Foundation, and the museum’s permanent Napa Valley History Gallery, with a new Veterans Home history display.

The Napa Valley Museum Yountville is at 55 Presidents Circle in Yountville and is open Wednesdays through Sundays from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Regular admission is $15; $10 seniors 65 and older, $5 Youth 6-17. Admission to the museum is free for Napa Valley Museum members, children 5 and under, residents of the Veterans Home in Yountville, and active duty military. Admission is free for Bank of America/Merrill Lynch cardholders during the weekend of March 8-9 through the Museum’s on Us program.

For more information about the exhibition, visit the museum’s website at napavalleymuseum.org.

Pride Spotlight: Sam Shannon

In celebration of Pride Month, we’re spotlighting some fantastic LGBTQ+ creators who inspire with their work, actions, and visuals. Here’s spectacular multidisciplinary artist Sam Shannon (pictured below). She directs, creates magical moving images, and has completed dozens of successful notable brand collaborations. We caught up with Sam on Pride, love, and here creative influences. 

What does Pride mean to you?

To me pride starts from the inside with respect and love for yourself. Every person deserves to feel proud of who they are on an individual level and as a part of a community. In this current political climate I can’t think of a more important time to remind ourselves of how strong our collective voice is and to continue to fight for LGBTQ+ rights.

How can we continue to support the LGBTQ+ community?

To support is to respect. If you practice respect for all people and spread that mindset it’s the most emotionally impactful way to support the LGBTQ+ community.

What’s your most unforgettable professional memory?

I recently directed a music video for Conrad Clifton. We spent three nights in the dead of winter shooting outside with temperatures below 15. The project was by no means the fanciest and certainly not the biggest budget but it had such heart. Filmmaking is about the team and when you experience a feeling of collectively working towards a single vision despite physically taxing circumstances, there’s nothing better.

Who’s your biggest creative influence?

As a director I try to look outside the film world for influence. I find painters, sculptors, and college artists extremely influential when I’m looking to define a mood for a film. My favorites are Ellsworth Kelly, Agnis Martin, Richard Serra, Matisse, and John Baldessari. Since I work a lot in fashion I also have a huge catalog of photographers that I reference such as Viviane Sassen. Stephen Shore, Martin Parr, and Wim Wenders.

 What works brings you the most satisfaction?

I think there’s this idea that a director has to be this intimidating military type figure, punishing people into making good art and that a temperamental and aggressive attitude is somehow forgivable in the pursuit of success or real art. I’ve never found satisfaction in demanding subservience and refuse to believe that you need that type of attitude to be respected or successful. It’s a tricky balance but respect is something you earn by being decisive yet above all kind. Satisfaction comes when I feel that I’ve hit that balance.

 Is love important in art?

I think that art is love, to fall in love with a piece of art or to love making it. My goal with every film is to create an immersive experience, however short, for someone to truly get lost in. It can be something challenging or have a political or social agenda but overall I strive for something that feels honest, all encompassing, overwhelming, land leaves you with an unforgettable memory, like true love.

Artist Research #3

EDVARD MUNCH

Born: December 12, 1863 - Loten, Norway

Died: January 23, 1944 - Oslo, Norway

Edvard Munch was a prolific yet perpetually troubled artist preoccupied with matters of human mortality such as chronic illness, sexual liberation, and religious aspiration. He expressed these obsessions through works of intense color, semi-abstraction, and mysterious subject matter. Following the great triumph of French Impressionism, Munch took up the more graphic, symbolist sensibility of the influential Paul Gauguin, and in turn became one of the most controversial and eventually renowned artists among a new generation of continental Expressionist and Symbolist painters. Munch came of age in the first decade of the 20th century, during the peak of the Art Nouveau movement and its characteristic focus on all things organic, evolutionary and mysteriously instinctual. In keeping with these motifs, but moving decidedly away from their decorative applications, Munch came to treat the visible as though it were a window into a not fully formed, if not fundamentally disturbing, human psychology. Edvard Munch grew up in a household periodically beset by life-threatening illnesses and the premature deaths of his mother and sister, all of which was explained by Munch's father, a Christian fundamentalist, as acts of divine punishment. This powerful matrix of chance tragic events and their fatalistic interpretation left a lifelong impression on the young artist, and contributed decisively to his eventual preoccupation with themes of anxiety, emotional suffering, and human vulnerability.

The Scream (1893)

The significance of Munch's The Scream within the annals of modern art cannot be overstated. It stands among an exclusive group, including Van Gogh's Starry Night, Picasso's Les Demoiselles d'Avignon, and Matisse's Red Studio, comprising the quintessential works of modernist experiment and lasting innovation. The fluidity of Munch's lateral and vertical brushwork echoes the sky and clouds in Starry Night, yet one may also find the aesthetic elements of Fauvism, Expressionism, and perhaps even Surrealism arising from this same surface.

The setting of The Scream was suggested to the artist by a walk along a road overlooking the city of Oslo, apparently upon Munch's arrival at, or departure from, a mental hospital where his sister, Laura Catherine, had been interned. It is unknown whether the artist observed an actual person in anguish, but this seems unlikely; as Munch later recalled, "I was walking down the road with two friends when the sun set; suddenly, the sky turned as red as blood. I stopped and leaned against the fence ... shivering with fear. Then I heard the enormous, infinite scream of nature."

This is one of two painted versions of The Scream that Munch rendered around the turn of the 20th century; the other (c. 1910) is currently in the collections of the Munch Museum, Oslo. In addition to these painted versions, there is a version in pastel and a lithograph.

Puberty (1894-95)

Agony, anxiety and loss are constant themes throughout Munch's oeuvre, yet perhaps nowhere do they come together as powerfully as in Munch's Puberty, a portrait of adolescence and isolation. The lone and guarded female figure symbolizes a state of sexual depression and frustration - both of which plagued the artist himself throughout his life while the girl, although apparently shy (to judge by her posture), indicates quite the opposite by way of her frank stare. The looming shadow behind the figure hints at the birth of an ominous and sentient creature, perhaps one haunting her room, if indeed it is not her own dawning persona. The aesthetic qualities of Post-Impressionism are still very much present in Munch's work at this time, but what sets his work apart is the powerful element of symbolism. Munch is painting not necessarily what he sees, but what he feels in front of him. Munch usually painted, in fact, from imagination rather than from life, but here the uncharacteristic detailing of the girl's body - in particular the collar bone is considered by many evidence that, at least in this instance, Munch resorted to the use of a live model.

Spring Ploughing (1918)

In the years following Munch's hospital stay the artist removed himself from the lifestyle of carousing and heavy drinking and devoted his days to his art and to the countryside of his homeland. While at one time the artist referred to his paintings as "my children," by this time he began referring to them as "my children with nature." This new-found inspiration, in the form of farm hands, animals, and the Norwegian landscape, took Munch's art in an entirely new direction, one celebrating life and work, rather than anxiety and loss. In Spring Ploughing, one can see the inspiration Munch took from the much younger Franz Marc - whose Expressionist paintings were originally inspired by Munch - who had a penchant for painting animals in their natural surroundings. Munch's period of creating truly original Symbolist-cum-Expressionist works had since passed, indicated by similar works of this time and their innocent subject matter. Nevertheless, the maturity of this painting's brushwork and palette clearly demonstrate the hand of a master.

100% committed

Earlier this morning I had an idea regarding my final project. It happened after thinking repeatedly about the Matisse quote I posted before and while listening to Sigur Rós and watching the sky. I’m currently seeing this project, this ML painting, as an extension or evolution if you will, of still-life paintings. Calling it living paintings as of now. 

I will build a dataset of sky photos and use it to train my models. For this part of the project I had the idea of making it bit performative and conceptual. Directly drawing inspiration from Tehching Hsieh (Time Clock Piece), I will take one photo every hour between 08:00 and 17:00 every day for the next 6 months staring today (I had the idea around 09:00 and took the first photo at 10:00 - so only 8 photos on day 1). This effort will yield a total of 1828 photos by 07/04/21 (10 photos a day x 182 days + 8 photos from day 1). 

I will also take short audio recordings of ~1 second after taking each photo. All these recordings will be processed after the six months period using granular synthesis and incorporated into the final piece as its soundtrack.

I have made a Flickr page to keep all photographic documentation. Here’s the link https://www.flickr.com/photos/190500161@N05/

P A S S  C R I T E R I A  C H E C K L I S T

In order to make sure each student studying the Fine Art Diploma is on track with their Final Major Project, our tutors have asked us to provide information digitally that confirms we have all met the pass criteria. We are uplaoding this on here due to our current isolation and the restrictions imposed by Covid-19.

P1: Propose a time-bound Final Major Project

Prior to Covid-19, I had created a weekly schedule of activity that was given to my tutors as part of my Statement of Intent. It can be found at the beginning of my Sketchbook as I refer to the criteria throughout. With this being said, the original proposal I had for my Final Major Project has been slightly modified to adjust to the current situation of lockdown and the limitations that has brought to the project.

P2: Research relevant historical, cultural and contemporary sources

Please see below a list of sources I have used to inspire and educate my process throughout the Final Major Project.

Books

With Henry Moore: Artist at Work Hardcover – 16 Nov. 1978

Camille: Life of Camille Claudel, Rodin's Muse and Mistress - 22 Sept. 1988

Marini (Twentieth-century masters) Hardcover – 1 Jan. 1971

Artists

Evelyn Galinski, Igor Mitoraj, Auguste René Rodin, Camille Claudel, Henri Émile Benoît Matisse, Henry Spencer Moore, Christophe Charbonnel, Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux, Fabio Viale, Park Ki Pyung, Edgar Degas, Michael Hardy, Andrew Sinclair

Websites

Youtube Videos: Mostly informative, how-to style videos by  Sidney Cumbie

https://www.goshen.edu/art/DeptPgs/rework.html

https://www.benam.co.uk/products/lifecasting

https://thepotterywheel.com/how-long-does-it-take-for-pottery-clay-to-dry/

https://www.widewalls.ch/database/

https://www.artnet.com/price-database/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI8PXzi8yI6QIVYIBQBh0jfQy6EAAYASAAEgISDvD_BwE

https://www.itsliquid.com/category/art

https://www.beatricebrandini.it/mitoraj-angels-of-the-miracles/?lang=en

http://www.anaussieinitaly.com/2015/01/23/igor-mitoraj-angels/

https://www.bouillondart.com/fr/

https://www.artsper.com/en/

https://www.tuttartpitturasculturapoesiamusica.com/

https://www.ecfibreglasssupplies.co.uk/

Galeries and Museums

The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum

Museum of Arts and Design

The Whitney Museum of American Art

Museum of Modern Art

National Museum of the American Indian

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Royal Albert Memorial Museum and Art Gallery

P3: Apply appropriate references to the realisation of the Final Major Project

My initial idea was not that lucid. It was more of a sense of feeling of what i wanted to capture and express, primarily sculpturally. In order to gather more of a solid focus for the direction of my FMP, I looked at artists who reflected and expressed their own sculptural works in a way that aligned with my own aesthetics. These artists started with Evelyn Galinski, Igor Mitoraj and Auguste René Rodin. Along the way, I discovered historical and contemporary artists who also proved to be very inspirational to me and thus, helped me to develop my final idea for the FMP. My goal was to create a sculpture that centered around the subject of lovers and the unspoken language that is expressed with just one look or touch. I experimented in the sculpture room with alginate, modroc and latex to get a feel for the materials. This led me to make a series of male and female maquettes which was a preliminary idea for my Final Major Project of life size body castings using alginate. I created fragmented, almost classical, maquettes reminiscent of the ancient Greek and Roman statues with their broken limbs. From here, the plan was to cast life size body parts of two people in love. This idea came to a stop due to the fact I didn’t have all of the correct materials at that time to use at home during Covid-19 lockdown. I referred back to my sketchbook and took a look at my original ideas and thoughts and decided that in order to progress in the newfound challenging times, I would work again with the sculptures from my previous pathway project ‘Mend and Repair’. I used these sculptures to develop the idea from my initial drawings in my sketchbook, further expressing sculpturally by using clay and taking several casts of the male and female faces to create a 3d creation that still manages to convey the fundamental principle of my ideas. Along with the 3D project i also had gathered images to explore the possibility of capturing further unveiled moments using paint as my medium, demonstrating the carefree abandonment and joy of a child running. 

P4: Appraise the effectiveness of the Final Major Project development

The development of my FMP started off very slow. Due to me being unsure of how I initially wanted my final piece to look, I procrastinated a lot which in retrospect, held me back creatively. With this being said, I feel that each part of this process has led smoothly into the next. My exploration in painting has been not only therapeutic but has helped me to develop my own style, reminiscent of Monet. Alongside my painting, I have incorporated my knowledge from my previous Pathway ‘Art in Nature’ which has helped me to resolve the issues of firing my 3D sculpture in my garden.

P5: Identify and follow up issues, responses and dilemmas

Throughout the process of creating my FMP, i have come up against several issues, responses and dilemmas. The main one being Covid-19 and all of the restrictions that come with it. Loosing the use of our college facilities, alongside immediate peer and tutor feedback has really been challenging. I believe being able to physically share our work with each other and give face to face feedback is crucial in the development process. With this being said, I have been active in asking for help, advice and feedback from my peers, technicians and tutors throughout isolation in other mediums. I have actively been using a peer group chat where we discuss our work and are able to send images and videos to one another. My peers have been encouraging whilst sending positive advice on how i can improve and explore further. I have also spoken on the phone to fellow students and have had constant contact via Whatsapp with another. I have been checking in with the tutors via email and video call on Zoom to discuss the development of my FMP. I have found sharing my progress via the internet incredibly hard as i am not IT savvy. Talking via email, as opposed to in person, has been a particularly hard challenge for me. In response to these issues, my family have been with me every step of the way, encouraging me and helping with the IT side of things and giving their opinion on my artwork too. I have been learning new IT skills and dealing with the sporadic internet and printing facilities as best as I can.

In terms of creative issues throughout this project, I have only really struggled with two elements - the first being a lack of resources. Due to me having no kiln to fire my sculptures in, I have instead used a dustbin in my garden. I have been unable to reach the correct temperature for firing due to only burning wood and straw, which is all that is currently available to me. This affects the length of burn time and thus can cause the ceramic pieces to not be fired as effectively as possible. The second element that I have come up against is how to construct the frame to hold my FMP. Should Covid-19 not have happened, I would have asked the technicians for help. As they are not currently physically available to do so, I have instead asked the local farmer for assistance as he is able to weld. He has agreed to help me construct the frame out of a rusted old gate and currently seems to be enjoying the project.

P 6: Reflect on Exploratory and Pathway stages in relation to the FMP

This has been answered through my previous responses. Please refer to criteria P1-5. 

P7: Propose alternative resolutions

This has been answered through my previous responses. Please refer to criteria P1-5. 

P8: Exhibit a Final Major Project

My exhibit will take place in my garden for neighbours, family and local farmers to see in passing. I will also upload images and videos of the FMP to this account, my sketchbook and my PDF.