hello blog.

It seems a long time since I’ve been here.  I thought to change the direction of work to be more familiar with the people and things around rather than be persuaded by the giants before me.  For now, Liz is the most recurring so it seems only right to draw her as the first subject for this new concentration of work.

As a parent, I am their worst critic and their biggest supporter.  My daughter can be the most beautiful person on the planet and sometimes I wonder what planet she is on.   Out of respect for the blog and a few dollars, she has agreed to pose for this post.  She has an exceptional smile and reminds me how important it is to ‘keep it real’ despite the obsession with her hair.  As a kid, she was driven.  I was in awe at her dedication to each morning.  She has a genuine soulful respect for family, food and dogs.   I have always been bewildered by her love of sporting events and she has always been confused by my attraction to art but occasionally we  laugh at the same things and more rarely meet at the same music.

“To affect the quality of the day that is the highest of arts”
Henry David Thoreau

the birds.

gull encounter

It’s october 31 and I”m preparing to go see ‘Rear Window” by Alfred Hitchcock.   Mr. Hitchcock was the king of cinematic suspense.   He  knew that a psychological thriller was created with themes of mistaken identity, innocents falsely accused, trust and betrayal and ordinary people put in extraordinary peril.  “There’s no terror in the bang of the gun, only the anticipation of it”.

‘The Birds’ by Mr. Hitchcock was incredibly real for me as a kid.  Fortunately, coastal birds attacking everyone in town did not create a fear of birds.   My naive analysis of the film was that the love birds were angry because they were caged but in fact Mr. Hitchcock wanted the viewer to see more the human condition in response to the fear.  A theory that life is ultimately precarious.  The birds remind us that control is an illusion.

Gulls and I have a long history together.  On occasion when there’s enough old bread and I’m feeling brave, I go feed them.  Usually we arrive at the ocean to see a couple of gulls and within minutes the flock s approaching create a rush of panic as if a scene from ‘The Birds’.   Most gulls are bold scrappy scavengers.  It can seem confrontational to have a gull hovering for a morsel in mid air.  I know of no other bird brave enough to look me in the eye and display its gluttony.

While Hitchcock created the fear that I relate to my gull encounters, it is Jamie Wyeth’s ‘Seven Deadly Sins’ that symbolize the character of this bird.   Jamie Wyeth was so fascinated by the arrogance of the gull he used her to represent the ‘7 deadly sins’ anger, greed, envy, gluttony, pride, sloth and lust.  Wyeth focused on the behavior of each sin and found correlation in the life of the gulls.  In this series, the gulls portray human-sinners.  A perception that human character is reflected in nature.

Jamie Wyeth’s  ‘Pride’.  A gull displays it’s lobster catch for all to covet.

Pride by Jamie Wyeth

Being the pugnacious gulls they are, it may be difficult to imagine this bird symbolizing freedom in the Netherlands or able to attain a state bird status in Utah for its crop protecting abilities.  The larger gulls in particular are intelligent, inquisitive, resourceful and demonstrate  a highly developed social structure.

The gull however is an illusion of beauty and gracefulness.  She bathes regularly and has an elegant wingspan but do not be fooled, she has no manners.    She is a noisy bird filled with pirate tendencies but she has a sense of beauty and i’ve  enjoyed watching her family for a long time.

“Painting to me is constant searching.  I can see what I want, but I can’t get there, and yet you have to be open enough that if it goes another way, then let it go that way.”         Jamie Wyeth.

gravity.

peregrine dancer

Now that I have finished beating myself up for not posting in September, I have managed to drag my battered body to the laptop.  September was going to be a photo finish from the start with small travel and commission (October, I think I’ve got you).   I thought a simple bird would be quick and my blog efforts would be consistent and satisfied…sorry September.  Despite my longing to be simple, she became more than a bird.

The Dali Exhibit opened in August and I was able to join the crowd in line for two blocks waiting to enter.  Once we reached the courtyard, the night lights in the trees and flamenco guitar of Witold Tulodziecki created a festive gathering (lots of creative costumes).

dali with his bird.

I was never much of a Salvador Dali fan but he was a fascinating ego.  Dali was the master of surrealism.  He was amazingly scientific with his approach.  I can’t attribute this subject as influence from him or his show however in true Dali surrealistic form; I  created this Peregrine Dancer.

Birds always get my attention.  Some join  me for lunch, begin chirping at sunrise, sit near windows, on wires, branches or fly by for the sheer fun of it.   Birds glide and soar without fear.   The bodies are designed to defy gravity and feathers to perfection.  Feathers are light but strong, flexible yet tough.

Throughout history, birds have been symbolic.  Owls mean wisdom, the dove peace and the eagle power.  For my blog, I selected the Peregrine Falcon.  She is the fastest bird and conjures thoughts of a higher power.  The Native American’s called her “Thunderbird”.  They believed that Peregrines were messengers from the Great Spirit.  Warriors and hunters of prehistoric times revered the Peregrine for its strength, enormous speed, courage, agility, keen eye sight and absolute power.  The Peregrine Falcon was sacred to the ancient Egyptians.  It was mummified as if  an important person.  The Falcon god Horus had the head of a Peregrine (with its black helmet) and the body of a man.  These headdresses were also worn by the Pharaoh’s and Indian’s.

This Peregrine Dancer offers her own interpretation.   For the falcon who trains in falconry, I have to summarize that the bird revels in the accomplishment of the sport or would simply fly away.   Falconry is the only sport that utilizes a wild animal.  It is estimated that 10,000 individuals practice falconry.

“Have no fear of perfection, you’ll never reach it.” Salvador Dali

U.S. Soldier

Kenyon

Very casually and seriously, she said at the dinner table “So, is your next blog piece going to be a train wreck?”  Yes, it was funny.  I knew what she meant and we had a good laugh.  There does seem to be a thread of tragedy in this blog.  What no one knew then was that this post would be more like a blanket of tragedy.

It is a reflective time for our country, between September 11^th and July 2010 which was the bloodiest month  in this soon to be decade war .  Here in the shade, it’s been hot…almost 100`on most day’s this summer.  For a soldier it’s more like 120` with flies and a strong appreciation for water.    I’ve seen some powerful movies about war…Black Hawk Down, The Hurt Locker, Letters from Iwo Jima and of course Saving Private Ryan,  but do I get it?  I don’t want to get it.   I’ve seen some tough photo’s  from my laptop and read about explosions almost daily but today I’m getting ready  for a birthday.

I wrote to the VA hospital asking if I could photo the vets with hopes of creating a series…the hospital never got back to me.    Asking around,  I found Kenyon.   He went to school with my daughter.  He is 19, played football, graduated from high school last year, spent 6 months training and is now on the front lines in Afghanistan.   The sacrifices made by many Americans to protect our way of life in the name of freedom often go unnoticed and unappreciated.  I hope that by reading this and seeing the drawing, you will take a moment to remember the men and women who have served/are serving  – the living as well as the dead.

I saw several artists who are doing similar efforts…   soldierportraits.com  based out of Savannah creates mesmerizing portraits of active duty soldiers mostly from the 3^rd Infantry division.  Then I found ‘Injured Soldiers and Marines: Portraits by Timothy Greenfield-Sanders.

Marine Staff Sgt. John Jones

The photo of Marine Staff Sgt. John Jones by Greenfield-Sanders is a powerful reminder of the injury of war.  His character appears dignified, noble and confident despite his apparent loss.  What you can’t see is that Sgt. Jones has some memory and hearing loss and post traumatic stress disorder.

I also found a local group of artists who donate portraits to the families of fallen soldiers called ‘Art from the Heart’ and gotta mention  the incredible Pam Rogers who has done  soldier portrait’s for  local families and worked voluntarily/tirelessly with ‘Soldiers Angels’ preparing packages of coffee, tooth paste/brushes, soap and other simple neccessities for the troops going on 5 years.  Thanks Pam and keep my room ready in San Fran.

No matter the political position on this war, those serving are doing their job.  The job for most happens to be life or death.  Thank you Kenyon for letting me use your photo in this blog post.  May God’s love be with you, the troops and the civilians.

“If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.” Mother Teresa

The Pieta

Every Thursday after school many moons ago,  I would walk to Ms. Monahan’s for my art lesson.  The  classical technique in her own works soon led to influence mine.   She introduced me to Michelangelo Buonarroti.   One of the stories I heard about Michelangelo was a visit to Saint Peter’s Cathedral in Rome to see ‘The Pieta’.   The story goes that they  waited in line for 4 hours just to view.  When the viewing time was up, they  got back in line for four more hours.   Michelangelo started the commission when he was 21.  The Pieta is the most revered and studied work of the Italian High Renaissance.   It was carved from a single slab of marble and depicts the body of Christ in the arms of his mother Mary after the crucifixion.  We are face to face not only with pain as a condition of redemption but also absolute beauty as one of its consequences.  Mary’s grief becomes resignation, as if to say , here.

In Michelangelo’s late life, he devoted himself almost entirely to architecture and poetry.  He became one of the most inventive and influential architects of his time.  His poetry ran among the greatest literary creations of the renaissance but it was the Sistine chapel that showed his eternal patience.

The Vatican's Sistine Chapel

Michelangelo was originally commissioned to paint the Sistine Chapel ceiling with 12 Apostles against a starry sky, but lobbied for a different and much more complex scheme, representing creation, the Downfall of Man, the prophets, the Genealogy of Christ and the Promise of Salvation.  By the final year of completion, Michelangelo grew frustrated with church clergy and included many subtle marks of his anger in the chapels painting.

Be nice to the artists.

newsies

from Hine. 24" x48

 I’m reading ‘Change me into Zeus’s daughter’ by Barbara Robinette Moss.   A memoir about growing up the best  you can with the little bit you got.   While I never intended for readings to influence new subjects on this blog, Barbara Moss has reminded me of a powerful photo by Dorthea Lange ‘Migrant Mother’.   Dorthea Lange is remembered for her images of proud and destitute sharecroppers from the South and of the people who moved west in search of a brighter future during the depression.  In the 1930’s, America was going through tremendous changes and Dorthea Lange was there to document the lives that it affected.    When a photo journalist gets the perfect photo, there truly is ‘No caption needed’.  The photo becomes a narrative ‘A poetic vehicle for the operation of historical forces’.

The Portrait of ‘Migrant Mother’ Nipoma, CA 1935 has all the suffering of mankind in her but all the perseverance too.

For some, photography is a tool for bringing public awareness.  For me, It was Lewis Hine who mastered that purpose with a camera.  He used photography as a means to build a template for social reform.  In 1906 Hine began to do freelance photography for the National Child Labor Committee to document  violation’s of existing labor laws.  Though many children in his photographs died without ever telling their stories, Hines record of the conditions helped change labor laws in the US.

Specifically  here, it is the paper boys who have my attention.  As kids, they lived grown up.  In the early 1900’s being 5 or 6  and poor meant that you worked.  Compared to 12 hours in a cannery, the ironworks or the coal mines, selling newspapers sounds like soft work, but newsies  were not employed.  They bought the papers outright and it was not unusual for an 8-year-old kid to walk the streets all night until the last paper was sold.

For all of his social reform and political success, Lewis Hine also angered capitalists and as a result had difficulty earning money in the final years of his life.  His photographs are some of the most impressive in history and his successful documentaries  can be found in museums, The Library of Congress and notable books of photography.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4xjPODksI08

Gotta give a shout out to Amanda Trawick!!!  Who will officially b  a librarian next week along with her artist/songstress endeavors.    Thanks Amanda for the you tube link above.…yes,  Bob Marley would definitely approve.  Congratulations!  Hope to see you soon.   Much grace.

ophie

'the labor of a dog' 25"x36" pencil & oil on canvas

Four years ago we adopted ophie at the pound.  Going to the pound is tough.  There was an old Mastiff with an injured foot that I would have liked to take home if I stayed home more…he needed attention.  There was also a beautiful white dog with tear stained eyes that ran me all around the pound…I think she was trying to get home.    We got Ophelia.   It occurred to me that ophie looked like Equinox…with her blonde hair and dark eye liner.  Equinox is a painting by Andrew Wyeth.  I have to assume Equinox was Mr. Wyeth’s  dog since I have seen this dog in several of his paintings.  Specifically for my blog purposes, his painting,  ‘Master Bedroom’.  Wyeth’s ‘Master bedroom’ is an eloquent example of Wyeth’s fondness for the absence of presence and yet you see his ability to know his subject intensely.

'master bedroom' by Wyeth

Critics tried to create a middle ground for Wyeth’s work…between realism and abstraction….to be a realist would be too ordinary a description for someone so extraordinary.  This ‘Conservative Avante Gardist’  “What appears to be a literal transcription is instead a highly selective means toward an intense, subjective expression of mood and emotion.”

Of course my interpretation here is mine and cannot be compared but only inspired.   ‘Master Bedroom’  is one of my mom’s favorite painting’s and I guess one of mine too despite its popularity.  Ophie’s resemblance to Equinox is the driving force for this subject and that I’m reading Andrew Wyeth.

I thought using Ophie as my model  would be very William Wegman.  Putting Ophie to some creative work would make her useful and I just might get something original from her pose.  Wegman created a fascination for the weimeriner with his ability to entice his dogs into such delicate servants.   My Ophie is far from a Man-Ray (Wegman’s first muse).  She was a little confused about the set up and i found it difficult to create a sense of gentle dignity that Wegman’s weimeriener’s always have.  Needless to say my ‘Master Bedroom’ doesn’t capture the passing of time that you would see in Wyeth’s but much the same they show the simplicity of a dog’s life.

edgar degas

pencil w/oil on canvas 50″x20″

Hello.   Thanks for the visit.  I have finally found my cyber studio under this big oak tree (after many other names were taken).   Degas’s ‘petite danseuse de quatorze ans’ was the only choice for my first blog piece .  The dichotomy of her critics seems the story of every artist.  Most of her spectators were uneasy about Degas’ method and medium .  What disturbed the public and critics most about this sculpture was Degas’ choice of model, an “opera rat” according to Elie de Mont.  A monkey, an Aztec, a puny specimen-if she was smaller one would be tempted to enclose her in a jar of alcohol”(La Civilisation, april 21 1881).  For Degas, he found this model to be a magnificent fascination.  She epitomizes the quality that all of his resting dancers convey…released for a moment away from the discipline of their work.
Few critics saw this dancer for a masterpiece, however one did say, “I experience before this statuette one of the most violent artistic expressions of my life-something I have been dreaming of for a very long time…the work not understood today will perhaps one day be regarded respectfully in a museum as the first work of a new art” ( Nina de Villars, Le Courrier du Soir, april 23, 1881).
The model was Marie van Goethem.  While working on this drawing, I imagined her to be devoted with a serious commitment to the task of being a model for Edgar degas.  She later pursued a career as an artist model at such haunts as Le Rat Mort and the café de la Nouvelle Athenes.
I hope to keep posting new drawings monthly and that this venue will provide the space  but mostly encourage me to show new work.

lisa