paintingsilike

Thanks so for liking some of my paintings means a lot =) also your blog is really interesting and diverse in types of paintings i really like it!

Sat, 04 Jun 2011 10:22:56 -0400

Your praise is most welcomed…please keep up the good work.

“The Bane”, 1931 oil on canvas by Bernard...

Fri, 03 Jun 2011 12:57:33 -0400

“The Bane”, 1931 oil on canvas by Bernard Fleetwood-Walker

During the 1930s Fleetwood-Walker painted a series of nudes in the classical tradition. Of these, Sea-Born Thetis, The Model’s Throneand this work all depict lone women and appear to allude to literary or archaic symbolism. The title, The Bane is associated with death, destruction or ruin, while the young woman holds a foxglove, itself a highly poisonous plant. In his exhibition catalogue, The Birmingham School, 1990, Stephen Wildman described the painting ‘…as typical of the sharp, well-balanced design in his oils of the 1930s…’.

Irrespective of any underlying meaning or message, these nudes were appreciated at the time for their sensuous beauty; for a while this painting was on loan to HMS Birmingham where it was displayed in the Officer’s mess and no doubt viewed as a welcome diversion.

nooo, i will never sniff glue. haha. it was just a quote from the band i was listening to: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=crsIcmqBeG0

Fri, 03 Jun 2011 10:53:03 -0400

We just wanted to make sure…your mind is so lovely, we would hate to see it spoiled by the ugliness of destruction.

“Waiting to Cross”, 2011 oil on canvas by...

Fri, 03 Jun 2011 10:41:34 -0400

“Waiting to Cross”, 2011 oil on canvas by Joshua LaRock

Why is the naturalist style so compatible with beauty? Not only physical beauty but also the beauty of the moment. Naturalism is a direct descendant of Classicism…but instead of dealing with matters of historical importance, Naturalism is the style most suited to the “here and now”. Those moments in the day…so easily overlooked can be the most important moments in our lives.

“Yellow”, 1945 oil on panel by Hans...

Thu, 02 Jun 2011 14:02:34 -0400

“Yellow”, 1945 oil on panel by Hans Hofmann

Now, can we like a piece just because we like it? Do we always have to have a deep connection or create our own meaning while trying to decipher the original intent of the artist? Maybe…or perhaps it just looks good over the sofa. But at some point aren’t we ever going to ask ourselves why we like or dislike something? Why are we really voting for this person or why do we want to live in a gated community…etc…etc.

No…art does not have to be intellectualized and neither do we. But if we are ever going to get a glimpse at enlightenment…to be able to see through the clouds of socialization and neurosis then at some time we will have to lift our heads above the “Tyranny of the Self”. There are many paths. The old masters tell us that the first step is to overcome desire…well that can be a fairly abstract goal.

But we are constantly surrounded by the works of humans…Art…and the works of God…Nature. These creations, through conscience effort, can be used as the tools of our enlightenment through objective appreciation or we can continue down the path of ignorant, automatic thinking and keep proclaiming “I know good art when I see it” without ever knowing why.

“Italian Landscape”, 1983 acrylic polymer on...

Thu, 02 Jun 2011 11:11:13 -0400

“Italian Landscape”, 1983 acrylic polymer on gessoed board by Leonard Everett Fisher

When complex subjects are executed by simple means a certian elegance can protrude beyound the artist’s original intent. Design, color and texture combined with a certain abstraction can lure the viewer into a world of their own creation.

“Ready to Go” oil on canvas by Ken Davies All images...

Thu, 02 Jun 2011 10:26:00 -0400

“Ready to Go” oil on canvas by Ken Davies

All images can bring certain comfort to a viewer…a warm nostalgia floods over them with memories of places and things out of their past or desires for the present. For others the same image can bring up ghosts of their experiences filled with loss, sorrow and pain. Even the most simple of ideas contain complexities that the creator cannot hope to comprehend. All of these things may have nothing to do with the artist’s original intent but they are there…powerful and real.

“Samson And Delilah”, 2008 oil on linen by...

Thu, 02 Jun 2011 09:24:00 -0400

“Samson And Delilah”, 2008 oil on linen by Michael Aviano

To love and to be loved…the viewer brings to this image desires and wants of their own. But the artist’s original intent may be quite different…maybe bringing into the mix their own interpretations of intrigue and betrayal. Possibly every one’s perception of what is going on is correct and with each viewing a new piece emerges. Maybe the true avocation of any artistic endeavor is to never stop creating.

“East River at 70th Street, NYC, 2009” acrylic on...

Thu, 02 Jun 2011 08:44:00 -0400

“East River at 70th Street, NYC, 2009” acrylic on canvas mounted with Seikishu rice paper by Nina Macquire

Sometimes the artist works with ideas that are not exactly as the viewer will see them. These ideas, so important to the artist…through the medium, through interpretation, through the very minds and experiences of the viewers themselves…becomes muddled…the original idea becomes an impression to the viewer who then interprets the image with a world of experience and perception of their own. New ideas emerge…maybe completely different than those intended by the artist.

Is this new interpretation…wrong? Is the result a misinterpretation of the artist’s original intent or an exponential expansion? Or is the new vision of meaning a completely new work…originated by the artist but finished by the viewer…a completely new work infused with all the meaning and insight that only each individual can bring.

I disagree... I don't know if you've ever seen A Single Man, but I don't think you can properly interpret that quote completely without knowing what the movie is about. The person who says that quote is quite depressed, and the moments he's talking about are moments where he actually feels happy despite of everything, where he can let go, be in the present, and feel a joy for life.
I knew exactly the feeling he was talking about right as I heard the quote... I had actually tried to describe it before but didn't as well as he did. I have anxiety and it bothers me quite a bit sometimes, but when you feel this feeling that he describes, none of it matters. It has nothing to do with originality. I can see how you could think that, but in context it doesn't mean that at all, especially because of the last line of the quote: "They pull be back to the present, and I realize that everything is exactly the way it was meant to be."

Wed, 01 Jun 2011 16:18:00 -0400

We completely defer to your experience in this matter…original thinking is very rare…most of our thoughts are controlled by socialization and neurosis…possibly 85-95% or more…so when we can break through all this preconditioning (and it is hard) such feelings experienced by “A Single Man” (and no, we have not had the pleasure of experiencing…) are very similar to those when original thought is achieved…this, we have experienced. Your insights are very important in helping us understand the travials of anxiety.

How often do you post paintings?

Wed, 01 Jun 2011 13:40:00 -0400

Not a much as we would like…we tend to post when our thoughts combine with a painting to offer insight into our own experiences, or other, minds. Thank you for your query…we will try to be more punctual.

I couldn't agree more; live and LEARN.

Love the blog btw, painting blogs catch my eye more than anyother.

Tue, 31 May 2011 09:33:24 -0400

Painting blogs catch your eye because of the wealth of information they contain…we love photographs and other forms of visual communication but when humans directly interface with a surface…things come out that are beyond just normal comprehension…visual tools are created which can aid in our enlightenment. Just as books can take us into the minds of individuals…paintings can take individual minds into the depths of the Group Mind.

"This is not an occult science or one of those crazy systems of divination & astrology. That stuffs hooey & you gotta have a screw loose to go in for that sorta thing. Our beliefs are fairly commonplace & simple to understand. Humankind is simply materialized color operating on the 49th vibration-youd make that conclusion walking down the street or going 2 the store."

http://drmidnightpresents.tumblr.com/archive/2011/5

Tue, 31 May 2011 09:28:15 -0400

Your comments puzzle us beyond our usual state of bemused bewilderment…but somehow we feel that you have you finger on the pulse…of what we are not sure but please keep on vibrating…

“Lady Reading in an Interior” oil on canvas by...

Wed, 18 May 2011 10:21:00 -0400

“Lady Reading in an Interior” oil on canvas by Marguerite Gerard

Not only is art a reflection of the artist’s talent & intent it is also a record of human existence…time portals reflecting the living conditions, fashions, behavior, etc. of the various classes.

When art becomes just a record it takes on a different set of values which in turn influences the way it which it is judged. For example…any object from today’s activities, lets say a foam burger wrapper. Right now when we are done with it we trow it away…often without ever looking at it…and most often it is not worth looking at (in most opinions) and might even be considered as bad art if not art at all…But if this wrapper, for some reason, is preserved for 5,000 years it becomes a different type of object indeed. Full of information about it’s time and even considered as art classified in a system of design evolution of “wrappers” that has an aesthetic of its own.

A 5,000 year old Egyptian “urn” has beauty and a style the most likely was not even considered during it’s own time. Was it “bad” art? Does it’s contemporary value reflect its lasting value? Is any judgement about it have any type of justification when considered within the timeframe of human exisitence? Who knows and possibly cares…it is art and nothing more.

“Woman Reading a Letter” oil on canvas by Gabriel...

Wed, 18 May 2011 09:48:54 -0400

“Woman Reading a Letter” oil on canvas by Gabriel Metsu

Metsu’s indisputable masterpieces are Man Writing a Letter and Woman Reading a Letter which were painted as companion pieces. In both paintings, the way the silvery daylight flows over the figures set against light walls is not surpassed by Vermeer. The pendants offer a small drama: the handsome man writes a letter, and its patient recipient attentively reads it by the light of a window. Here letter writing and reading are most likely associated with love. The discreet waiting maid pulls aside a curtain hanging from a rod to reveal a choppy seascape, possibly but not demonstrably a reference to the popular adage that love is as hazardous as a sea voyage. The maid’s momentary movement contrasts with the concentration of the young woman who, one senses, will not move until she has finished reading the letter.

The curtain over the painting is not an unusual detail. The Dutch often protected paintings with curtains, either to keep off the light and dust, or to look at them only occasionally, as is the traditional way of the Chinese and, Japanese - a practice that comes from the fine feeling that a work of art cannot be looked at continually. Trompe l’oeil curtains on rods painted to give the illusion that they have been drawn aside to reveal a framed picture are not uncommon either; best known is the one Rembrandt included in his intimate Holy Family at Kassel.

“Man Writing a Letter” (1662-65) oil on canvas by...

Wed, 18 May 2011 09:41:19 -0400

“Man Writing a Letter” (1662-65) oil on canvas by Gabriel Metsu

Artists will often be telling a story but the viewer’s interpretation may be completely different…but does it matter that the viewer completely understands the artist’s intentions?

Thank you for the like on the Rose Garden painting on my sales blog, http://cross-academy-crafts.tumblr.com/ ! If you have any questions or are interested in a commission of any kind, please feel free to follow it/send an ask. Additionally, for a few more days only, with any purchase you get a free drawing. Thanks again!

Sun, 15 May 2011 19:34:46 -0400

Please continue and never give up…if only we could afford all those things that we love.

I just quickly scrolled through your blog and I love the paintings you post. Is there any style of painting that you like more than others?

Sun, 15 May 2011 19:33:00 -0400

We are contently fascinated by those who pick up raw materials such as paint, pencil, pastels, etc. and directly create on blank surfaces all those “things” we have within our interiors and the lives we all all currently sharing. In this vale of tears…those who create are the generators of hope.

favorite blogs?

Sun, 15 May 2011 19:30:27 -0400

None could ever be our favorite and as for those we do not like…we have to ask ourselves, why?

Thank you for liking my painting!

Would you be interested in seeing more? I have many I could post.

Sun, 15 May 2011 19:29:26 -0400

Please continue to create and post…we will wait with anticipation.