Art is, or it should be, about more than simply making marks on a surface or manipulating materials into pleasing–or indeed displeasing–shapes…. perhaps the avant-garde or kitsch. A true artist benefits immeasurably by knowing about the history that has created the universe they traverse. Ever wonder what all that academic talk is that curators like … Continue reading Clement Greenberg’s The Avant-garde And Kitsch
Dusty book stall archeologist and writer Jonathan Guyer oversees the far reaching effects of visual culture in our modern ‘all about appearances’ world. Through frequent excursions to the bookshops of downtown Cairo in Egypt, Guyer has unearthed a wealth of forgotten political narratives and overlooked illustrative histories. Book-ending his fascination with the alternative story lines … Continue reading Far Reaching Effects Of Visual Culture In Our World Of Appearances
Let’s go back to 2016 and re-consider how the works highlighted below are more relevant today than ever when asking “What is and isn’t art?”. The recent surge in AI and chatbot produced ‘art’ has created new challenges in recognition, interpretation and validation. Or has it? [J.Barker Content Producer for The Silo] It became immediately … Continue reading AI Induced Shifting Subtexts- What Is And What Isn’t Art?
Humans possess a great depth of capacity when it comes to altruism. Again and again, we demonstrate our tendency to reach out when others are in distress. Cultivating these instincts is one of the ways in which we connect with our own humanity. Studies have indicated that altruism is not entirely innate. Environment plays a … Continue reading Important Thoughts On Altruism
Eiko Otake performing at Bartram’s Garden on the Schuylkill River. “The purpose of art is washing the dust of daily life off our souls.” – Pablo Picasso Art is an imperative. Without it we can never truly examine our own circumstances or those of the people with whom we inhabit our small planet. Left unviewed, … Continue reading Why Artists Require Space Not Only To Work But To Imagine
Look with great honesty at your inner life Contemplate the ways in which you approach and communicate with the world. Our interactions are shaped by context at all times, one moment calls for gentleness while the next requires a firmer approach. It becomes second nature navigating these nuances, we stop giving thought to the many … Continue reading Unique Angles view How We Communicate
Beth Stephens & Annie Sprinkle “Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one’s courage.” -Anais Nin Nature is born of sexuality. The two are inextricable and inevitable partners. Where humans find fault with sex that does not suit their particular beliefs in what is right or wrong, nature transcends. There is no taboo in the … Continue reading LGBTQIE And Ecosexuality
A friend of mine from Europe sent me this news story a couple of weeks ago about how the cultural landscape is facing its biggest threat in a generation. It says the UK government was too slow to provide support for the arts industry, and that without more help, many parts of Britain could become … Continue reading British MPs Say Government Too Slow To Help These At Risk Arts
“Education is the kindling of a flame, not the filling of a vessel.” -Socrates There is a misconception that education is the end of a road. On the contrary, it is merely the beginning. For many of us, youth is taken up with those things we feel we need to learn and less so with … Continue reading Misconception That Education Is End Of Road
Rejection. “We lived in Northern New Mexico. I was standing in front of our house drinking a cup of tea. I heard the car drive up and the door bang shut. Then he walked around the corner, and without warning, he told me he was having an affair and he wanted a divorce. I remember … Continue reading Thoughts On Rejection And Concept Of Groundlessness
Many have been humbled simply standing in a darkened field and looking to the stars. Indeed the great thinkers of the many generations that have come and gone are regarded as giants when in fact they were merely humans dropped to their knees by the wonder that is the universe all around us. There is … Continue reading Surreal Aspects Of All Expressed In Artwork
Recently, one of my readers wrote that “there is another kind of generosity that comes much harder to me. I know I shouldn’t be stingy in this way, but I find myself stubbornly so. It’s the generosity of sharing my ideas, my connections, or giving a leg up to those who could benefit sometimes from … Continue reading Theft Of Artist Ideas May Not Be Theft At All
“The most effective way to destroy people is to deny and obliterate their own understanding of their history.” -George Orwell The facts of the past cannot be objectively altered regardless of belief or opinion. They can, however, be tainted by those wishing to assume power. It is critical that we understand the past as it … Continue reading Artwork That Reminds Us History Is Absolute
Immediacy? “Nothing important comes into being overnight; even grapes or figs need time to ripen. If you say that you want a fig now, I will tell you to be patient. First, you must allow the tree to flower, then put forth fruit; then you have to wait until the fruit is ripe. So if … Continue reading Natural World Immediacy A Rare Concept
When thinking about grant writing, it helps to first consider this story that tells about luck. In it, a farmer’s horse runs away and all his neighbors come by to say what bad luck this is. The farmer replies “maybe.” His horse returns and with it brings wild horses. The neighbors all say what good … Continue reading Ancient Zen Story About Re-framing Failure Applies To Grant Applications
The formula for a life well lived might look something like this: Dive in head first > fail > repeat. Life is a series of cycles. There is of course the broad cycle, we are born, we live, we age, we die. But within this scope are countless other cycles for every part and parcel … Continue reading An Artist Life Means Putting Your Guts Out Into The World
With the historic opening of Documenta 14 in Athens this month, now is a perfect time to take a look around the world at more of the biennials happening in every corner throughout the year. You may recall a previous post in which we discussed three of the brightest stars in the biennial universe (namely, Venice, Whitney, … Continue reading More To Vast World Of Biennials Than Venice, Whitney and Documenta
The shape of truth is often difficult to discern. It bends and shifts or is manipulated to suit a particular narrative. Facts become the object of debate when power is at stake. Corruption breeds untruths. While objective concepts do not require belief in order to exist, we can not grasp what we simply do not … Continue reading In These Days Of Alternative Fact And Secrecy It Is Difficult To Hold On To Truth
We sit in the grip of deep winter, snow reflecting the moonlight at last. At this time of the year, the earth slows down and so too can we. It is time for us to reflect as well, upon the year that has been and the year ahead. During these dark months, light becomes a … Continue reading Light Informs Art In Ways That Cannot Be Disentangled
Consider for a moment the nature of light and time. Fleeting, infinite, unknowable, and yet familiar as our own minds. We long for more time while cursing its slow progress. Temporal matters dictate every aspect of our human lives. We are beholden to the times in which we live. We cannot grasp light and yet … Continue reading Light, Interviews, Books to Inspire, And A Call To Artists From Rome
Just for a moment, think about all of the many career fields in the world. Now think about those that require a personal emotional investment as a matter of course. How many bankers make a regular practice of exposing their deepest insecurities to the world through their work? How many veterinarians routinely put on display … Continue reading Across The Arts Vulnerability Prevails And Here’s Why It’s An Asset
Dear Artist, Aristotle differentiated humans from their animal counterparts by dint of logos, the power of rational speech. Napoleon was attributed the quote, “four hostile newspapers are more to be feared than a thousand bayonets.” Human civilization was founded on the exercise of this divine faculty, and is destroyed by it in equal measure. Speech, … Continue reading Boston Based Artist Jeannie Motherwell Draws Structures From Uncertainty
Dear Reader, it is difficult to deny that a side of art making is fatally concerned with the poetic grace of the gesture – it is expected that a work should exude a cosmic and ineffable air. Regardless of your medium, I hope this glance into the minds of two established poets from very different … Continue reading Poetic Grace Gesture Is Needed In All Art Work
