Artist 9/20: Herbert James Draper

Coming fresh off my Kitsch rant, I'd like to introduce to you an horrendously neglected artist. Considered one of the last true romantic artists from the victorian era, there has been no modern study of his work and you're lucky if you can find more than a paragraph on his bio. Despite being considered one of the true masters of his genre, he was never made never elected Royal Academician, or even Associate of the prostegious arts schools he attended in London, Paris and Rome. The man's work epidomised my childhood definition of beauty. I'm referring to forgotten artist Herbert James Draper.

I can only imagine that Herbert LOVED women. He painted them all the time. He was sort of the opposite to Michelangelo in regards to the human form. While Michelangelo drooled over the beauty that was the male body, Herbert prefered the curves of a woman. Not to say that ol Herb couldn't paint men. Oh no he did several romance paintings that more than displayed his understanding the human form of not just both genders but of multiple ethnicities. Most of his works use a female subject to depict a goddess, a myth, legend, or even to embody an element of nature. and when it comes to personal taste, Herby hails from a period where the ideals of femanine beauty most appeal to me.

And the POETRY! Oh the poetry! Take this painting entitled Day and the Dawnstar: It is the romantic embodiment of the sun and the morning star and how they can never co-exist. He reaches out to kiss the lips of Dawnstar, who at that moment, overwhelmed by his radiance, expires. Draper would even write poetry or "couplets" with some of his work: 'To faint in the light of the sun she loves/To faint in his light and to die'. I normally hate poetry but this is good stuff!

The man understood light, form, atmosphere, composition and his style ranged from sfumato to detailed realism. His characters weren't always confined to poses that were stoic, alluring or dignified. Quite the contrary, many of his works were of characters experiencing horror, rapture, glee in very natural and relatible expressions.

What also has me enamored over the man is that even his model studies and sketch work would easily be seen as high end work today, though he saw them as subpar. I find them exquisite and can only hope that even I will one day be as good. His diversity in subject matter is probably what made Herbert successful in his golden days but for some odd reason he quickly fell out of popularity towards the end of his life. Little is known why. If my career goes as planned, Herbert James Draper is among the first on my list of artists whose work I hope to conserve and research.

Blog #16: Kitsch Schmitsch!!

Kitsch Schmitsch! While I'm proud to be able to identify varying art as kitsch, I'm beginning to really dislike this term. It's very condescending in a way. At least it can be. Perhaps this is because it looks like a jumble of the words "sick" & "shit" but it seems that anything that isn't kitsch has to be disturbing or grotesque, anything that brings a recognizable pleasure is apparently passe and cheap. Well I LIKE kitsch but I don't want to be labeled a "kitsch" artist because then I feel like those who would label me think "aw you pander to what's safe and in order to be successful you pander to what you know will sell."  But then I suppose it's a no win situation here because anyone who claims to hate kitsch I automatically think "aw you're one of those people who have to shove your dogma into other people's faces and hope you become popular with some cult following! AND as soon as you do become popular...*cough Tim Burton cough* ...you suddenly become kitsch yourself!!"  So I LIKE pleasing people! I mean isn't that the foundation from which the profession of artist is built? ....granted so is prostitution but thats beside the point! Anyhoo, I also like pretty things. I like looking at them and I find great indignation when anyone insinuates that's a bad thing.

Blog #15: MIDTERM!!!

First off, what an awesome midterm! No studying, no writing just make something. Well! well well well. We are given two mediums to work with: soap or spam.
Naturally I chose the SPAM. Mostly out of my idle curiosity as to what spam looks like. I've never eaten it intentionally. Heck! I'm not even sure I've seen it up close before. Much to my suprise, it smells like tuna mixed with bacon.

Anyhoo we have to make something, anything! So question is. What does one make from SPAM? So from our past two class projects, I looked at the qualities of SPAM. It really is just mean, pork to be specific, and yet its seen as disgusting and cheap. Hmm. Well a penis came to mind with the connection of "edible meat" but I figured that was too obvious. Perhaps the subject matter should contradict the subject matter and make something either cute or beautiful. A classical bust maybe? I had decided on this. But then, out of the blue, I don't know where, it struck me. A FETUS!  Granted, I asked a few people and that was what got the biggest reaction. First I mention SPAM which on it's own made people go "Ewww!". Then to mention an aborted fetus and they replied with "Ewwwww!" (notice the extra Ws)

Let me be perfectly clear that I am politically Pro-Choice while personally I am pro-life. So this is NOT intended to push a strong political agenda.

However, I pose the question. What makes SPAM disgusting anyway? Again, its just meat. And when it comes to meat, what meats are more disgusting than others? Why is eating one animal any less disgusting than eating say a dog? SO! With abortion, we are asked a similar question; which humans are less entitled to life? When does the ...thing...go from being a cute baby to a disgusting fetus? Am I saying the fetus is just a piece of meat? Or am I comparing abortion to the use of SPAM that "hopefully" it should be a last resort?  Discuss!

Artist 8/20: Antonio Corradini

You know a man is talented when he can make stone look transparent and as light as air. People marvel at the fact that artists like Donatello were the first to make the garments of their sculptors contour to the human form but few artists ever took such contouring to greater heights than Antonio Corradini. Easily rivaling the likes of Bernini, this was the man capable of making stone sculpture of a veiled woman. Unfortunately he wasn't as highly commissioned and has still yet to gain the posthumous credit I think he deserves as very little of his work is mentioned in books.

A Baroque artist, Corradini worked in Venice in the early 1700s. And completed such remarkable works like Chastity (also called Modesty) a tomb dedicated to the patron of the chapel's mother. Corradini unfortunately didn't master his technique until late in his career and among his last commissions by the same patron was Christ beneath the Shroud. Sadly Corradini died on 29 June 1752 before the work was completed. Another artist by the name of Giuseppe Sanmartino finished the work, successfully completing the essence the original artist intended to captivate. One of the reasons Corradino's work didn't garner much attention from the Vatican was because his work was supposedly too erotic and somber.

There's a sense of subtle elegance in his work and I do agree that is does display a certain eerieness.

Blog #14: Childhood in a Purse/ Statement

Well, the crayon coin purse and the little wax coins have turned out extremely well. Fortunately...or unfortunately...I managed to finish it two weeks before the due date. One would think I'd have all that time off but nooo..... It was suggested that I go on to make a whole purse.

Well so that got my mind going. Rather than making a purse out of crayon boxes as well I figured I'd make it out af a girly backpack and it's contents out of various things pretaining to childhood and school. But what to women typically carry in their purses and what are the innocent parallels?

So among the first things to come to mind were the two objects I originally thought of working with: bubble gum and a condom. The parallel struck me. Condom symbolizes sex which is among the most exciting things adults get to experience. Then make it out of gum/candy which is a kid's prime source of pleasure. Also, for a woman carrying a condom can indicate that she is promiscuous (albeit responsible) and a child who brings gum to school is also...naughty.

Speaking of "naughty". How about some nasty habits? Smoking is the most obvious habit/addiction and in today's society its slowly becoming less accepted and more taboo. From personal experience, the worst habit I had in school was chewing my wooden pencils (one of the reasons I only like using mechanical pencils today). So with that I intend to construct a cigarette carton and ciggies from a box of pencils.

Cell phones.... how does an elementary student communicate? Notes...little obnoxious but cute love notes. While I doubt I'll be able to get my hands on a genuine love note I'll have to compose one myself and with it I hope to make a paper machete cell phone. However, I've recently decided to make this project a little sad. Already we've established that this purse's owner has a bad addiction, may be promiscuous, so to make that come full circle the message written on the love note and consequently the phone will be a negative one. Erin Cunningham reminded me of the old school notes with the "do you like me? check yes or no." So I plan to have the no box checked. This may even indicate as to why the purse was dropped.

This just adds to the reflection of simpler times. henceforth all the childhood supplies.

Other objects I hope to constuct are a stick of lipstick made from tootsie rolls (again candy being linked to sex)

a billfold with trading cards of some kind rather than credit cards and cash (forms of currency)

Keys made from a hall pass or a nail file made from a ruler. Hopefully the first thrift shop I visit will have all these things.