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  • #478306
    stlukesguild
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        I have a studio mate who insists on explaining everything. He is continually after the other two of us to explain our art whenever we have a visitor.

        But then I just stumbled upon these two quotes that fit more into my thoughts:

        “Once, Picasso was asked what his paintings meant. He said, “Do you ever know what the birds are singing? But you listen to them anyway.” So sometimes with art, it is important just to look.” -Marina Abramovic

        “The only thing I know is that I paint because I need to, and I paint whatever passes through my head without any other consideration.” -Frida Kahlo

        What do you think?

        Saintlukesguild-http://stlukesguild.tumblr.com/
        "Beauty is truth, truth beauty—that is all ye know on earth and all ye need to know." - John Keats
        "Modern art is what happens when painters stop looking at girls and persuade themselves that they have a better idea."- John Ciardi

        #884671
        OLIVE.OYL
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            I LITERALLY can’t explain anything anymore. I “think” my brain has been fried to a crisp. It’s worn out. Smooth as a nub. Empty. I don’t want to know more. I don’t care if people understand me. I’m not curious anymore. I’m tossing out everything (in my head and in my life) that’s no longer necessary.

            I’m in full-blown survival mode.
            Only instincts, feelings, emotions matter.

            Sounds like a major art fart…

            #884644
            ianuk
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                #884650
                La_
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                    If it’s not obvious content I often much prefer viewers to tell me what they see, feel, hear from a piece.

                    “It’s like a Rorschach, take your time.”

                    la

                    _____________________________________________
                    When the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world will know Peace

                    #884653
                    Dcam
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                        Ian……:lol::lol::lol:. They made too few episodes. Love it.

                        I think Brevity is important when “explaining” your work.
                        If a buyer wants a bit of explanation cash/check in hand……go for it.

                        If you have to go on and on with all kinds of philosophy, personal and deep exposition, and complex jargon…..well……:(

                        #884624

                        When people ask me what kind of art I do, depending on who they are, I usually just say, “the strange kind that you wouldn’t think anyone would want to see.”

                        The conversation doesn’t usually go on after that. That scares them. (Mostly because the majority of people don’t have a sense of humor.) If they’re interested beyond that, I just show it to them.

                        #884625

                        I LITERALLY can’t explain anything anymore. I “think” my brain has been fried to a crisp. It’s worn out. Smooth as a nub. Empty. I don’t want to know more. I don’t care if people understand me. I’m not curious anymore. I’m tossing out everything (in my head and in my life) that’s no longer necessary.

                        I’m in full-blown survival mode.
                        Only instincts, feelings, emotions matter.

                        Sounds like a major art fart…

                        It sounds like you’re temporarily having a farty moment is all. Are you okay?
                        Unless I’m not correctly understanding.
                        Maybe you are just past the point of caring what people think. If that’s so, tell me your secret! You’ve reached the state of enlightenment.

                        #884641

                        A couple from Renoir:

                        What are we supposed to do about these stupid literary people who will never understand that painting is a craft! You make it with materials, not ideas! The ideas come afterwards, when the painting is finished.

                        Nowadays they want to explain everything. But if they could explain a picture it wouldn’t be art. Shall I tell you what I think are the two qualities of a work of art? It must be indescribable and it must be inimitable.

                        Cheers,
                        Chris

                        C&C of all sorts always welcome! (I don't mind rude or harsh criticism.)
                        I suppose I have to do this too :p (my blog, & current work). My Visual Arts Nova Scotia page.
                        Art is the most intense mode of individualism that the world has known - Oscar Wilde

                        The primary palette: Attention, observation, memory, imagination, integration, execution

                        #884677
                        BeLing
                        Default

                            A few years ago an entrant to our yearly juried art exhibition asked about submitting a paragraph about his work. “Not for the jurying, but definitely, if it’s accepted.” Then the curator added happily, “It’s all about the narrative!”

                            I still wonder about that.

                            I also know that I’ve seen works I felt nothing for, or even disliked, until I met the artists who made them, and they were such delightful people, I decided I liked their work after all. That shows me that Spoken Language and personalities are stronger than “art”: that is, that weak “things” can be made strong, at least in your mind, through words.

                            But I also know that there are works of art that can touch you, all by themselves, without any help whatsoever. In my own personal world, I reserve these as Real Art. I don’t see much because mostly what I experience are jpegs, and I don’t like to evaluate reproductions either. But I do see, now and then, “real art” which can stand on their own, without explanation.

                            Sorry this is long, but I think this is a complicated topic, especially if you can’t separate a person from his work. I ask, doesn’t artwork HAVE to stand on its own?

                            #884673
                            selectedgrub
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                                Have a patch to point to.

                                #884621
                                john
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                                    A simple landscape painting would seem to require no explanation. But what if the landscape is of something of historical importance? Now it’s not just a random place. The view of it changes by the knowledge of what took place there. Just a field with a fence ? No, the tag says it’s Gettysburg, where 50 thousand died. OK, maybe we won’t hang it in the living room.

                                    I think that all art work can be improved by knowing something about it, for instance; how it was made, what the artist was trying to say, what the historical importance is, the place, the art theory behind it, etc. Context helps with appreciation.

                                    #884675
                                    goldensun
                                    Default

                                        This reminds me of this quote:

                                        #884632
                                        stlukesguild
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                                            I think that all art work can be improved by knowing something about it, for instance; how it was made, what the artist was trying to say, what the historical importance is, the place, the art theory behind it, etc. Context helps with appreciation.

                                            Are you sure? Is my appreciation… the pleasure I take in the work… greater than that of someone who doesn’t know the Netherlandish Proverbs illustrated in the painting?

                                            Or is my understanding and pleasure merely different from another’s? We all bring prior knowledge to our experience of art. This prior knowledge may include art history, a knowledge of the larger cultural and historical context in which a work was made, the biography of the artist… but it may include personal experiences and/or knowledge in seemingly unrelated disciplines (music, literature, theology, science, etc…) all of which may influence how we perceive a work of art.

                                            Saintlukesguild-http://stlukesguild.tumblr.com/
                                            "Beauty is truth, truth beauty—that is all ye know on earth and all ye need to know." - John Keats
                                            "Modern art is what happens when painters stop looking at girls and persuade themselves that they have a better idea."- John Ciardi

                                            #884633
                                            stlukesguild
                                            Default

                                                “What are we supposed to do about these stupid literary people who will never understand that painting is a craft! You make it with materials, not ideas! The ideas come afterwards, when the painting is finished.” -Renoir

                                                Chris, this quote reminds me of an anecdote I came across in one of my numerous books on Degas. Degas, and other artists, composers, and authors frequently attended “salons” where the leading artists of the day could share and debate ideas. One of the more popular “salons” was that of the poet, Stéphane Mallarmé:

                                                At one particular salon, Mallarmé read some of his latest poetry. Afterwards, Degas rushed to share with Mallarmé the fact that he had a slew of ideas for his own poems. Mallarmé, however, responded, “But my dear Monsieur Degas, surely you know that poems are not made from ideas, but rather from words.” :lol:

                                                Saintlukesguild-http://stlukesguild.tumblr.com/
                                                "Beauty is truth, truth beauty—that is all ye know on earth and all ye need to know." - John Keats
                                                "Modern art is what happens when painters stop looking at girls and persuade themselves that they have a better idea."- John Ciardi

                                                #884651
                                                brianvds
                                                Default

                                                    “What are we supposed to do about these stupid literary people who will never understand that painting is a craft! You make it with materials, not ideas! The ideas come afterwards, when the painting is finished.” -Renoir[/quote]

                                                    Indeed. Or put a different way: the ideas are really easy to come by. Anyone at all can come up with fifty ideas for paintings in an afternoon. Alas, they are of no use if you can’t turn them into actual paintings.

                                                    I also agree with that Hopper quote posted earlier: painting can be pretty nonverbal and cannot be explained any more than you can explain a Beethoven symphony. Which is to say, it’s not like there is nothing at all to say about it, but whatever you say is going to pale by comparison to the actual work.

                                                    I am lucky: I paint blandly decorative representational stuff, so I don’t really get asked to philosophize about it. Of course, even then you now and then run into people who want to know what “inspires” you. Sheesh, do you ever ask your plumber what inspired him to fix your drainage system?

                                                    Yes, I am one of those philistines who conceive of art as primarily a craft rather than an intellectual pursuit. :-)

                                                    __________________________
                                                    http://brianvds.blogspot.co.za/

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