The empire state part 2

For this entry I want to touch on a lot of random things I thought about while in NYC. It was great to have my mind spinning with creativity. But I could not ignore some things that seemed to either frustrate me or strike a never of anger.

On saturday I visited the MoMA. This was not my first trip to this museum but I seemed to realize why I don't enjoy much of the art I see in that building. The thought struck me that art cannot rely on a few elements and principles, in fact in order for someone to be a true master of art the must be able to successfully incorporate all of these factors into their artwork. Now, this does not mean that I hate almost every piece of art I have ever seen. What this thought made me realize was why I held so much doubt in my own talent. I'm not some great artist but I do have the ability to become something great and I often wonder if I will ever master all of the elements and principles of art, and in my mind be a "true" artist.

Sunday morning the group I was with took a stroll up fifth ave into central park and visited the Guggenheim Museum. If you haven't visited this museum then I should explain the the floor is a continuous slope forming a spiral. While looking at some art from the early 1900's from German, France, and Italy, I wondered, "In a building with crooked floors how do you hang a painting 'straight'?" Either you hang it strictly vertical, ignoring the floor an have it look crooked in relation to the floor, or you hang it perpendicular with the floor and have it appear to slanted with respect to the viewer who is standing vertical due to gravity.

The final thought I want to touch on was brought up by my adviser. I noticed how the cathedrals of NYC are dwarfed by the skyscrapers. He pointed out that the point of a cathedral is to stand above all other buildings and be viewable from around the city. Now these majestic temples are hidden in the shadows of penthouses and office buildings. This is the perfect illustration of how the culture of America has changed over the past century.


PS- The sketch above was done in my hotel room after leaving the MoMA. I do like very few pieces in that museum.

The Empire State

So over the weekend I had the chance to visit NYC, meet some artists, and visit some galleries. I'm going to use a couple posts to talk about my adventures.

I went to NYC with the Visual Arts Department from Gettysburg College. We spent Saturday Morning walking around Chelsea visiting different Art Galleries. Over all I was not too impressed by what I saw hanging on the walls of the remodeled garages. The works by Wangechi Mutu as well as Albert Oehlen did spike my interest, but the majority of the art I saw was plain and simple shit. The Galleries were filled with to much "Modern Art", which in my opinion, while modern art does demostrate skill and planning it fails to incorporate all the elements and principles of art. Now before I go on I will state that I am a hypocrite and by no means to I consider myself to be a good artist. I see all this art that moves millions of dollars around the world and wonder how it is possible. I am never fully satisfied with my own work because I feel that I am still learning how to use all of the elements and principles to create truly great work.

I don't mean to say that I hate every piece of "Modern Art" I have ever seen. However I cannot comprehend how some people can enjoy such simplistic, "conceptual" work. But to each his own, and my own is to be the anti-"Modern Artist".

On a closing note, amidst all the multimillion dollar galleries we stumbled upon a great alley way underneath a bridge. Along the walls were some great graffiti/street art pieces mixed amongst parked cars and empty wine bottles. The piece which displays a two headed eagle had a tag next to it which stated "blog about this". I'm debating as to whether the artist was looking to get their work out onto the internet world or if it was a blatant statement expressing disdain for the blogging community. Either way it is an impressive piece and I think people should see it. I mean, it is street art right?

sketch update 11.09.10

Just a few sketches from my figure drawing class, a sketch of a graffiti style steel project I'm working on, and a sketch from class this morning.

Entertainers v. Artists

In America people are always struggling to get ahead and to succeed. A perfect example of how we do that can be found in our entertainers, people have worked their way up through the ranks to gain money and fame. But there is an irony within this idea of success as an entertainer. Actors and actresses are often called stars because they shine in the eyes of the masses. But stars to not glimmer forever. This is also true for actors, especially comedians. Take a look at who the main comedic roles are played by in movies. It is an every changing group. Some comedians try to hang on but often fail. Like the stars in the night sky, they are born, they glimmer, then they dim and die out.
Lets examine artists now. For the most part, artists are born with a talent and through practice they improve. Some go on to sell their works in galleries, others find their works hanging in museums. But more often then not, artists find themselves producing works for commissions or work for graphic design. It is much harder to gain fame and prestige within this field. But once an artist sells a piece for millions of dollars, the price is set, they become established and will from that point out sell their work for millions.
The entertainers gain fame with ease through exposure to the public but are soon replaced by new comers. While success in the art world is much harder to reach but once one has achieved such a goal they own their prestige even after death.