I love the work of Marc Rothko, so when I found this series of videos done by the BBC and Simon Schama, I had to share them with you.  Schama does a whole series on The Power of Art which includes similar discussions on Caravaggio, Bernini, Rembrandt, David, Turner, van Gogh, Picasso and Rothko. If you are willing to take these in bits and pieces, which may be a perfect way to view them, they are all on YouTube.  I love the way he weaves in art, the artist, culture, business and political history to help explain, indeed, The Power of Art!  One of the greatest examples of this, I think might come about in the Picasso series when he speaks of a painting which was covered up at the United Nations before a press conference! I will tell you no more here.  We have so much to be greatful for in these artists who went before us, not only in understanding what they went through and what they were trying to share, but also what their struggles mean to what we do today.

I would love to see more of these.  Of course, modern art is my personal preference, but we have a lot to learn from all artists – even each other.  I am grateful you are willing to share.

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Today, I have been thinking again about the meaning of the arts.  What got me going was a posting by Fiona Long about her recent trip to Tokyo from London.  On her current post she talks about a lecture she attended given by the Chinese artist, Song Dong.  Fiona tells an amazing story of how one person’s life meant something entirely different to them than it did to her children and how art brought those lives closer together.  It also made me think how this story was about so much more than art, it was about love, culture, values, responsibilities, memories, the environment, and so many more things that make up lives.  Please follow the link and read this amazing story.

a bit of a work in progress

When I went to pay a visit to Miranda, I found she had written a post about ‘How to Survive an Art Critique’.  She provided some excellent points and I encourage you to read what she shares.  We all have those people who like to play critic in our lives if they are professionals or not.  One thing this post made me think about was how different people get different impressions/feelings from the same piece of art.  Often it is very different from even the intentions of the artist and this could be due to the different experiences in life not so much to the failure of the artist.  In my mind, if the artist’s objective is for the viewer (professional critic or otherwise) to see or feel something particular, then it usually has to be blatant and that, in itself, may not be in every one’s best interest.  As artists, we can take responsibility for what we create, but we cannot take responsibility for what the viewer sees or feels.  They clearly have had different life experiences, and we should not expect the same emotions.  This doesn’t mean there are not positive things which come from a critique. 

 

We all know artists have great responsibilities, and I think one of those responsibilities is to find a way to touch the viewer in unexpected ways.  If we give people something to think about and things to contemplate, then they can, and hopefully will, go forth and do the tasks they do in a better, more thoughtful way.  Often, if they don’t, the experience is too painful for them at that moment.  Some people just are not ready for the mirror art holds up to them.

 In the LA Times on Friday (25 September 2009) there was an article about the address Michelle Obama gave to art students and the spouses of the G-20 leaders in Pittsburgh.  The paper quotes Mrs. Obama as saying, ” That is the power of the arts – to remind us of what we each have to offer, and what we all have in common; to help us understand our history and imagine our future; to give us hope in the moments of struggle; and to bring us together when nothing else will. That is what we celebrate here today.”  With this said, visit Judith Dobrzynski’s blog to see what else happened in the art world at the G-20! Chalk one up to art! 

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in process sketchbook work

Why am I telling you this?  Well, yesterday I came across this article on the Miller-McCune Research web site which talks about a recent study done in Rome with people visiting various types of museums.  What they found is those who visit modern art museums are sensation seekers while those who visit the ancient art museums are looking for cultural enrichment.  Both were interested in intellectual development and had an interest in arts and most of the museum goers were women, but the visitors to the modern art museum were on average 10 years younger than the age of the ancient art museum goers.  This was a simple research, but one which will probably open avenues for further social, intellectual and cultural work.  While I wasn’t surprised, I was happy to see this actually was taking place.  So while I feel a great deal of emotion when I paint and when I view certain art, it is nice to know others also get that emotional feeling when they view art, even in public formats.

another sketchbook work in progress

Another emotional aspect of being an artist is having some special people say nice things about you from time to time.  You are right, this is not the first time this has happened, but over the last two days I have had a couple of people say some kind things I wanted to share with you.  Yesterday, Adam Reeder, said this to me (after he recommended a particular book on public art) on Facebook,  “yeah you said it Kim, we need to be able to learn from everyone, and someone as talented as you could really run with info.”  I have followed Adams work for sometime now and his sculptures are amazing and his drawings can sure make you pause.  I am sure you will enjoy how he looks forwards and backwards with his art.  Then, in this morning’s email there was a note I had been listed as a recommendation on Miranda Aschenbrenner’s blog, Learn To Art (scroll down as she has place a tutorial at the top).  She said some lovely things there, too.  I encourage you to visit Miranda as she has some lovely posts about realistic drawing.

So art is emotional on all sides for me.  I wonder what research might find about the ‘state of mind’ of artists as they produce particular kinds of art?  Do you ever fill with emotion as you paint?  Have you ever collapsed on the floor in the middle of your studio?  I am eager to hear of the emotional experiences you find in art both on the production and observation sides.   My emotions bring the richness to my life.  Do you find that is true for you?  Are you an emotional museum goer or are you seeking cultural enrichment?

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