Typically I am more lenient towards paintings and drawings, but I really like the work of Candida Hofer and her photography. She does a really amazing job at taking the idea of creating traditional landscape portraits, yet she does this is a clever way through the angles she presents in her works. For example, in the piece above, the angle is traditional, yet it captures all of the different elements of the library in one shot (the shot captures both sides of the library, the center hallway of the library, the shelves on both floors, the rounded ceiling, etc). Looking at the photograph in a more analitical way, I really admire the great use of balance here. I feel that the angle combined with the intent of balance, as well as the depth of the actual library is what really makes this photograph a successful piece. The piece is also very sharp, so all of the smaller details are clearly visible, which makes the piece beautiful, and is also what the photographer was aiming to capture. I also feel that the colors really make this piece successful. If the image was edited, the colors are not overbearing, and similar tones are found throughout the piece, which makes the image visibly appeasing.

Höfer, Candida. Beautiful Libraries. N.d. Photograph. Web OdysseumWeb. 8 Nov 2013. <http://webodysseum.com/art/beautiful-librairies-by-candida-hofer/>.
 
I really love this piece for a few different reasons. I love the abstract feel of the piece, and I also love the unique choice of medium (coffee and ink - who knew?) One of the biggest aspects of this piece that I notice is the fact that there is a well thought out use of balance. The lines creates from the coffee and the lines created by the ink balance each other out very well (even though the piece presents asymmetrical balance). I also think this piece is very successful and works very well because the lines present great craftsmanship. The lines are very precise and present a great quality to them. I also really admire the use of contrast in this piece, and the black lines really pop out from the lines created by the coffee, and it makes the work almost three-dimensional on a flat surface. The lines have a mechanical feel, as if they are wires or even cords. Another aspect of this piece that I admire is that it is not as contemporary as it could be. In other words, the abstract style itself makes the piece contemporary, yet the color usage is not. I think this is great because so many modern artists try really hard to make their works very contemporary through "explosions" of a wide variation of hues (many colors on one piece), but this piece strays away from that idea. Overall, I think this piece is great, and the main aspects of it that I love are the abstract style combined with the 

Image derived from: Twaddle, Randy. Napa Lines. 2013. coffee, ink on paper. Randy TwaddleWeb. 7 Nov 2013. <http://www.randytwaddle.com/#/alps/>
 
I love this composition and I think for the lack of color, the design is very intricate and is very detailed - which I think is great. The piece itself is very abstract yet is has a direct focus on line weights and how the black and white is used to fill the space and create the design. The style of the piece itself is very block-print like and very solid, which makes the style a bit contemporary, yet in a way it seems to be vintage at a glance through the idea of floral design and lack of contemporary use of color. I admire the work of Wool, because he takes the concept of lines and pushes it to a completely new level. He considers line weights, balance (how it affects the composition as a whole), the usage of shape, I also find it really significant that the pieces he creates are larger, which allows him to create a more meaningful impact on the viewers. I think the high contrast in the piece (through lack of color) is also significant to its success, because it creates an emphasis on the lines and the design, forcing viewers to focus on that. I think this piece is very successful and I really admire the piece not only for its contemporary style, but for the focus and emphasis on the usage of lines (a simple concept - yet it is expanded into a huge, complex composition), as well as the idea of using a simple symbol (flowers) and combining them with the use of the simple technique. 

Image derived from: Wool, Christopher. Untitled.. 1993. Enamel on aluminum. Christopher WoolWeb. 6 Nov 2013. <http://wool735.com/cw/images/?iNum=162>.
 
I think this series is great and I draw a lot of admiration from it through the idea of color experimentation, as well as the idea of the series of roses combined with the abstract technique. There is an analogic color scheme going on in this piece, which means that the artist carefully picked out the colors. I think the color scheme works very well, and in a way the hues complement each other. I also like the concept of the paint dripping from the roses - almost as if the color is fading or coming off of the rose itself. I like this piece, because it is more like a sketch and a process piece, rather than a full completed work. It shows how the artist planned out the sketch (the first flower) and planned how they were going to go about created the flowers, and then the artist dove in and experimented with the colors and technique. This idea of experimentation is huge because it is applicable to all art and all artists. I also think it is interesting that the artist chose to paint the wood a lighter pink hue ( that is what the flowers are painted on). I think the pink hue is significant because it creates a high contrast with the flowers, yet it works well with the red and purple hues. I mainly like this piece because it shows the mental process of the artist and the experimentation of that artist. 

Image derived from: Twombly, Cy. Untitled (Roses) Gaetac. 2008. Painting. Cy TwomblyWeb. 5 Nov 2013. <http://www.cytwombly.info/twombly_gallery.htm>.
 
This piece by Vik Muniz is very inspiring to me because there is a lot of significance behind the piece - and the piece itself tells a story. For background behind this piece, the artist traveled to his homeland in Brazil in the outskirts of Rio de Janeiro where he meets and works with pickers of recyclable materials (the outskirts are a big "garbage" dump where these individuals live and work). When working with these individuals, Muniz photographed each individual and re-created the portraits through using dirt and trash from the waste land. He then re-photographed the final works. Through these works, the workers of Brazil were vulnerable to their despair and they began to re-imagine their lives. This piece and series is very inspirational and influential to me, because the artist went back to where he came from to not only rediscover his roots, but put himself in the shoes of others and understand their lives and how THEY live. I also admire this piece a lot because it incorporates actual elements that are from the waste land, which is representational of the subjects, where they come from, and how they live. This is the same with the dirt, and how dirt was taken from the actual waste land and created to re-create the portraits (used for the shading). This is so significant, because the elements from the waste land make up every aspect of the portrait. This represents that the waste land consumes the lives of these individuals. This is significant to the art world and humanity, because we are being exposed to lives that we have not yet (at that time) been exposed to or discovered. The pieces make us think a bit about the world as a whole, the idea of the mass amounts of trash, as well as how these individuals live their lives. I really love this work, and I think the concept behind the series as a whole is very powerful.

Image derived from: Muniz, Vik. The Gypsy Magna-Pictures of Garbage. 2010. Photograph. Vik Muniz, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Web. 4 Nov 2013. <http://www.wastelandmovie.com/gallery.html>.

Fire

11/1/2013

0 Comments

 
The work of Clemente is very interesting to me, because he gives a different insight and completely different perception on portraiture and how it is viewed. When many people think of portraiture they think of the traditional sketched portrait created with pencil - with traditional shading, etc. In this case and in this portrait, the face is simplified, and the face is almost abstract in a way. The feature of the face are distorted and emphasized in certain aspects. For example, the lips are huge, and the eyes are disfigured, and rounded out. The nose is also slightly big, and the face rounded more, compared to a "normal" or "traditional" face. I also admire the color usage in this piece, and how certain areas contrast with each other well. (the red in the shirt, lips, eyes, and background contrast well with each other. The coloration and shades of the face of the figure are realistic in a sense, yet the rest of the piece itself is very abstract and distorted. The figure is very flat and two-dimensional, which intensifies the meaning being conveyed. The color usage is very significant to the piece itself and the title. When I think of fire, I think of red and oranges hues - which helps convey the point that Clemente is trying to get across. The red within the eyes to me indicates that the subject sees anger and hatred, and to this individual (could be Clemente

Image derived from: Clemente, Francesco. Fire. 1982. Painting. Artchive, Thomas Ammann, Zurich. Web. 1 Nov 2013. <http://www.artchive.com/artchive/C/clemente/clemente_fire.jpg.html>.
 
After viewing the work of Swoon, I have found an entirely new inspiration. His work amazes me in so many different ways its hard to even pin point a place to start. I really admire the contemporary style of this piece combined with the concept of figurative portraiture. The lines that make up the shading of the subject (the woman) convey a lot of emotion to me, as well as the contemporary style. I am really drawn into the print-style designs that make up the bottom half of the woman. They are block-like and solid, which not only adds on to the idea of contemporary style. I also like, the block-like designs, because they convey emotion in a different and interesting way. Although there is an obvious expression on the face of the subject that conveys the mood, It seems as though the embellished designs convey the idea of holding onto your emotions or past (dark) and carrying them with you wherever you go - and throughout your life in general. The background that appear behind the subject is very faded and the hues are almost transparent - which reminds me of a map and how the colors are faded. The ideas of the lines and arrows indicates direction, which also reminds me of the idea of a map. The piece conveys the idea of individuals holding their emotions with them and past experiences, carrying with them throughout life. 

Image derived from: Swoon. Zahra. 2010. Print. Juxtapoz Magazine. Web. 1 Nov 2013. <http://www.juxtapoz.com/street-art/swoon-releases-31-unique-variants-of-qzahraq>.
 
I really admire Haring's work for it's simplicity and how whimsical it is. Many artists are so focused on perfection and having things look perfect and realstic - while Haring's work is the exact opposite. When viewing Haring's work, It is very child-like and relates to children - and I was drawn to this. In this piece in particular, there is a lot of movement being conveyed not only through the dancing dogs, but through the lines that guide the eye around the piece. The dogs appear as if they are laughing, which gives the piece a lighter feel, and conveys happiness. The dogs also remind me of children and childhood because dogs in general are used in a lot of children's books, movies, tv shows, as toys, etc. The piece also presents a triad color scheme (red, green, blue). The color scheme combined with the line technique reminds me of childhood, because when I view this piece, I think of children scribbling in lines and using crayons or crayola markers to create a drawing. The piece itself is very figurative in a two dimensional way. To me, the piece conveys the idea of the simple things in life that can make us happy (the dogs are happy and the style of the piece is very simplistic) - which I think is very true in reality. 

Image derived from: Haring, Keith. Untitled. 1981. Sumi Ink And Acrylic On Paper. Keith HaringWeb. 31 Oct 2013. <http://www.haring.com/!/art-work/138#.UnKtlvnXSEQ/>
 
I really admire this piece because it is a older photograph that paints a story. The first thing that stood out to me when looking at this piece is the composition and the angle that the shot was taken. The shot is a traditional landscape shot, yet it captures so much movement and detail. I like how the shot captures movement from both the ocean and the sky. If the piece were to not have the sky, I feel that the photograph would not be as interesting. I also really think that the fact that the image is not as sharp and presents a fuzziness or slight blurred effect is significant to the subject matter/type of landscape that is being presented. The landscape itself presents a darker mood through the hues conveyed in the photograph (darker), so the fuzziness makes sense with this mood. I also think that this piece presents a good quality through the complementing movements. In other words, I think the piece is great, because there are white hues presented in the water in the waves  as well as in the clouds of the sky (the white hues appear in the top and the bottom of the photograph) - therefore they compliment each other. I also like the slight hues that appear throughout the piece (the faded hues of purple, blue, orange/red). Another interesting aspect of the photograph is the distance or idea of infinite space that is presented (it appear as if the ocean continually keeps going and going - stretching across the Earth for miles) - this is obvious in reality, but this is significant to what this piece is conveying. Overall, I think this photograph is an interesting landscape photograph portrait and it captures a lot of emotion through the composition and the mood conveyed.

Image derived from: Ritcher, Gerhard. Seestück II. 1970. Photograph. Gerhard RitcherWeb. 30 Oct 2013. <http://www.gerhard-richter.com/art/editions/detail.php?paintid=12711&p=2&sp=32>.
 
The movement presented in this piece through the organic shapes is very inspiring to me. The piece itself is very abstract and takes on its own form. There is a feeling of unity as well as asymmetrical balance that is created through the idea of repetition and repeating similar shapes and repeating the use of similar colors. The use of warm colors conveys energy. I interpret this piece almost as visually being able to see an abyss of energy forming when the mind begins to work and think and create. The abstract and organic forms remind me of waves of the brain that are transmitted back and forth between different parts of the body. When an individual comes inspired and motivated, the mind begins to work and movement of the waves begins to occur, transmitting signals, etc. The hues add on to the idea of energy, and the abstract forms convey movement. It is like visually seeing the inside of the right brain and how it works when a person becomes inspired - which I think is relevant to the title. "Display Linkage" could be or is referring to a visual display of the linkage between inspiration and the creative mind. I really admire this piece and I appreciate it for the concept as well as the contemporary feel and conveyace 

Image derived from: Winters, Terry. Display Linkage. 2005. Oil on linen.. ArtNet, Los Angeles, California. Web. 28 Oct 2013. <http://www.artnet.com/artwork/426150541/706/terry-winters-display-linkage.html>.

    About the Inspirationist

    Here is where I draw my inspiration from other artists and influences, as well as post about my own artistic and cultural experiences. All work that is not owned by myself is cited to the best of my ability and all credentials are given to the artists and their works, respectfully. Thanks for reading!

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