Aspect Art | art history, info & news

After last year’s shocking exhibition of photographs of his father’s dead body lying on a mortuary slab covered in bruises, a New Zealand artist now exhibited his father Neville’s ashes.

Nigel Madden is competing in this year’s Norsewear Art Awards with this work. He says that in the end, his father, an alcoholic, is much more useful dead that he was alive.

The ashes are stored in a Belgium-made urn that Madden bought off the Internet and the plinth is handmade. I took my father’s ashes and placed them in a reflective urn and placed it on a pedestal. In this way my father’s remains function as a symbol and represent art, the author said.

Although his last year’s work “Three Portraits of Neville Madden” was the mourning of the dysfunctional father-son relationship, the artist claims that this year’s work, dubbed “The End of Art”, is less personal.

Madden quotes Picasso: “In art one must kill one’s father”. He liked the cold, reflective surface of the urn that ceases being important as an object and becomes the home of one’s own thoughts. He is also pleased with the ashes as material because it is not often that an artist gets to work with human mortal remains.

The work is up for sale for two thousand dollars, but finding a buyer is difficult.

The three photographs he displayed last year show his dead father on a mortuary slab, his body covered in bruises that he got after suffering a heart attack and falling off a bar stool in a hotel where he had been drinking before a rugby match.

The purpose of the photographs is not morbid in nature. Madden does not deem his conduct as immoral, but just raw and what it is because a dead body for him is just a shell. With the shocking photographs the artist wanted to depict something subtle, relationships. The photographs selected for the exhibition were marked with a warning sign for the audience.

The Norsewear Art Awards exhibition opens in hastings on New Zealand on April 14 and remains open until May 27. The winner of the award gets 20,000 dollars, and second and third contesters get 5,000 dollars each. This national annual award for modern art tries to discover and stimulate excellence in art. This year it is celebrating its 21^st anniversary.

Compared to the few million dollars it costs for a genuine Picasso or van Gogh, then you might be apt to call reproduction paintings the “poor man’s art”. It all depends on your definition of poor. The truth of the matter is reproduction art is a very affordable and reputable way to build an extensive and sometimes valuable art collection.

So how can reproduction art be so wonderful and even valuable? First, it is important not to confuse reproductions with prints, which are merely copies of the original. Prints come in the form of posters so they are not actual paintings. Reproductions are created by a highly talented artist. The artist who paints reproductions must know every technique used by the masters who created the original.

In fact, it is not even as simple as the technique merely being copied. The reproduction artist works hard to use the same quality canvas and oils as the original artist and also becomes familiar enough with the painting to duplicate lighting, brushes, and brush strokes. It is clear that reproductions are not mere knock-offs of a great work of art. They take a lot of talent, time, and effort to get it just right.

Reproduction artists are expert painters. They simply are not creating their own unique paintings, or at least not exclusively. Perhaps in reproducing the work of the masters they are practicing and enhancing their technical ability or perhaps they just enjoy recreating the masterpieces and consider it a challenge and an honor to do so. A good way to look at it is that reproduction artists are doing us a very valuable favor. They are making it possible to bring the work of the masters into our homes. Otherwise we would have to wait until we went to a famous museum or made some very rich friends before we could ever experience the pleasure of inspiration and awe that the masters inspire in us all.

As a company which produces reproduction paintings, we are of course slightly biased, but certainly as we have experience of producing paintings of a high standard then we are fully aware of the talent it takes to reproduce a master.

Interestingly it is sometimes very much more difficult to reproduce a painting which would be considered “simpler” such as a Kandinsky, rather than something more realistic like a Bouguereau. The reason being that the details in a painting which is more abstract are much more important to the piece, as there are fewer of them. As an example, if you were painting three shapes on a canvas and one was out of place, or enlarged or in some other way distorted; it would be quite plain to see. If a leaf on a tree amongst thousands was a little bit too much to the right however, it would be nearly impossible to notice.

Abstract paintings also often requrie the feeling of the artist to be projected onto the canvas, whereas realistic painting use their subjects to invoke emotion and passion in the viewer. Reproduction of both styles are of course incredibly difficult things to acheive, and the reason why we are so very picky with the artists we choose to work with us.

Much in the same way as an Olympic figure skater, we do not simply want to envoke feelings of “nice”, or “I could do that”; our objective is to make people look at the art and wonder how on Earth it is possible to produce something so naturally beautiful, whilst at the same time not giving the slightest hint of the hundreds of hours practice it took to reach such a high level of excellence.

When you see abstract art, what goes through your mind? Do you like it? Do you understand it? Do you even think it is “real” art? The question is have you ever considered what “real” art is? How does a person determine what constitutes “real” art or “good” art?

The dictionary tells us that absract is : “of or pertaining to the formal aspect of art, emphasizing lines, colors, generalized or geometrical forms, etc., esp. with reference to their relationship to one another.” What does that really mean though?

While it is true that art is “in the eye of the beholder” and not everything is going to suit your tastes, you have to remember that art is a personal thing. People create art for themselves and through themselves, as a result of their environment, not to please others. At least, pleasing others is not the primary reason. It just happens to be a great added bonus, and the one that puts money in the artist’s pocket.

Many people see abstract art and say, “I could paint that,” or, “Even a five-year-old could paint that.” Have you ever tried? Abstract art once meant painting a real object with a muted effect that was more subjective than the true representation of the object. This was called impressionism. And if you think abstract art is a new fangled way to produce art you are mistaken. Abstract art has been around for thousands of years. Islamic and Jewish cultures have used abstract art for generations simply because the depiction of human beings in art is forbidden.

The easiest way to understand abstract art is to understand what purpose art serves. In the beginning, art was merely a way of depicting real forms in a manner that would give them permanency. As art evolved and abstract art in its myriad of forms came onto the scene, the purpose of art began to shift from that of portraying reality to that of evoking feeling and emotion. A way of looking at this is, if you have no recognizable images (in pure abstract art) for your conscious mind to process, then your subconscious mind can be left to take in the full feeling of the colors and patterns that are present.

Prehistoric art was always abstract. People were not trying to paint just the life that they saw it as, but also put into the imagery abstract things such as emotion, movements and sound. Children often paint the same way, with their drawings telling a story; what may look like random lines around the mouth could be the child trying to draw speech - the movement of the mouth and the sounds that are made. Today people are facinated with Australian aboriginal paintings, because they show a line of thought that has been all but forgotten in the rest of the world.

So next time you are wandering through the art gallery, don’t just stick to the portraits and other representational art forms. Stop and really look at the abstract paintings there. Allow yourself to get beyond the, “I don’t see anything” stage, and accept that you are not meant to “see” anything in particular. Then allow your subconscious to take over and allow your feelings to surface. You never know, you may find you will have a new appreciation for abstract art.

Abu Dhabi signed a deal with France on Tuesday to build a spinoff of its most famous museum, the Louvre, in the Gulf emirate better known for oil than art.Abu Dhabi will pay 400 million euros ($525 million) to use the prestigious Louvre name for 30 years as part of a cultural accord that will see paintings from the home of the Mona Lisa exhibited in the museum to be built on a luxury resort island.

“We have decided to create together a museum destined to foster cultural dialogue between East and West by exhibiting works of major importance … spanning all historic periods,” said French Culture Minister Renaud Donnedieu de Vabres, who signed the deal in Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates capital.

French governments have traditionally seen France’s rich cultural heritage as a tool for furthering political interests.

The plan to export a version of the Louvre has sparked accusations in France that the government was sacrificing cultural standards for profit.

Dubbed the “Louvre in the sands” by French media, the project has triggered opposition from experts in France who fear it will distort the museum’s true function as a center of scholarship and home to Western art treasures.

Donnedieu de Vabres defended the deal, which includes temporary loans of art works, technical support and training, as one that would spread French culture, but reassured critics that the Louvre’s greatest treasures would never leave France.

The United Arab Emirates, an energy-producing federation of seven emirates that includes Dubai, is developing its tourism industry as part of a drive to wean the economy off oil money. Dubai is already a major regional tourist hub.

MIDDLE EAST ART HUB

The new museum will be built as part of Saadiyat Island (Island of Happiness), a $27-$29 billion luxury tourist resort that will have marinas, shops and five art centers including the world’s largest Guggenheim, designed by Frank Gehry.

The Louvre Abu Dhabi, designed by French architect Jean Nouvel, will cover 24,000 square meters, including 6,000 square meters of permanent galleries. The complex, under a patterned dome shedding dappled light inside, is due to open around 2012.

The Paris Louvre will staff and manage the museum and lend it works of art, but it will also build up its own major art collection. UAE officials said there would be no restriction on the type of art to be displayed.

“This will be a universal museum. The whole initiative is to create a hub for art in the Middle East,” said Mubarak al-Muhairi, director-general of the Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority. “The focus will be on classical art but we will also be focusing on the region.”

Donnedieu de Vabres said the whole deal would be worth almost 1 billion euros, excluding the cost of building the Louvre Abu Dhabi and buying its collection. UAE officials said it was too early to say how much the museum would cost to build.

France has already agreed to set up an Abu Dhabi branch of the Sorbonne, Paris’s main university since the 13th century, and the Center Pompidou, one of France’s main modern art museums, is looking at setting up an annex in Shanghai.

Has religion played a role in the development of art over the centuries? To answer this question, you need only ask yourself another question. Is there any aspect of culture that religion has not affected over the centuries? No matter how far back you go, even to the cave paintings in Spain and France, you will see religious overtones to the work. However, here we are going to look at Pre-Renaissance through to Contemporary art.

In Pre-Renaissance art, Christianity was at its pinnacle. Religion was unified and was woven into every aspect of life. Art was not about the artist, for it was believed that the true creator of the art was god, but about the artwork itself. Thus the paintings had hugely Christian overtones. They were created in order to direct the imaginings of humans to the divine.

As the Renaissance came along, paintings began to lose their Christian identity. Renaissance comes from the French word for rebirth and this rebirth was taking place in every aspect of society. With it’s beginnings in Italy, Renaissance art went back to the mythology and nature of classical Greece and Rome. It was during this time that oil on canvass made its debut and the time when there was a new class introduced into society – the merchant class. These rich merchants now had much influence over art and funded it extensively. Thus, the art world no longer belonged to the church.

With Pre-Raphaelite art, there seemed to be a desire to bring back the structure and religious nature of art. During the mid 19^th century, when Europe was in a societal upheaval, seven British artists created a group that aimed to bring back moral and noble ideals through their work. They went back to the time of late medieval and early Renaissance until the time of Raphael and renewed interest in detail and color. Thus, it was the aim of these artists to bring some normalcy and contentment back to European society.

Pre-Raphaelite art paved the way for contemporary art. This is, of course, the art of the 20^th century and it is an art that has a large political and social influence. Ushered in with oil on canvass, a hint of its past, contemporary art moved into the abstract by the middle of the century. Thus, in the modern art movement, religion in the sense of Christianity no loner plays a significant role. However, spiritual ideas may play a role in the sense of artists expressing their spiritual selves through their work.

As with anything else in society, it seems that the art world sways back and forth from religious and older ideas to fresh new outlooks and back again. It is the way of the world. It seems to be the way to slow change and hold on to the past before realizing we have to let go and allow the current to take us. Of course, this begs the question, what is to come next?

He’s made a likeness of the Mona Lisa.There’s a portrait of Albert Einstein.

He’s even recreated that infamous picture of dogs playing poker.

You’ve seen knock-offs of those before. So what’s the big deal about Scott Wade’s art? It’s his canvas.

The San Marcos, Texas graphics interface designer paints his masterpieces in a place where they’re guaranteed not to last for posterity - the dirty windows on his Mini Cooper.

Like many of us, Wade has seen those cars badly in need of some water and has been tempted to scrawl the hackneyed ‘wash me’ on a dust obscured back window.

But one day four years ago, inspiration struck, and the artist-in-waiting decided to attempt something far more ambitious than just a message about dirt. At first, he used his finger to sketch cartoon-like figures on his own car.

Then he discovered a new trick - you could use a frayed Popsicle stick to get all kinds of gray hues in that ash. So he began experimenting and before he knew it his artistic bent - with an accent on the bent - began coming out.

Wade can often be seen zooming his car over dusty hill and trail, trying to accumulate a layer of dirt on the back windshield so he can draw his newest creation.

In addition to his classics, the 48-year-old has also done replicas of Vincent van Gogh’s “Starry Night”, Boticelli’s “The Birth of Venus”, a picture of his late dog, various funny faces, a tribute to a magazine writer who wrote an article about him, and even a likeness of “The Last Supper.”

He’s also received requests to use the ashes of cremated people to draw their likenesses as they roll to their final resting place, a decidedly creepy idea.

“I’ve always drawn pictures on dirty windows,” the artist explains. “It wasn’t a conscious decision to develop a new art form. It was just looking for art in everything.”

Each one takes only about half an hour to create and the results can be astonishing.

He’s made about 50 of them so far, and never washes them off, allowing time, nature and the occasional rain storm to do that for him. He takes pictures of every one of them and claims he’s never upset when they’re gone, calling that the transitory nature of his muse.

Besides, like an Etch-a-Sketch, it simply clears the way for his next creation.

“Since it’s temporary it doesn’t have to be perfect,” Wade points out. “You don’t have to belabour it.”

Naturally, there are academics who hail his work as a bold new step in the world of art.

“They’re really transient art which, again, artists have done,” explains Texas State University art and design professor Brian Row, who taught Wade in college. “You experience it once and it’s gone. … It certainly falls within the range of the way artists work.”

Among Wade’s worst enemies in his creative endeavours: too much sun (which can make the dust difficult to manipulate), a downpour (which happens frequently in Texas), and a rear windshield wiper (which can act as a giant eraser.)

To see this amazing artwork, click here.

In a stealthy overnight heist, burglars slipped into the Paris apartment of Picasso’s granddaughter and spirited away two portraits of women the artist loved, slicing one of the paintings out of its frame.
The thieves were so quiet that the two people in Diana Widmaier-Picasso’s apartment didn’t hear them, police said. The burglars left few clues, and police said they weren’t sure how the intruders gained entry.

The two paintings — one of Pablo Picasso’s daughter Maya, the other of his second wife, Jacqueline — together are worth an estimated $66 million.

The paintings join 549 other missing or stolen works by the prolific Spanish painter, sculptor, graphic artist and ceramist, considered by many the leading artist of the 20th Century. Picasso produced more than 20,000 works of art during his long career.

Art experts say that if the burglars hope to sell the paintings, they may be in for a surprise.

Any work by Picasso is “very hard to fence because it’s so well-known — stealing a Picasso is like stealing a sign that says, `I’m a thief,”‘ said Jonathan Sazonoff, who runs a leading Web site on stolen art.

Katie Dugdale of the Art Loss Register, which maintains the world’s largest private database on stolen, missing and looted art, said that although it is difficult, famous artworks can be sold on the black market.

“Even though they can’t get full value, there’s still some value, unfortunately,” she said, particularly if the artworks are used to fund other illegal activities, such as arms trading.

In high-profile cases like the theft of the Picassos in Paris, recovery is considered likely because of intense media attention and ramped-up police efforts.

“Usually with things like this, they’re recovered right away,” Dugdale said, noting that the paintings, already recognizable, will become nearly universally so after their images appear in the media. For most works, she said the average recovery time is seven years.

Investigators said Wednesday that they were struggling to piece together what happened.

Burglars entered the apartment in a chic corner of the Left Bank late Monday or early Tuesday, according to police and the prosecutor’s office. Police said they were examining a door lock to see whether it was broken and didn’t know whether the alarm system had been activated. Once inside the apartment, the thieves cut the edges of one painting, “Maya and the Doll,” to take it out of its frame, a police official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The painting has sentimental value for Widmaier-Picasso: It shows her mother, Maya, as a girl in pigtails, eyes askew in an off-kilter Cubist perspective. Another version hangs in the Picasso Museum in Paris.

Maya was Picasso’s daughter. Her mother was Marie-Therese Walter, whom Picasso met when she was a teenager. Their affair didn’t last. Four years after Picasso died in 1973, she hanged herself.

Maya Picasso married Pierre Widmaier and had three children, including art historian Diana Widmaier-Picasso, author of a book called “Picasso: Art Can Only be Erotic.”

The other missing painting is “Portrait of Jacqueline,” and the burglars took the frame with it, police said. The painting was one of many that depict Picasso’s second wife, Jacqueline Roque, whom he married in 1961 when he was 79 and she was in her mid-30s.