Many artists work alone. This is a pretty common thing and I do it also. On occasion we’ll have someone over and take a few pieces out and ask, ‘what do you think?’. Well, if it’s a good friend they might tell you the truth, but most times the response is ‘oh yea, great work’. Does that really help you?
About a year ago I was invited to participate in a critique with some other artists. The way it works is about every two months we get together at someones house on the weekend (usually Sunday, during the NFL season I have to sacrifice the first quarter and a half) have something to eat, and then look at the first piece of art. The work can be in progress or finished, but what you receive is good, honest criticism from people who are genuinely interested in what you’re doing. Color, composition, what are your motives, how does that work in your piece, are some of the feedback you can expect. That is the type of feedback you want. Many times you’re so close to the work you’re unable to see what others can.
Give it a try if you can, it might help your work improve.
Below are two artists from the group. Vickie Martin painted the dress and Lance Carlson painted the abstract. You can find more of their work at www.vickiemartinarts.com and www.lcartist.blogspot.com
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Last week I went to Houston to attend FotoFest. Actually I went there to have my portfolio reviewed by a number of curators and gallery owners.Very interesting experience. It gives you a broader view of your work than you might receive from your friends and acquaintances. If it’s possible to do I would highly recommend it. Didn’t see much of Houston as I stayed mostly at the hotel but did make a visit to the Rothko Chapel. Now that is something to see. Rothko is one of my favorite painters and this work doesn’t disappoint, hugh, meditative work. Beautiful.
As you know, I have been photographing birds. But I do like birds and have had
cockatoo
birds as pets. This Labor Day weekend I went to Cincinnati to attend a high school reunion and stayed with a friend and his wife at their farm. They aren’t farmers but have a number of rescue animals. If 17 dogs aren’t enough for you, they are for me. They also have birds, goats,two horses, and miniature cows that they raise. At the time I visited in June they had a cockatoo they had rescued. This trip I brought in back with me.
Here is a picture from about 1980. Yes that’s Ed Mcman and me. He was very nice man and large. He is consoling me after I was bumped from the Tonight Show. I had just set the Guiness record for doing 40,000 summersalts and was about to go on but time ran out.
Actually I’m kidding about the summersalts.
RIP Ed.
As promised here are a couple images from a new series about song birds. Interestingly song birds are protected, taxidermists cannot mount them From what I found out, this law was passed in the 30’s during the depression and is still on the books. This series is color but the other birds will continue in black & white
blue jay
The week of June 8 I was photographing in Cincinnati at the Museum Center, which is the natural history museum. All the people I met were extremely friendly and helpful. A very successful trip, photographed a number of birds to add to the series, more on that later. Must say the drive was no fun as eight hours is pressing my limit. Good thing there’s coffee
crane
taxidermic elephant
I knew about taxidermists but had never visited one before. I didn’t know what to expect after I called one asking if I could come over and photograph the birds they had at their business. When I arrived and began talking to them I realized they have great love and respect for animals. Probably more than most people. One taxidermist I have visited often is Michael Vaden. He also raises exotic birds for zoos. As you walk into his shop one side has bird cages with young birds as well as an incubator for eggs. His mounting of birds is museum quality. One thing I did learn is animals are not ’stuffed’, they are mounted. In the middle of his shop is a full sized elephant on its’ own trailer. Take a look at the picture. He hooks the trailer to the back of his car. Guess you don’t want to be parked behind him at the drive in. The other picture is an example of his work
Simplicity is what I strive for when making images. Showing only what is needed and eliminating the rest. Generally, I am interested in isolating tones or colors, intentionally not creating a full toned or multi-colored image. Formal issues are always a concern. How line, form, tone and space work, and work together. Negative space becomes important also. At times scale and proportion become flexible. Without scale or proportion a questioning of the objects reality is introduced, thus its representational qualities become insufficiently factual, or abstract. I am not interested in the pictorial nature of things photographed but trying to move the representation to the suggestive.
Here are some pictures of the show at the gallery. The gallery did a wonderful job of hanging the images, as each one has a relationship to the one next to it. A few words about how the images are made. This is the first series I’ve done that is all digital. Before I was scanning my negs and then taking them to Photoshop. Moving with the paradigm I bought a digital camera. All of my prints are printed with an Epson 7800 with an ink set from inkjetmall, black & six tones of gray, printed on Hahnemuhle 308gm paper. I use the QTR rip developed by Roy Harington. It’s a shareware program, but if you have the money to buy a printer, inks, and paper, you can certainly afford to send him $50 for the rip. I’ve found this combination to have a broad range of tones.
My opening on Friday the 24th went well. Many friends and people I didn’t know attended. Interesting to me was seeing the work all together. When I make the prints I see the one or two that I print, then I put it away and move on to the next one. I could not have been more pleased the way the gallery hung the prints. Each one had a relationship to the ones to its’ side.
Going to the gallery this week to photograph the installation . Pictures to follow.
