Battle of the Apprentices

Cedric and Christian both found a sketch they liked and wanted to try. So. Who did it better?

Vote for... (Click to enlarge)

Example A



Or...

Example B



Which do you like better and why?

Don Quixote & Asian Cat

This is a picture of my husband's prized Don Quixote by Lladro. We saved up for almost twenty years to get this for him. And actually, I came near buying it a number of times but taxes or some other car emergency always got in the way.

Then one day, I was checking out ebay, just for kicks, and saw this Lladro still posted at under 300 dollars (starting bid) and it was ending later that night. I knew that I would never be able to bid on it myself (I find it difficult to purchase anything above fifty bucks!), so I sent the link to my hubby to deal with.

Yes, you can see he dealt with it just fine. ;-)

Anyways, so Don Quixote sits proudly in our living room reading his book under a sunbeam. And right next to him sharing the sunbeam is the antique Asian cat my daughter nolie got for her sister bebe. I like the kitty too though. So she may not get it back. ;-)

Actually...I'm quite pleased with the artistic photo. Hope you like it too.

Ballerina

That oil painting was done by my uncle many years ago. I don't have a date on it because either the matting blocks his signature or the backing blocks it. At any rate, I grew up with it in our house, so there's both good memories and bad memories attached to it. Nowadays, I try to just remember the good.

My uncle was an amazing artist even though he was completely color blind. He ended up making his career as an advertising artist. I can only imagine what he would do with art and computer technology now!

I'm not really sure who else has any of my uncle's art work. I know my sister has a beautiful painting he did of her when she was two or three. (She looked like such a cherub!) And I have this painting--somehow. I'm not really sure how I came to have it. I'm just glad I do have it!

For years, I let it stay in my daughter's room because she adored dance and ballet so much.

For now, it's here and I peek at it all the time. My uncle passed away almost ten years ago and then less than a year later my dad passed away. So you can see how these pieces of art mean so much even after your gone.

If you're not an artist though...have no fear. What endures equally as long are your words and actions.

More Vermeer!

My personal favorite. The Milk Maid.

Another of Mary Queen Of Scotts

I really really REALLY like this portrait. She is wonderful!

The Hands of Brides

Vermeer: A Young Woman Standing at a Virginal 1670-2

What the hell is a virginal?  I know now.  I think.  

http://www.nationalgallery.org.uk

Christy - you and your students might really enjoy this - there's a zoomable feature where you can zoom right in on any chosen point of the painting.

Amarna

I not only found another statue of Nefertiti, with ears intact, I also found a rarely seen statue of the Heretic King himself.

The revolution that swept through Egypt under Akhenaten also changed their art from classical, to...something else.

But before he changed everything, there were images of him that fit the classic mold. I knew I would find one...someday. And I did!

Most people do not realize Egyptian artists worked from direct mathematical dimensions. This is probably as close as it gets to what he actually looked like. Not bad for a heretic.

Why he had himself distorted so badly later on, I, like so many others, can not even begin to fathom the reasons. The art itself holds no clues as to the motives of the artist.

The Other Venus

Venus De Capua

Hieroglyphs are Fun!

You have got to be kidding me...

Say WHAT?

LONDON, England (CNN) -- The British Museum plans to display a statue of supermodel Kate Moss that it bills as the largest gold statue built since ancient Egypt.


Ok, let's forget for a moment that she likes to bang CRACKHEADS.

She damn sure is not that beautiful, and never has been. What a waste of 50 kg of gold.

By the way, did I mention she bangs CRACKHEADS...? Ewwwwww! That is NASTY!

I feel ill.

Even more North Korean art

Here's something not so socialist: an automotive billboard ad.

The woman on the right, in traditional Korean dress, is typical of North Korean posters and billboards, socialist or otherwise.

The car is made by Pyeonghwa Motors, which is a joint venture of the Unification Church and a North Korean government company. This particular model's name translates to "Whistle."

Wikipedia says that the company's annual output is at most 400 cars, because there is very little demand for cars in North Korea (besides, gassing up will be a challenge too). Nevertheless, it is significant enough that South Korea's president visited the factory during his Pyongyang visit last year.

Asian art of a different kind

This time, it's the other half of the Korean peninsula.


I just came across several North Korean propaganda posters on the BBC website; they interviewed a Western collector of such art. Since communist propaganda art is becoming rarer in the rest of the world, looking at it is an interesting experience.

The caption above reads: "Let's give a bigger part to the advantages of the socialist treatment system through greater effort." The caption is only in Korean script - Chinese characters (which many non-Koreans readily understand) are banned in North Korea, and even in South Korea they are increasingly harder to find.

Also notable is the rather primitive coloring theme, as opposed to the sophisticated themes you'd see on South Korean art.


Here is an anti-imperialist one. It reads: "Those who mess with us will be wiped off the face of the Earth forever."

Check the link below for more examples.

BBC

Cedrics 1st Canvas

Archaeology - how exciting!

Archaeology fascinates me.  Especially when easily recognisable treasures are unearthed.  "Parts of a giant, exquisitely-carved marble sculpture depicting the Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius (who reigned from 161AD until his death in 180AD) have been found at an archaeological site in Turkey." So far the statue's head, right arm and lower legs have been recovered. (Paul Rincon BBC News)

Last year the team ....... uncovered fragments of a colossal marble statue of the emperor Hadrian in the rubble.

The room was partially destroyed by an earthquake in 540AD.  Archaeologists now believe the room hosted a gallery of sculptures depicting the "Antonine dynasty" - rulers of Spanish origin who presided over the Roman Empire during the second century AD.

Top:  The emperor wore army boots decorated with lion skins.

Bottom:  Marble head of Marcus Aurelius

From:  http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7580745.stm

A Korean bell - in America!

Click the photo for details.

As stated before, I am preparing for a long-term stay in Seoul, and will be sending in lots of artwork photos from there. I will also try to go to other South Korean cities for even more traditional artwork.

But it's not necessary to go all the way to Korea for a look at a traditional Korean bell. As it turns out, one fine example sits right here in Los Angeles, in the port community of San Pedro.

It was a gift from South Korea's government for the US bicentennial in 1976. At that time, South Korea was a fascist military dictatorship - not a good place to be for laborers, students, foreigners (except US Republicans), women (abortion was absolutely illegal in principle, but in reality tolerated and encouraged for female fetuses for population control), LGBTs, and even small businesses. It was the same fascist government that funded Reverend Moon's pro-Republican activities in the US, in the wake of the fall of South Vietnam, and this bell was another attempt by the fascists to maintain the favor of the US.

But nevertheless, this is a very fine example of Korean bronze bell, with intricate decorations showing a Statue of Liberty holding hands with her Korean counterpart. The bell's design is based on that of the Emille Bell in Gyeongju, which I will most likely visit during my trip. It looks like the fascist rule had a few goods, in a way; not only did they give this lovely bell to Los Angeles, but my road trip to Gyeongju will involve South Korea's expressways and automobiles, two enduring legacies of the fascist era (inspired by none other than Nazi Germany's Autobahns and Volkswagens).

More information:

Wikipedia

Friendship Bell Foundation

Maria Feodorovna Empress Of Russia

From Wikipedia:


Maria Feodorovna, born Princess Dagmar of Denmark (November 26, 1847–October 13, 1928) was Empress consort of Russia. She was the second daughter of Christian IX of Denmark and Louise of Hesse-Kassel. After her marriage to Alexander III of Russia, she became the Empress Consort of Russia as Maria Feodorovna (Cyrillic: Mapия Фёдopoвна Романова). Among her children was the last Russian monarch, the Emperor Nicholas II, whom she outlived by ten years.


A beautiful portrait. Very royal!

Obama Art contest

For more Obama art:

http://

pol.moveon.org/mh/gallery/?id=13570-1878126-8vnIBMx&t=3

(sorry - can't get the link working :0(, and tinyurl isn't working either)

Pompeii Neptune Mosaic

Aztec Serpent (Modern)

What does a set of teeth with legs look like...?

Well, like Tom-Tom.


Don't be fooled by that cute puppy look. This puppy will eat you!

It starts with 'Awwwww'!' alright.

Then, the screaming starts.

Cherry Hood "Pretty in Pink"

I feel pain when I look at this girl's face.  The title given by the artist tells me that was not her intent.  And yet, I'm sure that's a mascara tear-line.  Either way, she's lovely. 

Raffael

St. Catherine.

Another Breakthrough

Hello everyone!

I stole a picture taken by John Aravosis of Americablog.com. I was just going to study it, but as a photo, it is as close to perfect as it gets.

I fell in love with it. The girl is sitting in the shadows of the Louvre in Paris.

And then I decided to experiment with it (with his permission). It has everything I was trying to do in it. Linear perspective, graphic perspective, man made lines, natural lines, and full tonal range on a three color palette.

And this is what happened. (click to enlarge)

I can not only wrap light around man made lines, but I can do it on flesh too!

There were many details of the original photo that I could not be sure of the definition of, so to keep from throwing myself off very badly, I simply deleted them and focused on high contrast.

I can't believe it worked!

Maybe I don't suck after all!

HAHA!

PS and BTW... Any dotting you see in the black is not actually there. Photographing black is difficult and this digital cam picks up every fleck of dust.

I had a very good night on canvas...

If I can stay awake, my practice canvas should be done by tonight.

Google's Art of the Day

On my google Australia homepage I've got lots of little gizmos that I like to have handy access to.  I get a new work of art each day - always art about the bible.  Always very good, very detailed, very dark, very deep.  Today was this one by Dutch painter Jan van Scorel (1495 - 1562).  To me the painting looks far more recent than that time.  It jumped out at me as though it had got mixed up in the wrong crowd entirely.  Here are the accompanying notes about the painting:

"Van Scorel had just returned from Italy when he painted this work.  Italian influences are visible in the landscape and in the figure of Mary Magdalene who resembles a Venetian courtesan.  The tree springing from the decayed trunk symbolizes a new life after a bad start: Mary Magdalene has converted to become a follower of Jesus.  In the background, in front of the overhanging rock, Mary is being borne up to Heaven.  The top plank of this panel, with the sky and tree branches, was added in the second half of the 16th century.  That part was not painted by van Scorel."

Well, what can I say?  No wonder it leapt out at me.  Or maybe not.  I get annoyed with film-makers who insist that they can make a great book better by changing it.  Imagine the poor dead van Scorel writhing in his grave while someone decided to improve his work.

  

Good Day For Picasso

I am not sure I like this one. She is kinda scary.

Same Artist; Same Media

Viv Miller using oil, enamel, pencil and acrylic on canvas.  Bottom picture is called Ascent and the top one is called The Power 11.  Really different.  I like them both.

I just found a cure for cranky.

The new movie Tropic Thunder.

Downey in blackface. Tom Criuse as a balding psycho. And Jack Black as a jonesing junkie.

A bat stole his 'jelly beans'.

It was so freaking hillarious I am still laughing out loud!

A MUST SEE!

Photos and history

The other day I mentioned my great aunt Mabel who was one of the first women doctors to graduate (1905) from Melbourne university (1st picture).  She married in 1909 (2nd pic) and being a woman in a male dominated field she was forced to move to outback Queensland to get work. She travelled by camel on her rounds.  This is the photo I mentioned although I can't see her doctor bag that I remember - perhaps a different photo (3rd pic).  Since 1915 photography has come a long way.  This was was one of the early, user-friendly cameras I guess.

We do have artist ancestors from this time.  They helped establish an art school in Melbourne but I need to research that more closely.

The woman I mentioned and the photo at the bottom.

Busy Busy

My canvas is still going like crap and I am in a terribly foul mood.

Will be back posting as soon as I can figure out why it is I suck so BAD!

ARRRRRRRGHHHHHH!

Cedrics Blog

Go check out his new sketch.

Brittanys blog should be up soon.

Did I post these pics before?

I keep getting the weirdest feeling of deja vu. I know those meds affected my short term memory, so if I did post them before, just... ignore me.

Venus De Milo

Even mutilated, she is still perfect.

Mad King Ludwig

I am starting to think this is not a painting at all, but a tinted photo.

If you don't mind crazy, he was not bad looking. Either way it is a very nice portrait.

Gypsy

Guess what I learned?

On my practice canvas, I learned how to wrap light around a man made line in a three color spread ! It is totally radical !

And then I tried it on flesh and something went horribly wrong.

ARRRRRRRRRRRRGGGHHHHHHH!

Still working on it.

Back to school !

Do any of you remember the thread where I pointed out how to read ancient Mayan numbers? Check out what my Ana did.

On the first day of 4th grade, Ana comes home and tells me about her day. She got to school that morning, settled into her new class with her new teacher, and at some point they get to talking about math.

Ana informs her teacher that she can read the numbers on ancient Mayan hieroglyphs. Her teacher told her she was being silly.

When she told me about it, she said 'It was like she was saying I was lying.'

I asked her why the teacher said she couldn't, and she says 'Because she said 'That's silly. No one can read them.'

I just smiled and asked her what happened next. She insisted she could until the teacher made her prove it.

Ana went to the chalkboard and taught her entire class, and her teacher, how to read the numbers from ancient Mayan hieroglyphs!

HAHAHAHA!

Geisha

I love this one. Very nice!

Ok. 1 More.

That face. Those fierce eyes. If I could sculpt a face, it would be his. His perfect face and head. And shoulders. That is one sexy ass white man. Yummy sexy.

Good thing I don't sculpt, yall would probably find me in a closet somewhere with his statue licking that perfect bald head.

The King and I, indeed!

Slow posting..

I will be back and forth from my easel.

Keep your fingers crossed. I've never painted anything quite like this one.

In the meantime, check this out...

Scientists: We Can 'See' Sound And 'Hear' Light

Just Because...

I loooooove looking at him!

My My My! And... UmmmmmHmmmm.

He does not need to be painted to be art.

My Grandmother

She was a very complicated person. To say the least, it was a difficult relationship between us once I got older. But as a small child, I would sneak her art books and spend hours watching her work. When I was little, she was a wonderful teacher.

I cherish those memories of her. But once, as an adult, I guess out of spite, I insulted her art work. I still don't know why I did that. She was also never trained and was completely self taught and she did well long before stupid me was ever born.

And when she died I inherited her art books. And two of her paintings. As soon as I received them, I knew I would regret being stupid my whole life. She taught me more about being an artist than anyone else ever did. Not the why's, the how to.

And then tonight, my kid was going through these books again, the same books I snuck away as a kid, she pulled them all out of the box they have been in for decades and a picture of my father, my grandmothers only child, fell out. He was about 6 years old in it and I now have 3 pictures of him in total. He was also a self taught artist, a wood carver.

And along with the picture a folded felt sheet came with it. It was obvious it held a painting. I recognized the brushstroke and colors right away even from the reverse side.

I opened it up to find the best example of my grandmothers work that I have ever seen.

Her Masterpiece.

Her name was Eva Cole and this was her at her best. It is unsigned but I am certain it is hers.

I think it is beautiful.

I can still see her pencil and pen marks.

To My Apprentices.

The following only applies to Christian, Cedric and Brittany, the little apprentices Kaylee and Ana will have different rules.

Cedric, and Christian both of you will be studying Filippo Brunelleschi .

However, Cedric your secondary study will be Obey.

Christians secondary will be Banksy.

Brittany will be focusing on portraiture and will be undertaking the Italian Masters right off. Just pick one. She will also stick with Mexican Folk Art for the time being. The little apprentices will also be studying with us.

All 3 of you older ones will be expected to work with the little ones and teach them your style.

None of you are allowed to talk smack about each others work and Lord help you if I catch you doing it.

ONLY criticise the execution of skills, but any opinion of style, subject or personal judgement will not be allowed. Unless it is flattering to the artist. This is not a competition and I will not tolerate jealousy or infighting. You are expected to learn from each other and I want to hear you praising the works of others. I, myself, am not fully trained, so I will be referred to as your teacher, not 'Master'. Not even if I am ever fully trained, save the 'Master' crap for my obituary. However... ONLY I am allowed to have an ego. You will be allowed one too when you earn it.

Your study blogs are yours to control, however, others from all over will be watching and I expect you to act like professionals and adults on your blogs. At all times. If you neglect your studies, everyone will know just by looking at your web page.

I will need 5 examples on your blogs of other peoples art work that you like. It would be helpful if you attached a small note explaining why you like it. Any subject, style or era. Any type of art.

You will all have access to my art reference books, but if one single book of mine gets mistreated in your custody you will not be allowed any more chances to mistreat another one.

Each of you will get three gifts from me. A pencil, a sketchbook and a Pink Pearl eraser. Do NOT lose the eraser, you will need it constantly. And keep your hands off my erasers.

I will buy small canvas boards for your practice, but they are not free so only use them if you have permission. You can easily buy as many canvas boards as you like and use as many as you can or want too, but not if I am paying for it. Extra canvases are your responsibility and as adults I will expect you to not use up all of mine.

Any canvas I give you, I will expect at minimum a 90% completion rate on them. 95% to 98% would be even better. Anything less than 90% and you are wasting my paint, my time, and my canvases. I don't care if it goes horribly wrong, you WILL finish it as far as you can go.

I will provide sketch paper, pencils and paint. But if you can buy your own that would be good.

You will also need your own set of brushes. Synthetic brushes are best. They maintain shape longer and do not shed hairs. My brushes are not to be fondled without my permission. Unless you can paint a masterpiece, keep your paws off of the brushes and easels of those that can until you are given permission.

I have extra easels, but you will each need your own. Ten bucks at Wal Mart, assembly and modification will be required. (Modified as my own is, to be easily turned into a small work shelf.)

I expect from each of you what I call 50/50. Study is to make up AT LEAST 50% of your actual time as my apprentice. Applying paint should take up only half, or less, of your time. If you have not devoted half or more time to study I don't even want to see your sketches until you can answer my questions about the study you were assigned.

You all know I love each and every one of you, and if I did not think you had the talent, I never would have offered to teach you. But you all also know I can be very difficult and testy, and the better you can just ignore the tone of my voice and listen to the words instead you will come to see nothing I say is meant to hurt your feelings or shake your confidence in any way.

If you are on a canvas and anyone interrupts, or breaks your focus, our code words will be 'Please Step Away!'. And all of the apprentices and myself will honor this request immediately. Do not disturb anyone who is working unless they engage or acknowledge you first.

And again, the little apprentices will be expected to work along side all of you. They will lightly study EVERYTHING you study, and I will expect you to talk to them about your study and listen to their opinions or ideas on it. And you will be expected to freely share supplies with them.

And you all know how I feel about my pencil sharpener. It goes to my grave with me because I will need it in the Afterlife, so enjoy it while it lasts. Do not touch it too much or I may get nervous.

Sooooo.... now that we all know what we are supposed to do.... Are you having fun yet?

HAHAHAHA!

Expect some more Asian art this fall

As I mentioned on the DCP, I will have a long-term stay in Seoul, South Korea starting next month. (Don't worry, I will be back in time to vote for Obama and against California's gay marriage ban.)

I don't know what I'll be doing during my stay, but at the very least I will be posting photos of some of Seoul's royal palaces. If I luck out and get to leave the city, you can expect more artwork photos here, especially if I get to take a road trip to the historic city of Gyeongju, home to several UNESCO World Heritage sites. I'll bore you to death with Buddhist art, especially, since I am planning to include the nation's three most famous Buddhist temples in my drive. (DiAnne - I will post more Kwan Yins than you'll know what to do with!)

Keep your fingers crossed, please! For now, here's a teaser of what I'll see and photograph - the Dabotap Pagoda in Gyeongju. Possibly the most elaborate and delicate stone pagoda you'll ever come across.

Brittany, On Canvas

David Boyd "The Wanderer"

Hand made Collograph: The image is created from a variety of textured materials glued to a timber or metal plate.  The materials used to form the image can be anything from watercolour papers, tissue paper, or wax paper, right through to soft wire, string, tin foil, sand paper, or even bottle caps.  Ink is then applied to the deeper surfaces (intaglio), the top surfaces (relief print), or a combination of both.

Mary-Jean Richardson

Painting the wind.  I don't need to touch these paintings to feel the wind.  I once had long hair.

Last Nights Big Surprise

My niece Brittany was one of the young people sketching with us last night. She likes art, but has never shown any talent at all for it. Pretty much zero. She don't even doodle, as far as I know.

But she does like to watch me work.

So, imagine the surprise of everyone in the room, when we look down and find her with a book on Mexican Folk art, and without any direction or warning, did this.... freehand.



There are barely any hesitation lines AT ALL. I only helped her correct one line on a nose. That is it.

It can not be an accident, she did it twice back to back. In two hours.

I was like 'WTF!', I'm still thinking real hard on it. In short, I am trippin.

Those are really great sketches.