Friday, December 27, 2013
2014 is Almost Here!
I hope everyone had a great time with their families over these past several days. I had a nice relaxing time at home with my family and now I'm making plans for the next year. It's been an interesting and quite challenging 2013. 2014 will be a new chapter- a new story. I'm going to work to make it one of my best.
Tuesday, December 17, 2013
What Should Art Criticism Be?
I recently read an op-ed piece by Maureen Dowd published in the New York Times titled "Bigger Than Bambi". She discusses the apparent trend of art critics writing more pleasant reviews of art than have been done in the recent past. She tends to come down on the side of the art critic circle. I believe there is a much better alternative to getting second hand information about art or an artist through an art critic who has his/her own agenda, and who is always wearing their very individual and unique worldview tinted glasses.
As I have stated many times before, I do not find critics useful for the most part. They use their academic knowledge of Art History and personal opinion to appoint themselves as tastemakers for the rest of society. I think this is one of the few negative consequences of the Age of Science. Art, like most of the rest of society has become rather forced into the Scientific Method of approaching the world. Why I am most definitely a proponent of critical thinking and the Scientific Method as a means of discovery and progress, I do not believe it works as well for engaging with art. Art and Science are complimentary and each inspires the other. However, how can a universal metric be put in place to measure every individual's visual communications to the world? Art comes more from a place of dreams, feelings, and an artist's personal experience observing and participating in the world around them. Like Science, Art builds upon itself. Many artist's views and visual conclusions have been copied and extrapolated upon throughout the History of Art. Now, how do you measure something that is constantly elastic. Art is not a linear concept. It's an amalgamation of ideas not bound by the confines of time.
So, how should we interact with the art and artists of 'now'? We should talk about it. Information on art, like everything else imaginable, is instantly available through many reliable avenues. And, as I have written before, the viewer's opinion should always remain paramount. It is up to art lovers to educate themselves as well. Artists should be more engaged with the world(which has been a challenge of mine) and those who love their work. Art lovers/collectors should be seeking information straight from the source rather than an unnecessary middleman. I would read an interview with an artist before I would ever read an art critic's opinion on that same artist. Art should be accessible to anyone who wants to participate and every attempt at making it unobtainable and unnecessarily confusing and absurd should be resisted and changed.
As I have stated many times before, I do not find critics useful for the most part. They use their academic knowledge of Art History and personal opinion to appoint themselves as tastemakers for the rest of society. I think this is one of the few negative consequences of the Age of Science. Art, like most of the rest of society has become rather forced into the Scientific Method of approaching the world. Why I am most definitely a proponent of critical thinking and the Scientific Method as a means of discovery and progress, I do not believe it works as well for engaging with art. Art and Science are complimentary and each inspires the other. However, how can a universal metric be put in place to measure every individual's visual communications to the world? Art comes more from a place of dreams, feelings, and an artist's personal experience observing and participating in the world around them. Like Science, Art builds upon itself. Many artist's views and visual conclusions have been copied and extrapolated upon throughout the History of Art. Now, how do you measure something that is constantly elastic. Art is not a linear concept. It's an amalgamation of ideas not bound by the confines of time.
So, how should we interact with the art and artists of 'now'? We should talk about it. Information on art, like everything else imaginable, is instantly available through many reliable avenues. And, as I have written before, the viewer's opinion should always remain paramount. It is up to art lovers to educate themselves as well. Artists should be more engaged with the world(which has been a challenge of mine) and those who love their work. Art lovers/collectors should be seeking information straight from the source rather than an unnecessary middleman. I would read an interview with an artist before I would ever read an art critic's opinion on that same artist. Art should be accessible to anyone who wants to participate and every attempt at making it unobtainable and unnecessarily confusing and absurd should be resisted and changed.
Monday, December 16, 2013
Do we as a society actually value creativity?
I was scrolling through my Facebook newsfeed a few days ago and my eyes happened upon this article from Slate: Do we really value creativity?
The article basically states that in our society, conformity is King. Many books have been written about creativity and the myriad of opinions and advice we can use to increase our creative potential. The most basic foundation of creativity is thinking. You can not be 'creative' if you can not generate ideas. In the U.S., our schools do not operate on the principle of creative thinking. Information is input into developing humans and then regurgitated in the form of "Standardized Tests." Creativity and thinking leads to freedom and less control for the powers that be.
As an artist, I can most definitely relate to the author. I will share two actual situations that happened in my life when someone asked for my creative input then dismissed my ideas because they did not gel with the established agendas. The first really clear example occurred while I was a Senior in High School. I was the artist for my school's yearbook from my Sophomore year(unofficially) and throughout my Junior and half of my Senior year. I designed the foil art image that appears on the first page of my Freshman year(1992) yearbook. I was a Freshman, and technically not allowed to be on the yearbook staff. From 1992-1994, I worked with a great group of people who were open to trying new ideas for a really tired and boring public school tradition. In 1993, my High School produced it's most expensive yearbook to date. One feature was the use of velvet on 1/4 of the hardback cover. There were also many advancements in page layout and this was also the time that I first used a computer program(Corel Draw) to produce images. In 1995, I designed the school's first seal.. which I believe is still being used. The folks in my graduating class, however, were not as open and the result speaks for itself. I left half way through the year after being asked for my opinions on visual direction and design only to have my ideas dismissed regularly and consistently. You can not help those who do not want it.
The other very clear example was when I worked in the mortgage servicing division for what was known then as J.P. Morgan Chase. I was hired into an experimental department that 'cleaned up' data from purchased mortgages. In the beginning, our managers were very open to new ideas and asked for all of our 'creativity.' Slowly, due to creative brainstorming and testing, the department developed streamlined processes and methods that maximized efficiency. As the months passed, management came to us underlings less and less frequently asking for input. Instead, they decided they had enough 'creative' input due to the high levels of productivity. Apparently, whatever we were doing at that moment satisfied the mysterious "Corporate" god and as in most businesses, they decided to stick with what was working and not 'rock the boat.' This lead to stagnation of ideas and very low department morale. The group of energized and productive people who were misled to believe they had some sort of ownership of their department now felt betrayed and disheartened- including myself. I do not regret having worked in such an environment as it taught me exactly what I SHOULD NOT be doing. Working in that strict and depressing office environment sent my creative spirit into exile. I did not draw or paint from 2001-2006.
As a society, I think it is a terrible mistake to collectively suffocate our national creative capital. A nation that is not creative is a nation that stagnates and fails to move forward. In 2011, the budget for the 'Defense' Department was 665 BILLION DOLLARS. The 2011 budget for the N.E.A.(National Endowment for the Arts) was 155 MILLION DOLLARS. If we do not want a spectacular national collapse- economically, culturally, or socially, then we should all encourage and nurture creativity whenever and wherever it decides to present itself.
The article basically states that in our society, conformity is King. Many books have been written about creativity and the myriad of opinions and advice we can use to increase our creative potential. The most basic foundation of creativity is thinking. You can not be 'creative' if you can not generate ideas. In the U.S., our schools do not operate on the principle of creative thinking. Information is input into developing humans and then regurgitated in the form of "Standardized Tests." Creativity and thinking leads to freedom and less control for the powers that be.
As an artist, I can most definitely relate to the author. I will share two actual situations that happened in my life when someone asked for my creative input then dismissed my ideas because they did not gel with the established agendas. The first really clear example occurred while I was a Senior in High School. I was the artist for my school's yearbook from my Sophomore year(unofficially) and throughout my Junior and half of my Senior year. I designed the foil art image that appears on the first page of my Freshman year(1992) yearbook. I was a Freshman, and technically not allowed to be on the yearbook staff. From 1992-1994, I worked with a great group of people who were open to trying new ideas for a really tired and boring public school tradition. In 1993, my High School produced it's most expensive yearbook to date. One feature was the use of velvet on 1/4 of the hardback cover. There were also many advancements in page layout and this was also the time that I first used a computer program(Corel Draw) to produce images. In 1995, I designed the school's first seal.. which I believe is still being used. The folks in my graduating class, however, were not as open and the result speaks for itself. I left half way through the year after being asked for my opinions on visual direction and design only to have my ideas dismissed regularly and consistently. You can not help those who do not want it.
The other very clear example was when I worked in the mortgage servicing division for what was known then as J.P. Morgan Chase. I was hired into an experimental department that 'cleaned up' data from purchased mortgages. In the beginning, our managers were very open to new ideas and asked for all of our 'creativity.' Slowly, due to creative brainstorming and testing, the department developed streamlined processes and methods that maximized efficiency. As the months passed, management came to us underlings less and less frequently asking for input. Instead, they decided they had enough 'creative' input due to the high levels of productivity. Apparently, whatever we were doing at that moment satisfied the mysterious "Corporate" god and as in most businesses, they decided to stick with what was working and not 'rock the boat.' This lead to stagnation of ideas and very low department morale. The group of energized and productive people who were misled to believe they had some sort of ownership of their department now felt betrayed and disheartened- including myself. I do not regret having worked in such an environment as it taught me exactly what I SHOULD NOT be doing. Working in that strict and depressing office environment sent my creative spirit into exile. I did not draw or paint from 2001-2006.
As a society, I think it is a terrible mistake to collectively suffocate our national creative capital. A nation that is not creative is a nation that stagnates and fails to move forward. In 2011, the budget for the 'Defense' Department was 665 BILLION DOLLARS. The 2011 budget for the N.E.A.(National Endowment for the Arts) was 155 MILLION DOLLARS. If we do not want a spectacular national collapse- economically, culturally, or socially, then we should all encourage and nurture creativity whenever and wherever it decides to present itself.
Will Brooks Art Second Saturday Holiday Party
In case you missed it, here are some pictures of my studio before we opened the door to a great number of visitors this past Saturday. I'd like to thank my ever-encouraging partners, Chip Ware and Adrian McCall for helping me(as they always do) get everything together and looking fantastic. I had a great time and made several sales.
Thursday, December 5, 2013
The Foolishness of pursuing an MFA
I just discovered this article("Trouble with the MFA") and it prompted me to talk about something that I have not yet touched on- the idiocy of an MFA(Master of Fine Arts) degree. This, like most Masters programs is a scam. (Side note: Nearly every degree program in any field is now a scam). I have a degree myself- BFA from the (non-sexy)Louisiana Tech University. I would say that most, if not all of my teachers were highly competent in their fields, but how does that translate into teaching a student to achieve his/her own vision. This must have happened post-WWII. To me, this is probably the era when art and craft become separated out by pretentious asshats who've been successful at convincing people that they know more about art than everyone else.
So, how do art schools support, educate, and nurture artists vision and hopes and dreams for the future? They don't. I can list the all the classes that benefitted me the most: Color Theory: This was a terrible class to me while I was taking it, but little did I know how much it would help me in the future. Art History: This gave me some background and perspective into a field I was excited to join. Experimental Painting(2 classes): This is self-explanatory. I also enjoyed a glass sculpture class that was only offered during the summer. The rest of the art portion of my education was simply busy work that had to be 'defended' during (sometimes comical)critiques. Students struggle to think of 5 syllable words at a moments notice to describe their work in ways that they think will impress the professor and their peers. After that, it's like a feeding frenzy. The professor and students then take turns telling the student how they'd do this and that differently. How exactly do you tell someone how to express their artistic vision? This is the basis of art school for a BFA.
So, what is required to attain a Masters degree? The only difference between the two is for the MFA, you continue to pursue your vision as an artist, you just pay a boat load more money to keep getting the opinions of professors.
Here is how the scam works. Art School is usually filled with dreamers and idealists, like myself. We pay money to these people in return for the skills and knowledge we need to succeed in life as independent artists, right? Wrong. You are paying to get churned into a system that only exists for itself. Are marketing, business, or accounting classes included in the BFA? Not at my school, and I doubt it is in any other. Why? The expectation is that you will either use your attained knowledge as a hobby, OR get an MFA so you can try to fight and climb your way over others to get the handful of low-level, low-paying teaching jobs that sporadically become available. If this is where you are, then you had better get that carmex out and lube those lips real good because you are in for a marathon of ass-kissing . After all, you are competing with who knows how many other duped artists for that shitty low-paying job. It's what I like to call the University-Industial Complex. To be fair, all degrees in liberal arts are essentially useless. I'd be here a while if I listed all the degreed(and very intelligent) folks I know who are not only NOT working in their field, but doing jobs that were unheard of in the past for degreed individuals.
I've told every person who's asked about whether or not they should get a degree: ABSOLUTELY NOT. UNLESS, you are in a very specific field- pre-med, engineering, etc- degrees that are more about TRAINING than EDUCATING, you are wasting your money and putting yourself under a mountain of disastrous debt. It's simply no longer worth it. I've been out of school now since 2000, and I'm still about $30,000 in the red. Yes, you read that right. Now take into account that my tuition was paid by the state of Louisiana due to all the hard work I put into my public education. That scholarship didn't cover housing or meals, and being poor, I didn't have any other means to pay for that except for loans. I also worked on campus(I did not have a car) 20 hours a week(the maximum hours allowed for a full time student)every quarter of college.
No one can teach you to be creative. You either are or you are not. No amount of criticism from an art teacher will alter the direction of your vision if you are a true artist. So, why bother going to a college? There are numerous instructional videos available all across the internet. There are also free online classes you can take to acquire knowledge you lack. I feel like I was cheated because I was cheated. I guess I'm what could be called a "Populist Artist." This doesn't come as a surprise to me since I'm a direct descendent of the infamous Huey P. Long.. AKA the "FDR of Louisiana." Let's take back art like we all need to take back the country as a whole. Everything is wrong and it's time we all stop being lazy and do something about it. Art was meant for everyone and it should be accessible to everyone.
So, how do art schools support, educate, and nurture artists vision and hopes and dreams for the future? They don't. I can list the all the classes that benefitted me the most: Color Theory: This was a terrible class to me while I was taking it, but little did I know how much it would help me in the future. Art History: This gave me some background and perspective into a field I was excited to join. Experimental Painting(2 classes): This is self-explanatory. I also enjoyed a glass sculpture class that was only offered during the summer. The rest of the art portion of my education was simply busy work that had to be 'defended' during (sometimes comical)critiques. Students struggle to think of 5 syllable words at a moments notice to describe their work in ways that they think will impress the professor and their peers. After that, it's like a feeding frenzy. The professor and students then take turns telling the student how they'd do this and that differently. How exactly do you tell someone how to express their artistic vision? This is the basis of art school for a BFA.
So, what is required to attain a Masters degree? The only difference between the two is for the MFA, you continue to pursue your vision as an artist, you just pay a boat load more money to keep getting the opinions of professors.
Here is how the scam works. Art School is usually filled with dreamers and idealists, like myself. We pay money to these people in return for the skills and knowledge we need to succeed in life as independent artists, right? Wrong. You are paying to get churned into a system that only exists for itself. Are marketing, business, or accounting classes included in the BFA? Not at my school, and I doubt it is in any other. Why? The expectation is that you will either use your attained knowledge as a hobby, OR get an MFA so you can try to fight and climb your way over others to get the handful of low-level, low-paying teaching jobs that sporadically become available. If this is where you are, then you had better get that carmex out and lube those lips real good because you are in for a marathon of ass-kissing . After all, you are competing with who knows how many other duped artists for that shitty low-paying job. It's what I like to call the University-Industial Complex. To be fair, all degrees in liberal arts are essentially useless. I'd be here a while if I listed all the degreed(and very intelligent) folks I know who are not only NOT working in their field, but doing jobs that were unheard of in the past for degreed individuals.
I've told every person who's asked about whether or not they should get a degree: ABSOLUTELY NOT. UNLESS, you are in a very specific field- pre-med, engineering, etc- degrees that are more about TRAINING than EDUCATING, you are wasting your money and putting yourself under a mountain of disastrous debt. It's simply no longer worth it. I've been out of school now since 2000, and I'm still about $30,000 in the red. Yes, you read that right. Now take into account that my tuition was paid by the state of Louisiana due to all the hard work I put into my public education. That scholarship didn't cover housing or meals, and being poor, I didn't have any other means to pay for that except for loans. I also worked on campus(I did not have a car) 20 hours a week(the maximum hours allowed for a full time student)every quarter of college.
No one can teach you to be creative. You either are or you are not. No amount of criticism from an art teacher will alter the direction of your vision if you are a true artist. So, why bother going to a college? There are numerous instructional videos available all across the internet. There are also free online classes you can take to acquire knowledge you lack. I feel like I was cheated because I was cheated. I guess I'm what could be called a "Populist Artist." This doesn't come as a surprise to me since I'm a direct descendent of the infamous Huey P. Long.. AKA the "FDR of Louisiana." Let's take back art like we all need to take back the country as a whole. Everything is wrong and it's time we all stop being lazy and do something about it. Art was meant for everyone and it should be accessible to everyone.
Monday, November 25, 2013
Cold and Rainy
Today is a great day to be inside and that is exactly where I've been doing all day. I'm not a fan of dark and cloudy days, but they do serve a purpose for me. Those days allow me to appreciate the beautiful bright sunny days even more.
Tuesday, November 19, 2013
Will Brooks Art Survey
If you have read my blog entries: "Why I Want to Create My Own Art Universe Parts.1&2," it's clear that I'm ready to branch out and explore other opportunities for people to be able to enjoy and collect my art. However, I need your help. I need to know how a sampling of the general public views art. If you would liked to help me out, please go to the link and complete the quick 14 question survey. It is completely anonymous, so please give as much feedback as you would like at the end of the survey. Thank you in advance for your participation.
Thursday, November 14, 2013
Why I Want to Create My Own Art Universe Part II
Another reason I want to create my own Art Universe is to make original, personal, and authentic art more accessible to a wider audience. Real art. I was busy doing research for the business side of Will Brooks Art and found myself checking out the "art" that was available from Z Gallerie. I kept scrolling through and clicking here and clicking there when I decided to investigate some of the artists they were selling. I thought that maybe they were on to something being able have their images licensed out to such a large store chain. Well, what I found was a bit shocking. MOST of the 'art' Z Gallerie is hocking is made by artists who don't even exist. Here is a list of 'artists' I'm alleging are complete fabrications created by either Z Gallerie or World Art Group( a publication company that seems to be the source of all of Z Gallerie's "art" stock:
Google any of these 'artists' and see what comes up. This is 2013. Any artist big enough to have their images licensed out to such a large chain certainly would have a website of their own wouldn't you think?
This is some of my competition- cheap, trite imagery either created on a computer by anyone or in some art sweat shop in China, India, Brazil or any other populous country with a substantial poverty problem. This is not art and it angers me that it is being sold as such. Art is more than decor. It's also more than an investment. Art is meant to enrich our lives. It should make us feel, think, and dream. Places like Z Gallerie cheapen 'art' as much as the big art fairs do.
My art is essentially the visual story of my ongoing life. It is a direct reflection of how and what I'm thinking about. It's how I study people and the world around me. It is authentic and created by a real person- me. Please keep reading and please support REAL artists.
Wednesday, November 13, 2013
Busy Researching for my Next Blog Post
I'm currently working on my next blog post: Why I want to create my own art universe. Part II. It will contain a very interesting exposé on the companies that hock 'art' along with decor in their stores. Check back tomorrow to read all the juicy details.
Friday, November 8, 2013
Why I Want to Create my Own Art Universe Part I
I have been trying to come up with a 'manifesto' of sorts to describe my distaste for the Art Machine and culture then decided I needed to revisit the past a little to provide some insight and context for my opinions on art.
Then I started thinking back to my Art School days. Some of my least favorite times were having to get up in front of everyone to defend my work. I always found that to be a strange practice. The student has to get up and first explain the How, Why, and (sometimes)What. That was the easy part. Then came the Q&A and verbal dismantling of the student's work by fellow classmates and the Professor. Everyone talked about their work using $5 dollar words or phrases that none of us EVER used outside the art critique. I never understood the reasoning for critiquing work that did not have a clear objective such as accurately representing with paint on canvas a bowl of fruit on a table. Professors and students would regularly offer up what they'd had done differently TO MY PAINTING. I took 95% of all that wasted time and conversation with a grain of salt because I knew I was on to something. I was finding my artistic aesthetic and I was defining what art meant for me.
Needless to say, I did not agree with the trajectory that Art School was trying to force me into. Here's the basic pattern that has been repeating probably since the 1940's. You go to Art School and get your B.A. or in my case B.F.A. then you are expected to 'go out and live in the world' to gain more life experience in order to GO BACK to school for a Masters. For those of you who do not know how this system works, a Masters program is essentially a scam to squeeze more money out of a student and set them up to become just one more artist ensnared in the Art School-Gallery-Museum system. To get a Masters, you simply do the exact same work you would be doing outside of the school walls except you get to pay exorbitant amounts of money for the opinions of the Professors of whatever school you attend. A Masters candidate only has two choices(unless gaining a Masters is just for pleasure or self-satisfaction): 1. Graduate and hunt for low level assistantship jobs etc. in a highly saturated market full of other Masters graduates. OR 2. Work a conventional job doing whatever while constantly requesting galleries to review your portfolio. Both routes rarely provide success or satisfaction for the artist. Nothing about Art School focused or encouraged the notion that an artist COULD actually want to be an artist. It's quite a closed system. Two ironies of the art world: 1. Success is seen as selling-out. 2. A 'self-taught' artist is more highly prized in this pretentious world than a trained and skilled artist.
Let me make one thing very clear. EVERY true visual artist is self-taught. I've put crayon/pencil to paper for as far back in my life that I can remember. As I got older, I took the art classes that public education provided. I watched various painting/drawing shows on PBS- some designed for children and some designed for adults. I watched both. My High School art teacher, Mr. Ronald Nugent or "Nooge" as we sometimes playfully addressed him was my first art hero. It seemed he could represent anything on paper realistically with speed and precision. I admired and was envious of his talent. At that time in my life, making art meant drawing, or painting(I was really into watercolor and ink) a subject(s) as realistically as possible. My parents always encouraged me by buying me "How to draw whatever" books, buying me paint and canvas when it was possible and constantly made me feel that being an artist was just as legitimate as any other "I want to be a ____" dream.
Everything changed after I completed my basic drawing and painting classes in college. I was told that representational artwork was passé and unintelligent. To my professors, Abstract Expressionism seemed to be the be all and end all of art. Abstraction obviously meant you were more intelligent because all of these artists we studied wrote pages and pages in defense of their art. My immediate thought was that this was too heady and basically just B.S. After taking two Art History courses from one of the most thorough teachers I've ever had, I gained the ability to appreciate more art than before. Exposure is everything in education. I kept painting away trying to find my voice. Along the way, I discovered I did not like Brown. Brown is not a color- it's a mixture. It's also not neutral. Browns are made by mixing complimentary colors together in various proportions to get the variety of Browns that are available. I also discovered I didn't like 'mark making'- just stabbing at paper or canvas with nonsensical "energetic' lines. I found I appreciated color and shape over everything else. Then I discovered Matisse the second time. The first time I was introduced to Matisse was through learning about his fauvist paintings. I was never a fan. I found them to be poorly executed and too busy. Then... I discovered his cut paper. My imagination went wild. The Blue Nudes became the starting point of what would become my current style. There was still something important to me that was missing. The story.
This is my most basic process when I create my art: Most of my work typically starts from photographs- nearly all of which I take myself. Then I spend some time thinking about how I felt when I took that picture, or what was happening when the picture was taken. I think about what could have been going on in the mind of the person(if figurative) or the state of mind of the other animals I paint. Then I start laying out the image on paper in my sketchbook. I try a few things. I play with placement, cropping, and I love the horizontal format. I think it gives my work a cinematic quality. My goal and challenge to myself is to reduce and edit the image down to what I decide is the minimum required to get my point across. My hope is that the initial image is "Wow" enough visually to catch attention. Then, the story is given in the title in the form of 'Western Haiku'. Again, it's about reducing to the essentials. Sometimes the narrative and/or piece is personal. Other times the titles come straight from my imagination. After people read my titles, my hope is that they hang out for a bit and ponder. Maybe the imagery reminds them of something in their lives. Maybe they can relate a piece to something in their lives that makes them happy.
I'm not trying to explain the universe in my art. I'm not trying to be political in my art or make some sort of great philosophical statement. My goal is to create something of beauty that clearly communicates the message. My hope is that in the process, my art is a positive addition to people's lives. I want my art to contribute to happiness, lightness, and sometimes laughter. Ultimately, Visual Art is just that- visual. It shouldn't require pages and pages of mental masturbatory word vomit to communicate a point that was SUPPOSED to have been communicated VISUALLY from the start. People are going to like what they see or not. No amount of B.S. explanation can circumvent personal taste. My struggle is how to survive and thrive in a society that already places little value on art while doing so independently outside of the Art Machine. This will be a big part of my story. Keep reading and I will keep writing.
Then I started thinking back to my Art School days. Some of my least favorite times were having to get up in front of everyone to defend my work. I always found that to be a strange practice. The student has to get up and first explain the How, Why, and (sometimes)What. That was the easy part. Then came the Q&A and verbal dismantling of the student's work by fellow classmates and the Professor. Everyone talked about their work using $5 dollar words or phrases that none of us EVER used outside the art critique. I never understood the reasoning for critiquing work that did not have a clear objective such as accurately representing with paint on canvas a bowl of fruit on a table. Professors and students would regularly offer up what they'd had done differently TO MY PAINTING. I took 95% of all that wasted time and conversation with a grain of salt because I knew I was on to something. I was finding my artistic aesthetic and I was defining what art meant for me.
Needless to say, I did not agree with the trajectory that Art School was trying to force me into. Here's the basic pattern that has been repeating probably since the 1940's. You go to Art School and get your B.A. or in my case B.F.A. then you are expected to 'go out and live in the world' to gain more life experience in order to GO BACK to school for a Masters. For those of you who do not know how this system works, a Masters program is essentially a scam to squeeze more money out of a student and set them up to become just one more artist ensnared in the Art School-Gallery-Museum system. To get a Masters, you simply do the exact same work you would be doing outside of the school walls except you get to pay exorbitant amounts of money for the opinions of the Professors of whatever school you attend. A Masters candidate only has two choices(unless gaining a Masters is just for pleasure or self-satisfaction): 1. Graduate and hunt for low level assistantship jobs etc. in a highly saturated market full of other Masters graduates. OR 2. Work a conventional job doing whatever while constantly requesting galleries to review your portfolio. Both routes rarely provide success or satisfaction for the artist. Nothing about Art School focused or encouraged the notion that an artist COULD actually want to be an artist. It's quite a closed system. Two ironies of the art world: 1. Success is seen as selling-out. 2. A 'self-taught' artist is more highly prized in this pretentious world than a trained and skilled artist.
Let me make one thing very clear. EVERY true visual artist is self-taught. I've put crayon/pencil to paper for as far back in my life that I can remember. As I got older, I took the art classes that public education provided. I watched various painting/drawing shows on PBS- some designed for children and some designed for adults. I watched both. My High School art teacher, Mr. Ronald Nugent or "Nooge" as we sometimes playfully addressed him was my first art hero. It seemed he could represent anything on paper realistically with speed and precision. I admired and was envious of his talent. At that time in my life, making art meant drawing, or painting(I was really into watercolor and ink) a subject(s) as realistically as possible. My parents always encouraged me by buying me "How to draw whatever" books, buying me paint and canvas when it was possible and constantly made me feel that being an artist was just as legitimate as any other "I want to be a ____" dream.
Everything changed after I completed my basic drawing and painting classes in college. I was told that representational artwork was passé and unintelligent. To my professors, Abstract Expressionism seemed to be the be all and end all of art. Abstraction obviously meant you were more intelligent because all of these artists we studied wrote pages and pages in defense of their art. My immediate thought was that this was too heady and basically just B.S. After taking two Art History courses from one of the most thorough teachers I've ever had, I gained the ability to appreciate more art than before. Exposure is everything in education. I kept painting away trying to find my voice. Along the way, I discovered I did not like Brown. Brown is not a color- it's a mixture. It's also not neutral. Browns are made by mixing complimentary colors together in various proportions to get the variety of Browns that are available. I also discovered I didn't like 'mark making'- just stabbing at paper or canvas with nonsensical "energetic' lines. I found I appreciated color and shape over everything else. Then I discovered Matisse the second time. The first time I was introduced to Matisse was through learning about his fauvist paintings. I was never a fan. I found them to be poorly executed and too busy. Then... I discovered his cut paper. My imagination went wild. The Blue Nudes became the starting point of what would become my current style. There was still something important to me that was missing. The story.
This is my most basic process when I create my art: Most of my work typically starts from photographs- nearly all of which I take myself. Then I spend some time thinking about how I felt when I took that picture, or what was happening when the picture was taken. I think about what could have been going on in the mind of the person(if figurative) or the state of mind of the other animals I paint. Then I start laying out the image on paper in my sketchbook. I try a few things. I play with placement, cropping, and I love the horizontal format. I think it gives my work a cinematic quality. My goal and challenge to myself is to reduce and edit the image down to what I decide is the minimum required to get my point across. My hope is that the initial image is "Wow" enough visually to catch attention. Then, the story is given in the title in the form of 'Western Haiku'. Again, it's about reducing to the essentials. Sometimes the narrative and/or piece is personal. Other times the titles come straight from my imagination. After people read my titles, my hope is that they hang out for a bit and ponder. Maybe the imagery reminds them of something in their lives. Maybe they can relate a piece to something in their lives that makes them happy.
I'm not trying to explain the universe in my art. I'm not trying to be political in my art or make some sort of great philosophical statement. My goal is to create something of beauty that clearly communicates the message. My hope is that in the process, my art is a positive addition to people's lives. I want my art to contribute to happiness, lightness, and sometimes laughter. Ultimately, Visual Art is just that- visual. It shouldn't require pages and pages of mental masturbatory word vomit to communicate a point that was SUPPOSED to have been communicated VISUALLY from the start. People are going to like what they see or not. No amount of B.S. explanation can circumvent personal taste. My struggle is how to survive and thrive in a society that already places little value on art while doing so independently outside of the Art Machine. This will be a big part of my story. Keep reading and I will keep writing.
Thursday, November 7, 2013
Let's talk about Kitsch.
Historically, I've thought of macrame owls, or decoupage as Kitsch. Odd Nerdrum declared himself a Kitsch painter and not an artist. He doesn't see it in opposition to 'art', just a different system. He basically describes 'art' as a heady system that doesn't take into account the human condition. In a way, I agree. "Art" has become largely inaccessible to the majority of the public. One reason is that they can not relate. People like to relate. I guess according to Odd Nerdrum my work could be included in the 'Kitsch Movement'. I strive for an emotional response from viewers, and many of my pieces are figurative. I have had a very strong interest in the Human Condition most of life. I study people. I listen. I try to learn and understand. This is one of my motivators for making art. However, my art is above Kitsch. My art may be often light, bright, and sometimes humorous, but it is also more than just wall decoration. What are your thoughts on the Kitsch Movement or art in general?
Dawn of the Kitsch Movement
Dawn of the Kitsch Movement
Wednesday, November 6, 2013
"New" Old Art
Maybe some institution will produce a show of all the works in their entirety.
Art Treasure Trove
Art Treasure Trove
Tuesday, November 5, 2013
Raymond Loewy's 120th Birthday
This man was a fantastic designer. He understood that the must successful visual compositions require equal parts curve and straight line. Tension makes everything interesting. Also, Deco is one of my inspirations for the art I create.
"Father of Industrial Design"
"Father of Industrial Design"
Monday, November 4, 2013
Banksy in NYC
To Banksy or not to Banksy?
Banksy is an artist art critics love to hate on, but why? Is it the simplicity in which his message gets across? Is it his success? I think he's clever. What do you think?
Friday, September 13, 2013
NEW EAST COAST PARTNERSHIP
I am proud to announce that I will be represented by Nest 301 Design Center in North Bethesda, MD(Washington D.C.)! I set aside my Blue+Orange series specifically for their grand opening in mid-October and can not wait to see the photos of my work displayed in such a beautiful space. I look forward to a long and prosperous business relationship with a group of very nice and talented individuals who have an excellent eye for design.
Tuesday, August 6, 2013
Monday, July 22, 2013
KEEP IT SIMPLE.
I'd like to announce my first experimental social art project: KEEP IT SIMPLE. Click the link to learn more. I hope you decide to participate. (Note: All stickers are printed on PhotoTex - peel and stick removable fabric material. At any time anyone would like to remove any of the stickers, they can do so without damaging the surface underneath. I have no desire to negatively affect any property- public or private. Aside from the stickers, no other images will be affixed to any structural surface.)
WILL BROOKS ART VOTED BEST ART GALLERY IN HOUSTON
The results are in and you guys have spoken! For the second year in a row, Will Brooks Art has been voted #1 Art Gallery in Houston! Thank everyone who voted. I couldn't have done it without you guys! Expect another big announcement this afternoon.
Tuesday, April 16, 2013
Opening of Blue + Orange April 12, 2013
I had a fantastic time last Friday night with an amazing turn out. Thank you to my partners Chip and Adrian for helping me organizing and produce such a great show. Also, thank you to Liz Aguillard for providing the delicious tarts.
Saturday, March 30, 2013
Houston City Hall Exhibit
I'm pleased to announce that 12 of my paintings were selected to be exhibited in the lobby of Houston's City Hall Annex from now until January 2014. I'd like to thank David Brown, who curated the show, for selecting me, and as always my partners Chip Ware and Adrian McCall for their help and support.
Monday, January 14, 2013
THE BEGINNING OF A BUSY NEW YEAR
I would first like to wish everyone a happy, healthy and prosperous 2013! I would like to thank everyone who helped make my 2012 successful and those who are helping me start off this year with a bang. To back track a bit, I've had some major successes at the end of last year. In November, I was voted as the #1 Art Gallery for the 2012 Houston "A List" on cityvoter.com. In December I was juried into ART TAKES MIAMI: 1001 ARTISTS PROJECT produced by S.C.O.P.E. in Miami, FL. My work was digitally displayed and I was included in the catalog that will be distributed nationally.
So far, this year has already opened many great opportunities. I was asked to participate in the February 1st Grand Opening of Blank Slate Laser Tattoo Removal, 1720 Houston, Ave. Houston, TX 77007. I was also selected to participate in The Louisiana Purchase: 2nd National Biennial Juried Exhibition at Louisiana Tech University(Juror: Dr. Paul Manoguerra, chief curator of American Art at Georgia Museum of Art). Also, in February I was juried into "Judged and Juried" Exhibition, East End Studio Gallery in Houston, TX. I'm also busy planning a major show for Spring. Stay tuned.
So far, this year has already opened many great opportunities. I was asked to participate in the February 1st Grand Opening of Blank Slate Laser Tattoo Removal, 1720 Houston, Ave. Houston, TX 77007. I was also selected to participate in The Louisiana Purchase: 2nd National Biennial Juried Exhibition at Louisiana Tech University(Juror: Dr. Paul Manoguerra, chief curator of American Art at Georgia Museum of Art). Also, in February I was juried into "Judged and Juried" Exhibition, East End Studio Gallery in Houston, TX. I'm also busy planning a major show for Spring. Stay tuned.
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