Artsy Babble Translation Please

[docweathers]

My suspicion is that if you got fairly fluent in IAE, you would endear curators to your work by conversing in their dialect. I would also think if you did your artist statement  and description of your work in IAE you would gain some points with them.... But , that needs to be tested.

 

Maybe being a curator is an employment opportunity for bright schizophrenics. Context is everything..

[docweathers]

So what is art? It is something that a goofy talker, who is in touch with higher wisdom,, says is art.  Since the art in the context of  a show/gallery which has been divined by those of higher wisdom to be good art, the patron is assured that the work they select is of a higher order.  Context is everything.

 

You could not sell the same stuff for pennies at a garage sale.

[Rae Reich]

IAE sounds very similar of the "word salad" that bright schizophrenics[/size]sometimes make. If you listen to them casually, it sounds like it makes[/size]sense, but if you listen closely, you cannot make any sense of it.[/size]Also, I was thinking about why some people look at these jabberings as a[/size]form of wisdom and insight... think of the babbling of the Delphi Oracle or[/size]the I Ching. Both provide a kind of wisdom/seeing like a Rorschach, by[/size]loosening your cognitive structures so that you can more easily project[/size]your own wisdom/insight/aesthetic appreciation on the subject.  So, maybe[/size]critics do not describe the art but jumble our normal view of an object to[/size]help us see it in a new way, in a way that we already knew but was not conscious[/size]... a la the I Ching.[/size]Thus, instead of some IAE, a few lines from the I Ching might work as well.[/size]I am working on a research project to test some of these ideas.[/size]

You have a very strange mind, Gizmo Guy. I like that in a human.

[TJR]

When I was an IT trainer/courseware writer I had a sticker on my monitor:  "Why use a big word when a diminutive expression will do?"  Perhaps it should have said "Why use one ordinary word when 35 mismatched words will do?"

 

Now I know why I'm not an artist.

Chilly;

This is why I went into pottery instead of painting at Art School. The rest is history.

TJR.

[Marcia Selsor]

Seriously, when an artist stands before an audience to explain their work, it really helps if they can do it for all to understand. I just watched a video of an artist's talk at a museum. It was brilliantly clear and illustrated with examples of the work. It was a mature artist and not full of art babble.

I appreciate these kind of representations directly from creative people. I recently juried a show and the museum curator said she always has some great pieces get rejected and can't understand why. She said she didn't see that in my jurying. At the opening I had to give a talk about the work. I think it went well. It was an all ceramic show.

 

Marcia

[Guest JBaymore]

Seriously, when an artist stands before an audience to explain their work, it really helps if they can do it for all to understand.

 

Amen to that!  It is something we stress with our students.  Only use a "big word" if a "big word" is necessary to convey meaning. Otherwise....... just 'talk normally'.  If there is any question your audience does not understand that big word you used, make sure to give plenty of context and some sort of definition so that communication is actually happening.

 

best,

 

..................john

[Marcia Selsor]

Lisa said I could post her talk at Mont Clair. SO here is Lisa Westheimer

talking about her work. She sounds intelligent, funny, humane, articulate, sincere, and involved thoughtfully in what she creates. I don't find it to be art babble...but rather providing insight into her creative processes and concerns. Thank you , Lisa

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XFhZJIkq_KQ

 

Marcia

[phill]

I hope all critique continues on in the Monkey Farter technique. Perchance one might gracefully critique my own ceramic vessels in this way, shedding light on the darkened bowels of my drinking vessels. 

[OldUberGoober]

Artspeak has been a pet peeve of mine for years.  At one show I do every year, I create lttle sarcastic art-speak tags for my pieces.  Had one otherwise very nice lady get mad at me because it took her a while to figure out I was blowing smoke.  It was worth it.

[No Longer Member]

Doesn't matter what they are saying.

 

“When art critics get together they talk about Form and Structure and Meaning. When artists get together they talk about where you can buy cheap turpentine.â€
― Pablo Picasso

[alabama]

Years ago the student art association of Auburn in Montgomery booked a tour of 17th and 18th c. painters at the High Museum in Atlanta. There were art exhibits on every floor and many "paintings" representing "art in its most basic form" ie a blank/white gessoed canvas. I went over to one wall and was starring at a fire extinguisher, when friend Donna came over. "What are you doing??". Well, I'm admiring this recessed 3-D piece of art! " What?". Yes, you see how the red cylinder is hanging by the hook making it appear to be floating? "Ah yes, I do!, and I see how your eyes are drawn to the center, and how the chrome handle seems to point towards the black cylindrical hose!". ....and for the next 7 minutes we saw who could out art babble each other making it one of most fun moments of the trip!!! The trip turned out to be a disaster, since the paintings we wanted to see was at the OTHER High Museum, in Atlanta!!! What pencil pushing pinheads decided to have two museums with the same names? High Museum 2!!! Grrrr!

See ya,

Alabama

[Bob Coyle]

Sadly, much of the popular modern art pieces are IMHO  of less real artistic merit than said fire extinguisher.

[terrim8]

http://www.pixmaven.com/phrase_generator.html

I just bookmarked this one.

In fact I just used it to create this Artist Statement that I need. What do you think???

 

 "The metaphorical purity of line combined with an ultra white and translucent porcelain form makes resonant the remarkable handling of ljght. Although I am not a painter, I think that the subaqueous qualities of the porcelain contextualize many themes directly from the natural world. I feel that the natural themed mark-making and gestures provide the work with an immediate accessibility that transcends multiple genres of design."

 

I could use a critique of this asap!

[bciskepottery]

 "The metaphorical purity of line combined with an ultra white and translucent porcelain form makes resonant the remarkable handling of ljght. Although I am not a painter, I think that the subaqueous qualities of the porcelain contextualize many themes directly from the natural world. I feel that the natural themed mark-making and gestures provide the work with an immediate accessibility that transcends multiple genres of design."

 

I could use a critique of this asap!

And if you also sign your name in HUGE letters, you'll be rolling in the green.

[terrim8]

It only goes to show how desperate I am when it comes to artist- speak. The reports that I wrote in my previous career were straightforward with lots of data. Although I enjoy creating with my hands these days, I cannot understand what most of these artist statements are talking about! So as much as this link provides some amusement, I thought it was actually useful if I just altered a few lines to really give it a try. 

The only place I have seen "subaqueous" used before is in  the context of articles like this:

Modern sedimentation and morphology of the subaqueous Mekong Delta, Southern Vietnam

 

Maybe I'll create a big lettered statement and signature!  

Yours truly,

Mucho Denaros Terrim8

[glazenerd]

 

1. " A striking example of an artist allowing her process to embrace the mismatched flaws of a digital program seeking perfection. "

>>> I really do not know what it is, but I have to write something abstract so I get paid on Friday.

 

2. " Yet, I feel the subject is something else entirely, maybe a reminder of the complexities of vision we take for granted as our mind seamlessly stitches the visual world back together."

>>> I have looked at this thing ten times and still do not know the meaning. However, I better write something profound to justify the price this gal is asking.

Nerd:   synonyms taken from the Nerd Dictionary of Modern Babble.

[Mudslinger Ceramics]

 

IAE sounds very similar of the "word salad" that bright schizophrenics

sometimes make. If you listen to them casually, it sounds like it makes

sense, but if you listen closely, you cannot make any sense of it.

 

Perhaps curators share a personality trait with schizophrenics. I wonder how receptive a curator fluent in jabbering would be to someone trying to have a discourse with them in the same dialect. 

 

 

 

Oh yes!   I remember 2 art theory lecturers, at a painting exhibition opening at my uni one year, having one of these conversations for real!......... it was appalling, disturbing, weirdly compelling and hysterically funny at the same time.......their lexicon remained student favourites for months!!

 

 

Irene

[rakukuku]

Translation:  "Me make art. Me can't explain it. Me come up with big words that make no sense in order to conceal lack of verbal ability"    rakuku

[Girts]

I sincerely hope that this was a one-off experience, but...

 

A few years ago, we went to the Degree Show at an Art College which had best remain nameless. The thing that impressed both of us (my wife and I are both professional photographers) most was the Artist Statements that were beautifully printed alongside each exhibit. They were masterpieces of totally meaningless gibberish whereas the artworks were (in both our opinions) mediocre at best, and certainly not worthy of any degree status. But the Statements were exceptional examples of the Art of Obfuscation, and probably merited a degree in that subject. We concluded that that was what the college in question excelled in, and possibly helped their graduates get their work into certain galleries with substantial price tickets - for all the wrong reasons.

 

Or maybe I'm just out of touch with reality.

[terrim8]

Here is an artist statement that isn't babble

 & at least i can understand this! But notice it is someone else quoting him. I wonder if he ever typed one of these out himself? I am thinking of becoming a "refusnik" in the art-world & refusing to write this stuff. ( I seem to be on a soviet kick this month- have kids studying Russian history)

 

 

“I started as a painter, and pottery provided another form in which to work. So you have the form of sculpture, the form of pottery, and these forms all feed back into
one another. The painting helps the sculpture, the sculpture helps the painting, the pottery helps the sculpture, and so on.â€
- as quoted in Rose Slivka, "Peter Voulkos: Painter, Sculptor, Thrower of Imaginative Pots and Plates," Smithsonian Magazine, March 1978.

[Chris Campbell]

One thing you have to love about artist statements is that they do keep the three syllable word alive. Also, Mr. Roget would be happy to see how often his book is used.

Much better than hearing for the one millionth time that they were inspired by Nature ... Or by hormones and navel gazing.

[Pres]

Being an art teacher, I was required to have a number of courses in fine arts studio, art history, and crafts studio. It was always a question in the back of my mind "Why was not the crafts included or taught in an art history class. Most of what I got in the crafts was taught in the craft studio courses in relation to the craft being taught, never as a group or even in relation to fine arts. Maybe just the school I went to.

 

One thing I did realize after several years, my background in fine arts, and in crafts-particularly ceramics bled back and forth. As my feeling for texture in paint became more of interest, so did the need for it appear in my pottery. Same thing happens with color, line, counterpoint, emphasis and so much more. So the Voulkos quote is true for me, one of the few things I can agree with as I don't appreciate his work. 

 

 

 

best,

Pres

[Mudslinger Ceramics]

I sincerely hope that this was a one-off experience, but...

 

A few years ago, we went to the Degree Show at an Art College which had best remain nameless. The thing that impressed both of us (my wife and I are both professional photographers) most was the Artist Statements that were beautifully printed alongside each exhibit. They were masterpieces of totally meaningless gibberish whereas the artworks were (in both our opinions) mediocre at best, and certainly not worthy of any degree status. But the Statements were exceptional examples of the Art of Obfuscation, and probably merited a degree in that subject. We concluded that that was what the college in question excelled in, and possibly helped their graduates get their work into certain galleries with substantial price tickets - for all the wrong reasons.

 

Or maybe I'm just out of touch with reality.

 

Not a one off. Same experience on the other side of the world.

 

Huge painting with orange circle, green squiggle and a black slash on otherwise white canvas. Accompanied by 3 full pages of meaningless nonesense.  

 

Have always thought the artist could have made a genuinely striking statement on contemporary art if they had reversed the proportions of work and words.  

 

Irene

[JohnnyK]

As a semi-pro photographer I have judged various camera club competitions where the level of work has ranged from absolutely outstanding to poor. As an art student, part of both my Ceramics I and Ceramics II classes required my visiting a gallery or museum, looking at the works and then writing a paper about my experience. In either case, I told my competitors and my Ceramics professors that when it comes to art, either photographic, painting, sculpture, or whatever, I think it's good if I would hang it on the walls or set it on a display shelf in my home. Most of what I saw at the museum, regardless of who created it, would not be in my home. The museum was near my home, you may have heard of it...the world famous Crocker Art Museum in Sacramento, California.

My first Ceramics prof said I had an extremely limited vision...but gave me an "A+" on the paper. I think that part of it was because I was able to use a few four dollar, three syllable words to describe my "limited vision".

I have a few friends who occasionally go to a "Wine-Art Experience" where they go to a "studio" and pay $60 to drink wine that they bring, eat appetizers that they bring, and paint pictures (the studio provides those materials). Needless to say, some of the stuff I've seen done by these folks would make Picasso look like a piker.

When asked to describe what they painted right after their "experience" the usual answer was..."hmmmm". I guess thei stuff won't be hanging in any galleries soon.

Just sayin'...

[Chris Campbell]

Judging "good art" as what you want in your home is limiting ... I can think of lots of Art that I admire but would not bring home. Conversely there is a lot of Art I want but either cannot possibly afford or transport. I want the 'Winged Victory' from the Louvre but my house is just too small!

 

Is Art Babble sometimes painfully pretentious ... YES ... But somewhat amusing too. Also, it keeps the Roget people in business.