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Artsy Babble Translation Please


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I so agree with the comments above about living with art. 

 

There are some fantastic paintings in the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich, but I couldn't live with them.  Fierce, angry seas, battles, famous navigators and captains, most of them would only fit on the outside walls of my house, probably couldn't get most through my door.

 

The art I want to live with tho', comes without description.  If I can't see what it is supposed to be, I think the artist has failed.

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I agree with all of the above too. I collect paintings from local Alberta artists- usually landscapes & no babble is required to explain the paintings. I also collect pottery especially when I travel. If I was a zillionaire I would consider a wall sized Monet for my bedroom with big water lilies but my little forest and mountain scenes are pretty nice too. I feel fortunate to have collected what I have and my family enjoys the paintings.

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On the other side, a story or the truthful meaning in words behind a piece can make art more meaningful. There is a greater story and meaning to most of my watercolor paintings and I feel if I took the time to put it to words the audience would appreciate them more. (I keep painting as a hobby and intend to never sell my watercolor collection except as a last resort)

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One artist at our gallery painted a giant orange square right on the wall (like 5 feet square) and titled it  "Not Your Mother's Orange" - price negotiable. There were some subtile variations in the color. And a paint bucket with some orange in it sitting below it.  Would have loved to hear the art babble about it. We should have left a tape recorder and had people register their remarks. 

 

I saw one local guy's artist statement that was so pretentious and egotistical that I thought it might be a big joke. Maybe for my next show I will attempt that and see who figures it out as a joke.    diane

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While I do agree that there is some oblique muddling of meaning in some art speak, bashing intellectualism can also be percieved as dumbing down. There is not so fine a line there.

Marcia

I don't think anyone's bashing intellectualism - I'm certainly not. I take a poor view of dumbing down. What we're all bashing, I think, is pseudo intellectualism. We've all heard it from union leaders, football managers, sales people and politicians. Artists should be producing art which should, in my opinion, speak for itself. I have no problem with someone saying that this piece was inspired by nature (most things are, so honesty is good) or by a walk in a foggy day in the city or whatever. That's interesting. But the kind of stuff that goes on at length about existential reality or other long-winded splurges really is a waste of time and an insult to the viewer.

 

Michelangelo and Rembrandt and da Vinci and co. didn't need to do this. Where did it come from?

 

Sorry, but I just had to get it out of my system. Maybe there's an artwork to be made inspired by the existential reality of artsy babble? Could that be Challenge no.6 ?

 

Girts

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In the academic setting (colleges & universities) the artist's statement proves intellectual pursuit.

 

In the create to sell setting the general public wants to know:

WHO  you are

WHAT's it used for

WHEN:   only ETSY cares about when it was made

WHERE:   sometimes want to know where your from

WHY?    If there perplexed and don't understand why you are creating what you've displayed, you've probably lost a sale, and

               an artist statement won't help.

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I also do a little bit of photography. I'm looking for a hot, fresh steaming cow pile to get a good close up picture of. Then I want to jazz it up with Photoshop and post it on the web for artistic critique. Can anyone suggest a good place to post it to make sure that those fluent in artsy babble will flex their skills on this masterpiece?

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I agree with the good story part. I much prefer that over the artist statement. Cause 10 years down the road when someone ask you about a piece your not going to remember the artist statement, but you will remember the story of why the artist made it and that's why you bought it. Things with a story are unique.

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  • 2 weeks later...

personally i enjoy two things. knowledge about the artist's life and either a good artist statement or a sincere story. 

 

but i DO enjoy something. just the art is half the story for me. i may enjoy it, but i need more.  somehow it makes the piece so much more meaningful for me.

 

one of the painters i really enjoyed was Caravaggio when i was younger. i always wondered why he painted the way he did. just curiosity. Especially David with the Head of Goliath. then i saw a documentary about caravaggio himself and woah did my appreciation of his art increase. 

 

one of my favourite cups is from a local artist who did clay as a hobby as a retired teacher. she didnt sell her ware for much. i was drawn to a tea bowl but when we got talking and she told me the inspiration for it, it made so much more meaningful for me. 

 

i always try to find the person behind the art - whether it is a tv show or painting or pottery or writing. because when i look at their piece i realize i am looking at a self portrait. sometimes the artist learns about himself looking at his art. 

 

because i am interested the human behind the art sometimes i am so torn - when i like their art but i strongly dislike who they are, how they treated their family, their character flaw. i cant separate the person from the image and i really struggle with that. which is a whole other story altogether. 

 

even the meaningless diatribes tells me so much about the artist. 

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I also do a little bit of photography. I'm looking for a hot, fresh steaming cow pile to get a good close up picture of. Then I want to jazz it up with Photoshop and post it on the web for artistic critique. Can anyone suggest a good place to post it to make sure that those fluent in artsy babble will flex their skills on this masterpiece?

If you don't mind getting your hands dirty, you might shape it into a Koons-y puppy, dust with glitter, then photograph it so it appears to be larger than the nearest building. Existential! :)

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I also do a little bit of photography. I'm looking for a hot, fresh steaming cow pile to get a good close up picture of. Then I want to jazz it up with Photoshop and post it on the web for artistic critique. Can anyone suggest a good place to post it to make sure that those fluent in artsy babble will flex their skills on this masterpiece?

If you don't mind getting your hands dirty, you might shape it into a Koons-y puppy, dust with glitter, then photograph it so it appears to be larger than the nearest building. Existential! :)

 

and you could call it your child's sculpture inspired art and have it be worth millions. 

 

or like chris ofili add it to an image of the VIrgin Mary and you could really offend ex mayor Giuliani and yet saatchi would buy it for a couple of million. 

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  • 4 weeks later...
Guest JBaymore

FYI.... my artist's statement for an upcoming solo exhibition in February and March:

 

"I have chosen the demanding approach of wood firing for finishing my work because no other firing process allows the mark of the flame to be documented in such a direct and literal way upon the wares. Ceramics is formed from very basic earth materials and is based upon the same kind of metamorphic forces that have helped to form our planet. I try to capture some of this materiality in my works, as do many artists I have met while working in Japan. Like the diverse textures and subtle colors of desert and canyon landscapes in the American Southwest which have served to inspire me, there is much to explore and find if you take the time to let your eyes wander and explore my works. Sometimes a wildflower grows in the most unexpected place. Other times one finds the clear marks of the formation processes that create the forms. Occasionally, one even finds a little tiny bit of gold. My pieces are intentionally quiet and subtle, often layering the stark contrast potential of differing types of ceramic materials. With each new firing of the wood kiln, I continue to learn."

 

best,

 

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

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FYI.... my artist's statement for an upcoming solo exhibition in February and March:

 

"I have chosen the demanding approach of wood firing for finishing my work because no other firing process allows the mark of the flame to be documented in such a direct and literal way upon the wares. Ceramics is formed from very basic earth materials and is based upon the same kind of metamorphic forces that have helped to form our planet. I try to capture some of this materiality in my works, as do many artists I have met while working in Japan. Like the diverse textures and subtle colors of desert and canyon landscapes in the American Southwest which have served to inspire me, there is much to explore and find if you take the time to let your eyes wander and explore my works. Sometimes a wildflower grows in the most unexpected place. Other times one finds the clear marks of the formation processes that create the forms. Occasionally, one even finds a little tiny bit of gold. My pieces are intentionally quiet and subtle, often layering the stark contrast potential of differing types of ceramic materials. With each new firing of the wood kiln, I continue to learn."

 

best,

 

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

 

I understood nothing.  :huh:  :D

 

Really though I like this type of statement much more than a ton of random words. Well done.

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John,

That is a fine artist's statement. It lets me see what you see in wood firing, and expresses your enthusiasm and for the process and the way you connect wood firing to natural surroundings. I too have often looked at canyon walls and wondered how to express this in pottery.

 

 

Great job,

best,

Pres

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John, this is exactly what I think an artist's statement should be: informative, adding to the understanding of the background to your work. What I take issue with, and you have avoided completely, is the meaningless pretentious use of obscure wording simply to satisfy the 'write 500 words about your work' requirement. Well done! I like it!

 

Girts

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FYI.... my artist's statement for an upcoming solo exhibition in February and March:

 

"I have chosen the demanding approach of wood firing for finishing my work because no other firing process allows the mark of the flame to be documented in such a direct and literal way upon the wares. Ceramics is formed from very basic earth materials and is based upon the same kind of metamorphic forces that have helped to form our planet. I try to capture some of this materiality in my works, as do many artists I have met while working in Japan. Like the diverse textures and subtle colors of desert and canyon landscapes in the American Southwest which have served to inspire me, there is much to explore and find if you take the time to let your eyes wander and explore my works. Sometimes a wildflower grows in the most unexpected place. Other times one finds the clear marks of the formation processes that create the forms. Occasionally, one even finds a little tiny bit of gold. My pieces are intentionally quiet and subtle, often layering the stark contrast potential of differing types of ceramic materials. With each new firing of the wood kiln, I continue to learn."

 

best,

 

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

Yabba dabba doo-this one hits the nail on the head John no babble talk in it.very nicely done.

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  • 2 months later...

I also do a little bit of photography. I'm looking for a hot, fresh steaming cow pile to get a good close up picture of. Then I want to jazz it up with Photoshop and post it on the web for artistic critique. Can anyone suggest a good place to post it to make sure that those fluent in artsy babble will flex their skills on this masterpiece?

 

 

No, you can't do that unless we do  a colaboration. I can't remember if I mentioned this before or not. We once had a dog that ate clay......LOTS..of clay... He would leave his 100% pure clay "extrusions" all around the yard. I always wanted to fire one and underglaze it dark brown and mount a June bug on it and enter it in the local juried show titled, "The beholder".

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