WOMEN IN ART: ALICE NEEL

Throughout my education and while visiting various museums and shows I've had a chance to see many paintings by Alice Neel. Yet, up until now I haven't actually learned about her as an artist. To start, Alice Neel was an American Portrait Painter. But her life wasn't easy, she struggled and broke barriers as a female artist.
Born in 1900, Neel was taught that she wouldn't make an impact in the world because she was a woman. But she went on to pursue her art career and she took classes in art and eventually enrolled in Art School. While in school she met her husband Carlos Enriquez and she moved to Hanava with him learning more about Cuban avant-garde arts. When in this situation Alice Neel began to take her stance in political consciousness and equality for women.

Alice Neel in her studio in Harlem, 1944

A year later Alice and Carlos had a daughter, Santillana, who died a year later from diphtheria. The lose of her daughter was so strong that she portrayed themes of lose, motherhood, and anxiety in her paintings. Not long after the loss of Santillana, Neel had a second child, Isabella Lillian, in New York City. After her birth, Neel painted "Well Baby Clinic" which more resembles mothers and babies in an insane asylum than in a maternity ward. And a few year after that Carlos took Isabetta back to Cuba and in reaction to the lose of her husband and daughter, Neel broke down and was hospitalized and attempted suicide.

Alice Neel, Well Baby Clinic, 1928, oil on canvas, Private Collection

At about this time it was the Depression Era, Alice was lucky to work for the Works Progress Administration and was hired to make paintings. During this time she was seeing heroin addict and sailor, Kenneth Doolittle who set fire to 350 of her watercolors, paintings and drawings a few years later.

Alice Neel, Kenneth Dolittle, 1931, oil on canvas, Tate Modern, London

She then began to surround herself with artists, intellectuals, and political leaders for the Communist Party, who she also painted. This allowed her to become a well known and respected artist. She gave birth to another child, Richard, of her lover Jose Santiago moving to Spanish Harlem and painting her neighbors.

Alice Neel, The Spanish Family, 1943, oil on canvas, Private Collection

After Jose left she gave birth to another son, Hartley, of her lover community intellectual, Sam Brody. As for her art career, she was illustrating for Masses & Mainstream but her work for the Works Progress Administration stopped soon after leading to Alice Neel having to struggle to make ends meet. In the end of the 1960s, Neel's work gained interest because of the Women's Movement which led to Neel becoming an icon for many feminists. She became of celebrity status when she was awarded with a National Women's Caucus for Art award by President Jimmy Carter.

Alice Neel's painting of Kate Millett for the cover of TIME Magazine, August 31 1970

Alice Neel, Andy Warhol, 1970, oil on canvas, Whitney Museum, New York

Alice Neel's Website has tons of information about her life and her work: www.aliceneel.com

BLACK HISTORY MONTH: KARA WALKER

We've mentioned Kara Walker a bit before when we did a post about Cutting Paper as an art form. But now is the chance to really dive into what her artwork is really about.

The major themes that fill Walker's work with meaning are conversations of race, gender, sexuality, and fantasy. She hits upon the power struggle in these subjects such as what is real or fiction in history, what we desire verse what we shame through her minimalistic narrative scenes.

http://www.pbs.org/art21/artists/kara-walker

Race: Even though all of her figures are cut out of black paper she purposefully exaggerates features and clothing of a person to make them a certain ethnicity. This only further pushes the sense of humor within her pieces because of the exaggerations, but it also creates a statement of the fact that us as the viewer knows what she is referring to because of stereotype and caricature.

Installation view of Kara Walker: My Complement, My Enemy, My Oppressor, My Love (Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, 2007) Photograph by Sheldan C. Collins http://whitney.org/Exhibitions/KaraWalker

Desire and Shame: Walker has described America's national pastime as "loving to hate what we hate to love" (Do You Like Creme in your Coffee or Chocolate In Your Milk? 1997) which perfectly sums up how society has viewed certain situations and events. In reaction, Walker's work leads to controversy over the combination of violence, humor, and sexuality in whether what she is portraying is taboo in relation to theme of history and slavery. Her work also doesn't necessarily portray the characters as right or wrong, leading to viewer to create their own moral decision.

http://www.alanaveryartcompany.com/kara-walker/

Historic? or Fantasy?: Although her characters are depicted in the South pre- Civil War, she never depicts anything specific to history. However, Walker's work is a comment on what we are taught and then twists in fantasy and an exaggerated truth to create her own historic stories. A combination of "southern romance novels, historical fiction, slave narratives, and contemporary novels" creates her version of storytelling.

Kara Walker, The Renaissance Society, 1997  http://gallery400.uic.edu/blog/from-the-archive-kara-walkers-voices-lecture-at-gallery-400-1997

Kara Walker, Gone, An Historical Romance of a Civic War as It Occurred Between the Dusky Thighs of One Young Negress and Her Heart, 1994

BLACK HISTORY MONTH: KEHINDE WILEY

Similar to Barkley L. Hendricks, Kehinde Wiley is a contemporary portrait painter. Wiley is a New York based artist whose work is in museums around the world. His work rivals great masters of portraiture from Titian and Ingres to Reynolds and Gainsborough. Wiley combines aspects of traditional portraits which we know well with contemporary twists. On his website is explains that he "engages the signs and visual rhetoric of the heroic, powerful, majestic and the sublime in his representation of urban, black and brown men found throughout the world."

Kehinde Wiley in his Beijing studio in 2012. http://nymag.com/arts/art/rules/kehinde-wiley-2012-4/

Kehinde Wiley's collections are separated into places around the world. He finds his models on the streets of New York. Because his models are always African American, Wiley will use his models to express whatever he has been influenced from travelling ie. when Wiley went to China and was researching historic propaganda posters from China's Cultural Revolution he will use what he has learned and combine it with African American Identity.

Kehinde Wiley, Two Heroic Sisters of the Grassland, 2007, oil and enamel on canvas, 96x72 inches.

A lot of the time he will copy images from history and reenact in his style what is going on. For instance with the painting above he is copying a Chinese propaganda poster printed in 1965.

http://www.maopost.com:8000/wcat=mao&wlan=en&wreq=posterpage&posterid=1239-001M&srcname=c_child&selected=161&total=216&srcreq=http:%2F%2Fwww.maopost.com:8000%2Fwcat=mao%26wlan=en%26wreq=postercat%26catref=c_child%26displistindex=9

His continuing combination of History and Style has made him a truly unique and magnificent artist who should be known and studied by all. Below is more of his work with the pieces they are inspired by.

Kehinde Wiley, The Three Graces, 2012, oil on canvas, 84x111 inches

Raphael, Les Trois Graces, 1504, oil on panel, 6.7x6.7 inches

Kehinde Wiley, Naomi and her Daughters, 2013, oil on canvas, 108x90 inches

George Dawe, Naomi and her Daughters, 1804, oil paint on canvas, Tate Museum

All Kehinde's work and information can be found at kehindewiley.com

BLACK HISTORY MONTH: BARKLEY L. HENDRICKS

Barkley Leonnard Hendricks was born in 1945 in Philadelphia. His work can be found in the National Gallery of Art, the Brooklyn Museum, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, and many more.

http://www.wwd.com/eye/people/barkley-l-hendricks-talks-latest-exhibit-hearts-hands-eyes-mind-6812153/slideshow#/slideshow/article/6812153/6812251

Throughout his career Hendricks has experiemented with many different mediums and genres of art, although his portraits stand out the most. Hendricks' work was considered a huge jump for black portraiture and conceptualism. His portraits are life sized and really show pride through the subject. Hendricks' work touches upon many themes, style, attitude, realism through his straightforward portraits with a great sense of energy.

Barkley L. Hendricks, Triple Portrait from the Yard, oil on canvas, 2013

Focusing on the subtleties that bring out the sense of reality of these subjects is what makes these portraits strong. These works are not to show the realism of what is pop culture in a documentary sense but in a showing the viewer what is cool just from the attitude his paintings have. From a Portraiture stance, Hendricks' work shows the realism through purposefully showing you certain aspects of the person to give you their personality. Hendricks' knowledge of portraiture is strong and natural allowing his work to seem seamless in its meaning. While his work isn't widely known, he is one of those amazing artists that is wildly acknowledged and loved in the art world.

There is a wonderful interview of his show at Duke here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=darxeJzn4WI

BLACK HISTORY MONTH: JEAN-MICHEL BASQUIAT

One of the leaders during the emergence of the Neo-Expressionism Movement is Jean-Michel Basquiat, a self-taught and very talented artist. He originally started as a graffiti artist around New York City under the name "SAMO". Because of his talent and passion his work was picked up in 1980 and he became loved by the public for his style.

About this time was when the Neo- Expressionist Movement began and in the mid 1980s Basquiat collaborated with Andy Warhol. Basquiat's work often touches upon the relations between the Egyptian slaves and African Americans with his use of text, symbols.
"Like a DJ, Basquiat adeptly reworked Neo-expressionism's cliched language of gesture, freedom, and angst and redirected Pop art's strategy of appropriation to produce a body of work that at times celebrated black culture and history but also revealed its complexity and contradictions" -Lydia Lee

Andy Warhol and Jean-Michel Basquiat, Arm and Hammer II, Acrylic and silkscreen ink on canvas, 76 x 112 inches, 1985.

During this time, when his work was showcased throughout the world, his life began to be pulled down with drug use leading to his early death at the age of 27. His brief but influential art career brought Latin and African American life into the art world. If he had lived longer his influence and experiences would have only further changed the art world for the better.

References:
http://www.biography.com/people/jean-michel-basquiat-185851#commercial-success
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean-Michel_Basquiat#cite_note-Sirmans-3

BIRTHDAY POST: JACKSON POLLOCK

Now as far as "main stream artists" go, Jackson Pollock is the Kurt Cobain. Jackson Pollock is known for his Abstract Expressionist paintings, but he is also known for his trouble with alcoholism that led to his death. Throughout my art career I've obviously known about Pollock and his paintings but I've never researched into his life to actually learn about him as I have with many other artists. This might be because people who know practically nothing about art claim to love Jackson Pollock and his art when they know nothing behind it. So let's all learn about Jackson Pollock today and actually try to understand his methods and style, since it is his birthday after all.

Jackson Pollock, Male and Female, paint on canvas, 1942, Philadelphia Museum of Art. This piece is one of Pollock's early works where he first began to pour paint on the canvas.

 

Jackson Pollock's technique is his biggest legacy. His paintings are mainly created with household paints instead of artist paints which he claimed as "a natural growth out of need." To create his "drip" technique he used hardened brushes, sticks and basting syringes along with pouring to actively paint from all directions. In a 1956 Time Magazine Pollock answers all of the questions of why he is an idolized and revolutionary Expressionist painter:
 "My painting does not come from the easel. I prefer to tack the unstretched canvas to the hard wall or the floor. I need the resistance of a hard surface. On the floor I am more at ease. I feel nearer, more part of the painting, since this way I can walk around it, work from the four sides and literally be in the painting."
"I continue to get further away from the usual painter's tools such as easel, palette, brushes, etc. I prefer sticks, trowels, knives and dripping fluid paint or a heavy impast with sand, broken glass or other foreign matter added."
"When I am in my painting, I'm not aware of what I'm doing. It is only after a sort of 'get acquainted' period that I see what I have been about. I have no fear of making changes, destroying the image, etc., because the painting has a life of its own. I try to let it come through. It is only when I lose contact with the painting that the result is a mess. Otherwise there is pure harmony, an easy give and take, and the painting comes out well."
You can even find cigarette butts and dirt in the paint of his paintings if you look closely enough. He took his techniques from American Indian sandpainting and Mexican muralists and Surrealist automatism.

Jackson Pollock, Number 5, paint on canvas, 1948

Jackson Pollock, Number 29, paint on glass, 1950, National Gallery of Canada

The "Drip period" was between 1947 and 1950 which was when he really became well known and was considered the greatest living painter in the United States. Right then was when he abandoned his drip technique and went back to his former styles. He was is high demand from collectors and galleries and in response his alcoholism deepened and he took a break from painting. A few years later on August 11th 1956 Pollock died in a single car crash in his convertible while driving under the influence of alcohol. He died along with Edith Metzger but Ruth Kligman, fellow artist and Pollock's mistress survived. He left behind his wife and artist Lee Krasner.

There is so much more about Jackson Pollock that you'd have to research for years to know. This is only a tiny glimpse at his life and his work. If you wish to learn more check out this bio on him. But if you are really curious and want to learn more, which I highly suggest, then go and find documentaries and books and really learn about him as a person.

References:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jackson_Pollock

NEW ARTFORM: GIFS

Are GIFs the new artform?
For those who don't know GIFs are a file format .gif that holds a few frames of a video or stop motion photographs that loop forever. The internet over the past few years has been churning out millions of gifs. From a scene from a movie to a handdrawn mini cartoon. But now there is debate whether gifs can be made into an art form. I mean if you think about it Photography started out for science and then use at home and for children but also an art form...

YoMeryl, Sarah Zucker and Bronwyn Lundberg, has just recently brought gifs to the Brooklyn Musuem as art. The gifs they portray are a play on pop culture and art history having celebrities like Lena Dunham and Lady Gaga mixing with famous art exhibits from Judy Chicago's "Dinner Party" to Ai Weiwei's "He Xie."

When interviewed about their gifs they said their gifs show a "hyperreality that shows subjects engaging with art so much so that they enter the art or become part of the art." Which leads to a very popular type of artwork right now: Interactive Art. But not all gif artists are creating these sorts of scenes. Some are taking a more abstract approach to gif art.

Erik Soderberg in 2011 experimented with the animation of gifs and "the relations of geometry, nature and the human being" Each piece being more mesmerizing than the next, Soderberg creates insane illusions that loop forever. These gifs are more generative than YoMeryl's but still use gifs as the main medium.

Erik Soderberg, Vibrating Icosahedron, gif, 2011

Erik Soderberg, Torus, gif, 2011

 What do you think about GIF Art? Is it the new wave of art?

References:
NYMagazine http://nymag.com/thecut/2014/12/are-gifs-art-the-pop-art-pair-yomeryl-discusses.html
Erik Soderberg: http://work.eriksoderberg.se/Fractal-Experience-Part-2