I love it when nothing is as it seems, normal stuff (and people) is boring! Albert Einstein said "Reality is an illusion, although a persistent one !", Yeah, he got that right, eh ! Albert E was one profoundly smart and very human genius~ I shot a series of these abstracts at Watauga lake which makes its watery home here in the mountains of far east TN. I like to attempt to shoot abstracts or impressionist type styles and making the subject not instantly easy to figure out. Like life, and women! Ha ha. I used a Sony Cybershot on manual settings and its greatly reduced, full size it's small poster size the max my camera would shoot ie 25megs ... Rev A
Hi Viv! Thanks so much for the words! I have always loved art, its another language another way to communicate on a deeper level than talking. Like body language is the mildest way to communicate, then talking then the written word, then art then ahhhh' ha ummm‘...loving and love is the deepest with the latter being the deepest and body language being the most mild form of getting an idea across. Yeah I am weird ! Ha ha. To answer your question the impressionist style started long ago and it was really a revolt by young radicals that rejected the old style of art painting history in a photorealist way, like a photograph I guess. And the word impressionist was a snub of the rich powerful academy of fine arts and the go to art critic of the day art critic Louis Leroy. He commented that Monet's painting titled 'Impression Soleil Levant' "was indeed was just an impression and that the work could not be considered finished". SOOooo....sorry you asked? ha ha. Thanks again, I have included a couple of others, not as good quality (I saved them at a lower resolution) But, I hope you like them~ The first is a shot from a jeep trail in the mountains. I like the second it looks like a photo shot from a Cessna coming in for a landing. Its actually reflections off a sidewalk of the trees! The third is a little underexposed but intentionally so. Sometimes I feel the composition and interesting details override a perfect exposure, and I had to shoot it underexposed to get the jewel like beads of dew on the petals. The fourth is algae a close up which makes a nice abstract. If slime can be considered nice! Oops had to put the others on the next post!
Do you do art or music ? I hope you like these they are not my best just some samples. I lost a lot of my work when because I dumbly stored about 2000 photos on my hard drive …yup a virus eat them. I thought I had camera cards and did for some but the bulk were lost. Thanks again! Rev A
I'm not sorry I asked, it is interesting and Monet is a long time favourite. Art can make people look at things differently, like the second pic of the trees. How cool is that...a different perspective I can see you are thinking and it's fun. I stopped painting. It's tricky to move between the two different mindsets, very disciplined and very creative. It's too big a leap at the moment, I'm under too much pressure, but when that changes, I will go back to painting. That is my love. I enjoy any practical creative work though, and also take many pictures. Practically the weather is so changeable here, if you want to paint you must photograph and take it home with you to keep the colours and allow you to finish the work. To me, all art is impressionism. I never try photographic painting, that is I do not attempt to produce an image which replicates the subject exactly and which looks like a photo. I have a go at reproducing it in my way and let it run, don't try too hard to be faithful to anything, it's amazing how if you stay calm and detach and trust your brain and paint exactly what you see and don't try to think too far ahead (I try not to think at all, but just paint exactly what is there), in the end it looks absolutely fine.
Hi Viv ! I am happy you aren’t sorry! Yes I am like you and find thinking people interesting. I don’t think we are any more intelligent etc than others just that some peoples thought processes are different. Some are happy not to question anything and just go through life without too much curiosity. I sometimes even envy those guys, because they do not seem to worry (that they will miss something) as much! Yes I agree that artists like you and I look at the world differently! Oh yes I know exactly what you mean! You are truly a rare person if you are both artistic and disciplined! I and most artists I know are kind of a slob* and not very disciplined! Well, I have a bit of clinical depression (a bit of clinical depression sounds like saying a small atomic bomb ha ha… and I go through stages where inspiration wanes, and I did not want to snuff it out completely! I tell my friends that I may be messy I am clean. I can't tolorate dirty and filth, Bogie the basset gets many baths! There is a difference no..? Anyway~ Do you have any samples of any of your art you would like to share? I gave most if not all of my paintings away I didn’t sale. And, I am very picky in what I like to show especially the paint media! I am thinking about doing some sculpting again, I have a growing fire in my belly and feel like doing some stuff protesting the landmines left behind and things like that. I was thinking about using real explosives and a huge wet thick ’canvas’ of plywood and something like plaster or gel. I plan on setting the (mild) explosives in front (or above so the gel etc wont slide off) of the canvas then put the paint and simulated shrapnel between the big firecracker and the canvas so it the impact the canvas? It may not look like art tho’ ! What do you think? The thick (maybe a couple of inches) should be at least one or two meters times four? Ie 4x8 feet…ha ha my conversion is probably way off! You MUST begin creating again! I can tell art is your heart. But I realize one can not push a rope, tiredness, anger, the job or some emotions don’t lend themselves to helping the artist produce eh? Maybe you can shoot some photos (its eaiser than painting etc) too keep the pump primed? Go to a museum or theater (we have none here which is one big city thing I ache for). We do have a little theatre both professional and the colleges. I am kind of worried now... You are piquing my interest in your art viv! Nowdays I think professional artists only paint in photorealism to demonstrate they can do it, and to show their skill and mastery of the media. After that they can do abstracts or our favorite impression or anything they want! Yes the last sentence in your paragraph is exactly artist thought. Really please think about doing a little art unless you are totally strapped for time and energy! Hey I will enclose a few pieces, don’t laugh these were my first attempts at using a mouse and free art programs ie digital art…Take care and write anytime! Yours, Greg, Bogie, my old basset hound and the spirits of Monet, Chopin (the classical piano artist), Albert Einstein his genius and fantasy was art IMO, and my hero Jesus who’s words are beautiful art… Oh I almost forgot! Rendering one, Methane Ice Moon/ Alien Aspen moonscape moonscape Rendering two; 'Star Jellyfish' (maybe its going to the Methane Ice moon? star jelly Photo Hiway to heaven (I shot this one on too low a resoultion but its nice anyway, its a road that goes to one of my fav camping spots a little lake in the mountains.. I am going to put the next photo in a new reply its huge, title ; 'yellow butterfly on black dog poo;
It may have been coon poo because it had berries in it...ha ha~ Take care in your beautiful Scotland viv!
you took the whole good out of that gorgeous butterfly by telling me where it is settled. I like the stars also. I can't have my paintings in the house. They sit there irritating me, I can't leave them alone and can't relax when I can see them. There are always things I have to improve. Well it's not just that way with paintings, it's the same with many things. If I write something, I work hard until it's as close to perfect as I can make it and then I never want to see it again. There is only one of my paintings on display in the house, in the bedroom. That is there because it's a relaxing seascape and I love the sunlit colours of the sea spray and the blue green water washing over the sand. It's also there because the sky matches the bedroom decor Ref the semtex art, I don't know. I can see the value in it. It could look like nothing of interest unless you choose the colours well. It is fraught with practical obstacles, really dangerous to do and ...you could end up splattered all over your painting. Do you want to give all for your art? No, you don't, come on now. If you are serious about trying it, you would have to be well advised and supervised by an expert on distances and explosive strengths and possibly even health and safety people. Public safety issues aside, people might question why you want explosives. You could be suspected of terrorism yourself. But it is possibly a sharp marketing gimmick (although you may not like that suggestion) to do such a painting and market it as a demonstration of how a person looks after being bombed, that could be very powerful art. The artistic temperament and the roller coaster IMHO are easier if you befriend them and just enjoy it. It's part of the deal. You can learn to live with it and accept it and just don't worry about it. On a bad day, you're still able to manage as well as most flatliners (stable temperament people ). I am never depressed unless there is something concrete happening to be upset about. Most Scots have creative temperament, but also the sense of humour. Natural Scottish buoyancy over-rides it and keeps us afloat.
OOPS I POSTED THE UNEDITED VERISION (ABOVE), WHICH DID NOT HAVE THE QUOTE BRACKETS INSTALLED, THIS IS THE EDITED VERSION, I SO DETEST THE 20 MIN TIME LIMIT! Viv sorry for the slightly non- personal quote tag format, its the only way I am sure of answering everything .. Hi Viv and sorry for the delay in replying. I am getting my non-profit up and running and its more work than a ordinary for profit business ever could be! its a Christian humanitarian type food bank (and hopefully a free bean kitchen eventually), and I am constantly either on the computer typing our letters to the government fund raising grant proposals or on the tele doing the same! Ha ha yes but it was interesting poo! The stars jelly and the other are not perfect but maybe I would accept they are good. I just get so frustrated painting for the lack of skill. Oh yes! I do the same then try to add on something which of course ruins the entire thing! Ha ha that is what I love about using a computer to paint, I can save copies as I go along and if I add too much I can always go back and use the original etc. I do not hang my stuff either, we have a lot in common! Hmmm ! A perfectionist eh? I admire that because I sometimes just do things good enough to get by. To comment on your habit (?) of putting away your art after you finish it. Your comments remind me of a successful artist friend, of mine, (she was my mentor). I was telling her that I have never in ten years of trying produced a painting that was as good as what was in my minds eye. She thought for a moment and said Greg, I know artists that have produced their entire life and never produced what they feel is a perfect piece. But the person she was speaking about was fairly famous had his own shows etc. She said that when she did produce a painting that matched her minds vision it was her masterpiece, until the next masterpiece! That gave me peace of mind. I am still wondering why you do not want to see your stuff after you finish! Is it because you do not consider it a masterpiece? Ah the voice of reason! Oh my semtex! Hi Hi HIGH explosive! More violent than C4! I was planning on using black powder, a low powered explosive but still dangrous. Please don't worry, I am a ex army guy (the army was not for me, too much authority, but I did my 3 year bit). Anyway I must admit you are correct, even though I know a bit about explosives you brought up something I did not think about. That something is that many artist types are pacifists. They may link my use of explosives up with me being violent, even though the art would be an protest of land mines and such. I dont even squash bugs if I can get them out of the house in another way! I love firearms and pyro but do not hunt because I could not bring myself to shoot a deer or anything else. I rarely eat meat because of the guilt trip. So thank you! I will put that project on hold. I have other ideas for sculpture ha ha no they are static not dynamic! Yes you are reading my mind. However the idea I have is not to create a graphic rendering of a person being blown up, but rather for the canvas to show the damage of an explosion, and allow the viewer to use their imagination. The canvas would be rectangular just like a regular one, but it would be a few inches (cm) thick to absorb the shrapnel and hopefully to make interesting shapes! To be successful, most artists must market themselves. I was going first try to call the papers and hope to get on TV. Then there is the net Utube etc. Last there is intentionally getting arrested! A short jail term is worth the publicity. That said there is a famous artist Jurgen Von Anhalt (hylerlink is his site) that stands behind a jet engine aircraft like a 747, or just a jet engine and throws buckets of paint on a huge canvas. His modern abstract impressionist work, while not one of my favorites, to say the least, brings premium prices of more than a hundred thousand dollars each ! I got the idea of using explosives to propel shrapnel and paint onto a canvas instead of the jet. Of course I would set the explosives off from a distance, I dont want to become part of my art as you say! Jurgen site link; http://www.jetartproductions.com/about.html Great advice Ms Viv, and I so appreciate it, you have a warm heart and an honesty about you. Yes social interaction is a must! However, I suffer from depression and find social interaction enjoyable most times, but not always. It's causes by many things but the world is a caytlist eh? It's cured by taking SSRIs selective serotonin (feel good chemicals in the noggin) reuptake inhibitors like Paxil, but I am not me, I can not create and while being chemically forced to be happy, its synthetic, fake, an illusion. So I have decided to live with my depression, take a few herbals for it and do my art. Ummm~ I am happy I met you Viv, take care and hang those paintings up, or open a shop and hang them! I would love to see something of yours if you havent given away those that you would allow others to see like I usually do! Ha ha or if you do not like to show your work I understand. BTW do you have any favorite subjects to photograph or paint (when you are in the mood?). Take care of yourself and yours, this comes to you via fiber optics ran through the mountains of East Tennessee (Dollywood and the inspiration for the classic TV show the Beverly Hillbillys) <<< yes that was a feeble attempt at humor! See you Viv~ Greg
