Month: June 2013

I am not aphotographer, but…

Posted on by nikuzo87 in Creative Practice

I was downstairs checking on my cat and dog, the weather is cold, winds are extreme and the rain constant. While standing under my balcony with my cat I responded to a friends text with an image of what I was doing. At first the image didn’t seem too significant at first, but upon later review I found the composition intriguing, and the contrast between warm and cool interesting and the dimmed light was just right.

I am not a photographer, but…

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Reasons behind drawing/sketching

Posted on by nikuzo87 in Creative Practice

Since there are some days when I can’t get into the studio to paint because of the weather, gallery work or other committments. I decided to do at least two sketches in my journal each day, to keep the mind sharp, to develop new ideas as well as playing around with current ones. Drawing offers something that painting can’t. Drawing/sketching is a lot more forgiving, easpecially when you consider how I paint.

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Artist of the week: John Currin.

Posted on by nikuzo87 in Creative Practice

Painter John Currin (American, b.1962) is known for his Figurative works, which draw on sources ranging from Renaissance painting traditions to 1950s advertisements. Currin was born in Boulder, Colorado, and received a BFA from Carnegie Mellon University, and an MFA from Yale University. Currin first received critical attention for his sensual paintings of female nudes, noted for his combination of Old Master painting techniques with 1950s commercial sources.

He frequently portrayed his nude figures as examinations of the various female archetypes found in visual culture, with a caricatured sexuality and studied emotions. His later works include portraits and scenes painted with Mannerist aesthetics, featuring subjects with elongated, disproportionate limbs and in styles drawn from fashion magazines, pornography, and other commercial sources. Currin’s work has been exhibited at the Whitney Museum of American Art and the Museum of Modern Art in New York, at the Tate Gallery in London, and at the Venice Biennale. He currently lives and works in New York.

 

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Girl In Bed, 1993. Oil on linen, 61.5 x 77 cm.

 

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The Beggar’s Alm, 2002. Etching with aquatint on Somerset paper (edition of 70), 26.7 x 21 cm

 

Images and text: http://www.artnet.com/artists/john-currin/

Jeffrey Smart Dies at 91.

Posted on by nikuzo87 in Creative Practice

An icon of Australian art has passed away, known for his Surrealist imagery, Jeffrey Smart spent a majority of his adult life living and working in Italy. Always referred to as an expatriate, however, I will always see him as an Australian artist. When I was younger I used to marvel at his elaborate compositions, technical drawing and painting, his attention to detail and his intriguing  use of symbols. He is one of the last of the modern generation. I could go on to talk about his career as an artist, but what I would say can be found should you Google his name. So I will just leave you with some examples of his work, for I feel that they speaker louder than any words of mine ever could.

 

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