On a trip to Hawaii with a small group of friends, we kept encountering people we know back in Denver. In just a few days our roving group doubled, all with ideas of things to get up to. At one point we gathered at a rented high-rise suite some twenty floors up for a pre-dinner cocktail party. Upon entering the condominium the first thing one notices is a slapdash painting in blue tones and values. All heavy brushwork indicating stormy weather and roiled water and atmosphere with no clear subject such as a boat or building or lighthouse or fish. I said to the host, "This painting is hung upside down." He snapped, "No, it's not." I said, "I believe that it is." Now four or five of us stood in front of the painting and became involved in discussing the painting, its oddness, modern art in general, proper manners upon entering someone's home, who would know better about such things, owners, renters, or visitors, minding my own biz wax, keeping one's opinions to oneself, art being subjective and the like. At length as the discussion petered, the host admitted he turned the painting upside down to fake us out and to see if anybody could possibly notice, since the whole thing is blue and scribbly, then asked how did I notice and how did I know. It depicts the blurring of ocean meeting sky in a storm and water is heavy. It's top heavy. A glance creates a tension that flips the weight to swing it around. That's how I know. And in this manner I won the admiration / aggravation / condemnation / awe of my peers, all my senior I must note, by being my usual irritating pedantic self.
7 comments:
Modern art is no different than traditional representational art in the following sense: most modern art and most pre-modern art is product. Just as there was a formula for painting Dutch flower paintings in the 1600's, so there is a formula for painting something abstract-expressiony now. Both were/are made for the market and both came/come off the easel dead. The issue is not that the sea meets sky painting you write about is abstract; the issue is whether it was turned out as product or whether it has life. When turned right-side up that is.
When art looks like the bottom of a dumpster, it doesn't matter how you hang it.
Well, yes, those rhythmic pressures and the observation that the artist signed the painting in the upper left hand corner upside down and backwards.
My Aunt used to paint sort of like this. She would take a photo and turn it upside down and paint it upside down. Then turn it over.
I think that helps the artist to see what is really there (and paint it), rather than painting a preconceived idea of what it should look like.
The issue is not that the sea meets sky painting you write about is abstract; the issue is whether it was turned out as product or whether it has life.
This part: "the issue is whether is was turned out as product or whether it has life", is also true for blogs and commenting as "art form".
Wow, I hate people who "test" others. What would he have said, if no one had noticed the painting was upside down?
Anyway, glad you passed Chip and won praise in the Condo in the sky.
As for Modern Art, its been around for almost 100 years. Maybe its not so "Modern" by now.
Favorite insult: "You're so ugly you could be a Modern art Masterpiece".
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