Family

The intro page on my website reads: "Her work centers around loving relationships and the beauty in simple moments." Sometimes I think I will make a departure from that theme, but it has yet to happen. Planned or not, it sums up the subject matter that appeals to me.

I finished "Family at Fence" which I posted the under-sketch to yesterday. I am now working on "Penguin Family." Here are those two pieces:




I tend to work in series/themes, and while I am not aiming for a family theme, it really must represent "loving relationships and the beauty in simple moments." My past animal paintings, or "The Nurturing" series of 3 plus the "M is for Manatee" all depict families. The question comes to my mind, "what is NOT family?" My good friends are like family to me. In loving relationships, dating or the like, it's almost like people are as family even if for a short time. I don't know a lot of my blood-family very well, which makes them more distant than many of my friends.

At the risk of sounding cliché or trite, I would go as far as to say that we are ALL family... just some of us are closer than others. Recently I heard that the Bush family was traced back to the BinLaden family, with common blood-lines. I was dumbfounded for a moment before co-workers explained to me how if you go back several generations, you can link almost anyone together. We've only been around so long, right? I guess it makes sense.

Here's to one, big, happy earth-family! Peace, my brothers and sisters.

Art for who's sake?

Today in the art department at my day job, a talented graphic designer told us that in his class the other night, he told his students that fine art has no value. It is worthless. It does nothing for the world beyond providing an aesthetic. Graphic Design is what can move change, affect anyone, make anyone money, do anything.

Rumbles of protest broke out and we started naming artists who's art has messages or tells stories, and besides, wasn't it enough to bring someone pleasure, what about psychological value? Why buy anything decorative if it didn't add value to one's life?

"Almost no one creates art for art's sake any more" he added. This turned things to "commercial art, graphic design, fine art," and what those terms meant. Our Creative Director was of the opinion that an artist who paints to sell is a commercial artist. The aforementioned designer said that Thomas Kincade had fallen into that. Me, I believe that if an artist is selling their work, they are a "professional" artist because it becomes their profession, and that if the art is created to sell something else, then it is "commercial" art.

Names were thrown around from Michaelangelo to some current local artists and many in between. Storytellers, salespeople, artists, advertisers, designers... is any of it less art? I do agree that graphic design currently has more power to deliver a message than fine art, mostly because of the very nature of it... it is carried to the masses by the all-mighty media. Fine art is carried to a living room.

I brought up the gators, since I had felt like they were a bit of a "sell-out" before. They're not, but admittedly I chose the colors to appeal to a specific audience. I did not choose the colors for me. Is that what art for art's sake is? For the artist? Hmmm... that seems rather self-serving. Art is art is art. Bad art is art. Commercial art is art. Movies are art. It's all expression, and it all speaks to someone. So it's communication – which though it is a rather commercial word – means it's people coming closer together.



I'm painting "Family at Fence" tonight (under-drawing above). It's not part of a series, it's not in colors that will appeal to a particular market. I'm painting it as a tribute to families, an ode to togetherness, a portrait of love. Art for art's sake, for my sake, for the world's sake.