How To Find Peace Through Beauty

Eternity IS!

Prose and Cons — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 03:34:17 GMT

The following is from an article that I read recently, that I believe should be of interest to those Christians who are tired of the persistent efforts of scientists to disprove the existence of God:

“The eternal universe Vs the big bang. The cyclic model proposed by Dr. Paul Frampton, Louis J. Rubin Jr. distinguished professor of physics in UNC's College of Arts & Sciences, and co-author Lauris Baum, a UNC graduate student in physics, has four key parts: expansion, turnaround, contraction and bounce.

During expansion, dark energy -- the unknown force causing the universe to expand at an accelerating rate -- pushes and pushes until all matter fragments into patches so far apart that nothing can bridge the gaps. Everything from black holes to atoms disintegrates. This point, just a fraction of a second before the end of time, is the turnaround.

At the turnaround, each fragmented patch collapses and contracts individually instead of pulling back together in a reversal of the Big Bang. The patches become an infinite number of independent universes that contract and then bounce outward again, re-inflating in a manner similar to the Big Bang. One patch becomes our universe.

‘This cycle occurs an infinite number of times, thus eliminating any start or end of time,’ Frampton said. ‘There is no Big Bang.’” Article Source: Cornell University Library

Nothing existing in the heavens or on the Earth happens without a cause. And so, science proves eternity! Now we’re getting somewhere….

It's As Simple As That!

Prose and Cons — Sun, 11 Sep 2011 00:15:35 GMT

Long dormant volcanoes are now becoming active around the world, the worst earthquakes in history are occurring more frequently, with tsunamis and nuclear disasters adding to the dangers…more tornadoes, more hurricanes, more floods are happening on every continent! Add to the natural disasters an economic crisis with worldly repercussions… major flu epidemics and some long-forgotten serious illnesses making a return…countless graduates from college with hard-earned degrees in the professions working as waiters or out of work, because no one will hire them….the cost of a college education so great that many prospective intellectual and professional people will never enrich our society, because students are unable to continue their studies…revolutions on a wide-spread scale in the Mid East… the U.S.’s never-ending involvement in wars that history has proven cannot be won, while young people die in the name of a “freedom” that will never come to those they protect… a return of piracy that no one seems to be able to control, endangering commerce and people simply out to enjoy a vacation voyage… and everywhere, people are on “high alert” from terrorism, with our privacy being invaded on all sides by the controls imposed on us for “our safety”! Did I leave anything out?

That’s today’s world.

So, I go about my daily life with a few visits to the market, preparing meals, doing the dishes, keeping the house clean, working where I can, while watching my income diminish monthly from fewer student enrollments and serious cutbacks in my retirement check – because the government doesn’t have enough money to keep paying me. Yet money freely comes off the printing presses in great quantities to “fix” the economic upheaval created by a greedy few CEO’s, who made their millions on our backs and continue to earn millions while the rest of us go in the hole. The U.S. is so far in debt to other countries, including those who are our proclaimed enemies that it is not hard to imagine what will happen when those who hate us decide to pull the rug. I’m careful with my money, spend only what I have, and never go beyond the necessities when I do. Suddenly I find that I cannot pay my few basic creditors

All these things were running around inside my head bumping into each other for the past few months and arguing over who should have the right of way! …and I found myself becoming seriously depressed!

Are you tired of hearing this? So am I! Can we fix any of this? No we can’t. It’s out of our control.

Well, I have a solution: sack cloth and ashes! What in heaven’s name am I talking about? Indeed, in Heaven’s name, I’m talking about what works. Through all of man’s history, prayer and sacrifice have always brought God’s grace to mankind. We cannot do a thing without God! Yet He can do ALL. He loves his children and He wishes our welfare at all times. We create our problems: He doesn’t. This is a timely thought. This editorial was written in Lent, a time of sacrifice preceding the greatest feast in history, and the promise it represents for our very happiness. In all of Christian civilization, it has always been so: sacrifice before grace. Confront the pain with valor because the healing will come! Sacrifice with a well-intentioned heart brings miracles. And more than ever before in history we need a miracle!

There are numerous historical events to prove the value of prayer and sacrifice, among them: The salvation of Nineveh, the victory of Lepanto, King Henry V’s victory at Agincourt, all won against overwhelming odds – in the name of God….and the most sublime of all, Christ’s sacrifice through his Passion and Cross, where God the Son, in his nature as man – alone - opened the door to eternal life to every human being who ever lived or ever will, as long as time exists!

We are not above our God. If prayer and sacrifice move God’s heart to compassion, I see the solution! It’s a simple one…and changing the world is within our hands without any doubt. God moves the waters and the earth. He can still them. God allows evil men to rule. He can overcome them. God values sacrifice and answers prayers.

You finish the last sentence…

Putting the he'art back into art ...

Prose and Cons — Sat, 02 Jul 2011 19:48:34 GMT

When I view artwork in a Gallery or through a social media connection, I comment on something that I believe is good, but when I find an artist that breaks out of the mediocre to create a masterpiece, and receives few comments; then I see people falling all over themselves to congratulate an artist on a piece of bad art, I want to shout: “People, don’t you know the difference?   Get your priorities straight!”

In today’s art world, anything goes. I respect that. What I do not appreciate is the number of artists who are gaining recognition on the basis of art that is unpleasant to look at, can be copied by other artists, or shows no artistic talent at all! When such an artist explains his or her work, the words can end up as meaningless as their art. A case in point …

“My paintings are the result of a ritualistic process. This process includes a series of combative encounters between the artist, the subject and the canvas; where the mood of the artist, degree of vagueness of the subject, and chance of the materials, can create an infinite number of outcomes. […]

The movements of direction and perspective, in my paintings, act in a distortion of harmonious interactions and playful moments. The work presents a oneness of almost congested thickness, hints of depths, and constant shifting of weight. There is a musical aspect in the way things repeat, move forward, move in reverse, mutating and pushing matter as the flow pleases. The matter is usually suggested towards the natural world in the form of weathering landscapes, atmospheric energies or systems. Some present time and change within a geological melody.”       ----Jordan Cantwell’s artist statement

What did he say?

Jordan Cantwell can’t well define his art! I’m not sure that he can even paint! He is a Pollock who has only slightly become organized. Contrary to traditional rules of landscape painting, here he paints the sun into his sky, red and furry. It shines down on vague city structures that seem to be coming and going in various stages of “tipsy.” They hover over flowing pieces of blue emanating from the city like over-crowded freeways, eventually intermingling haphazardly and spreading out into a vast blue “ocean” on which sails a tiny red boat like the home-made one my kids used to play with in the bathtub. In the final observation, the sun and the boat are the only parts of this work that say anything – to each other! Within his [quote] “combative encounters between the subject, the artist, and the canvas” the artist appears to have lost the fight.     ----My critique

Even if you don’t agree, indulge me here. It’s what I believe. In the world of modernism the process of creating art often seems to be synonymous with “it doesn’t really matter.” Yet, I think “it matters.” One earns the name “artist” through exceptional skill and creativity, and by managing and improving on these over time – not by letting the paintbrush “go where it will,” almost as if it, alone, were in control of the outcome. Paintbrushes are stupid. They can’t paint without a higher intelligence. That begs a question …

On the other hand: Among the better contemporary artists today, there are two who have earned my respect because their work epitomizes the word “fine” in fine art:

Lorena Kloosterboer paints trompe l'oeil and photorealistic art with a skill and aestheticism that is equaled by few others! Click on the image to go to the artist's website.

"Clarity No. 2" Acrylic on Canvas, 5 ¾ x 12 inches

Artist's statement: "This trompe l'oeil depicts a small niche holding an array of translucent glass bottles and jars. The niche symbolizes a safe haven which holds the spirit of divinity. Glass objects, due to their transparency, represent an inner plane. They reflect purity, spiritual perfection, and knowledge. The niche and the jars embrace all the essential traits we seek in life."

Keiko Tanabe is a master watercolorist who gives new meaning to mastering watercolor. Her work is magnificent, and I wish for all the world that I could render a watercolor painting with as much beauty and sensitivity as she does. Click on the image to go to the artist's website.

“Star of India, San Diego I” Watercolor on Paper, 11 1/2 x 8.25 inches

These are only a couple of artists who give me hope that great art is not dead. Go find a few of your own and when you do, tell them “thank you.” They are putting life back into the arts!

Please note: This is an art critique, not a personal criticism.

Cloned art is dead art

Prose and Cons — Fri, 01 Jul 2011 19:33:48 GMT

One cannot copy great art! Even if you manage to reproduce it in every detail, the spirit of the artist will be lost!

L.Bowser

Speech-less

Prose and Cons — Fri, 24 Jun 2011 15:41:55 GMT

In our conversation with others, sometimes words get in the way of thoughts; and thoughts get in the way of truth. A quiet moment between friends is often the greatest communication!

Join me on Facebook!

Prose and Cons — Tue, 24 May 2011 16:18:58 GMT

If you are on Facebook, join me on my art page. Your comments are always welcome!

Fine Art Studio on Facebook

Who Cares Anyway! I do!

Prose and Cons — Fri, 06 May 2011 23:44:00 GMT

On my way to class yesterday while waiting at a stop light, I watched a man on the corner “running in place” lifting his knees all the way up to his chest and bobbing up and down like a cork in water. But there wasn’t any water. I knew that he was warming his leg muscles while stopped for the same light. He was just another health enthusiast out for a jog. I couldn’t help thinking, however, that if I had seen him a few years before jogging had become a common sight on our city streets, I would have thought him crazy. From the back he really looked comical! He, of course, was oblivious to everything around him and probably couldn’t care less that he was somewhat of a public spectacle - nor did anyone else apparently.

Have we all become so uninhibited that the refreshing words “anything goes” has become “who cares!” My sense of aesthetics fights continually with my sense of laissez faire as I walk about the streets of my neighborhood. On the one hand, I think it’s great that we have finally arrived at a time in history where people are not instantly criticized for looking, acting, or being different. On the other hand, I’ve realized that beauty and decorum are no longer appreciated as they were before. It’s cool to be different, even if “different” is weird – or downright ugly!

I hold to the belief that the pursuit of excellence is the key to success and to peace of mind. I don’t criticize those who like to be different by pushing the envelope “over the edge” in their dress or behavior, but I have to ask myself if this way of thinking does not actually represent something disturbing about our society.

Excellence in all areas of life, from the mundane to the profound, is apparently no longer worth pursuing. Those proven spirit- and character-builders, the arts and sports, are being eliminated in our schools. Academics are being dumbed down so that more students can “succeed” in their studies, and our public servants can commit heinous acts and still get re-elected. In matters of art, what I see consistently appreciated by more and more galleries is artwork that displays ugly colors and infantile drawings in garish compositions that break all the rules of aesthetics in the name of “free expression.”

This new freedom of expression is actually a protestation of the time-honored and trusted norms that have previously produced some of the greatest artists, musicians and composers – not to mention statesmen - that have ever lived. Why try for excellence after all, when mediocrity is applauded. When a group of people resist this new face of society, they are immediately pegged as “fanatics.” When in truth, it’s the other way around!

I don’t mind someone looking silly when they are out jogging, but when I see no one else looking his way in amusement, a mental image comes to me of thousands of people all over the world dropping whatever they are doing and bobbing in their places like corks in a rushing river - and I wonder where they are going….

In My Opinion ...

Prose and Cons — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 22:10:00 GMT

The Shasta College Art Gallery in Redding,California is one of the best galleries in town, where student art shows vie with exhibits by professional artists, and both are top notch. Yet I have too often been disappointed by the shows of the art instructors. Here is my review of one of these exhibits...

Gallery Review: Shasta College Annual Faculty Art Show

Alice Walker said: “If art doesn’t make us better, then what on earth is it for!” As I jot down my first impressions of this exhibit, I find myself asking this question of most of the works shown: “What is it for?” I make a preliminary tour and manage to come up with a few words to describe my reactions: why?...what?...blah!...boring!...cute!...dead!...and ouch!

WHY would Susan Schimke go to all the trouble of rendering lovely charcoal portraits of her family, then cover them over with encaustic so that you can’t see them? WHAT is Richard Wilson trying to say? Drew Burgess’ huge acrylic paintings of boards and bricks on pastel confetti backgrounds are BLAH! Lorelle Lindquist’s black and white photos are BORING. Shari Borkin’s happy chicken wearing two slices of bread in the guise of a sandwich is Sesame Street CUTE. Drew Burgess’s’ dried up, discolored lemons in a box are DEAD! And then there’s Shari Borkin’s “Paint Lickers” – OUCH! When I look at it, it hurts.

My first impression duly noted, I retrace my steps and spend some quality time with each work of art. Susan Schimke’s charcoal “Portraits of the Schimke Family” begin to take shape behind their beeswax coverings. They peer ethereally out from some inaccessible plane of the universe, waiting to be released. The encaustic is beautiful. The art work beneath is yet to be discovered. I try to write an intelligent appraisal, but the only word that come to mind is – “nothing”. The dominant work in this part of the gallery is a larger-then-life acrylic painting on canvas by Drew Burgess - “Blackberry Hollow”: A small brick wall with a hinged board appendage and a “lost” plank of wood in the foreground float on a huge color-speckled pastel blue background that reminds me of the squares of craft paper you buy at Michael’s for… I don’t know what it’s for, but it doesn’t look like quality art media to me. The only thing that gives life to the painting is a paper-thin halo of intense color barely peeking out from the sides of the brick structure, as if trying to say “Here we are! Let us out!”. Both of Mr. Burgess’ large acrylic paintings, “Blackberry Hollow” and “Lost and Found” are in the same genre: small pieces of wood or brick structures in limbo on pastel confetti backgrounds. Are you pulling my leg, Mr. Burgess? I move on.

John Harper’s printmaking series of “Burntscapes”, waving brown and ochre grasses and cloud forms burned into paper, are simple and refreshing after the pastel confetti experience. They briefly recall childhood memories of the California hills, covered in golden grasses disappearing softly into endless clouds. Four works – they all look pretty much the same. I have read them better than any of the other works in the exhibit: they are very obvious. Yet, that nagging word, “nothing”, keeps coming back to my mind. These are only memories. Once seen, they no longer have anything to say. If they were on my wall at home, I might not even see them.

I see several acrylic works on canvas that I immediately recognize as Richard Wilson’s: squares on rectangles. The artist disputes my description, but to the “naked” eye, let’s not kid each other: that’s what they are. To be fair I spend some time with these to try to fathom what the artist is trying to say. After all, many uninformed art lovers, such as I, might say: “Anyone can make squares on rectangles.” Try as I may, I draw a blank. I am obliged to refer to what Mr. Wilson, himself, has told us about his art. And so I know that the simplified, symbolic portrayal of an object, building, or bit of nature is what inspires him. He seems fond of translating them all into rectangular forms. His stated “Celtic influence” is taken to extremes. The compositions are at least playful – something like playing with a child’s blocks and putting them in different places. Mr. Wilson defines his art as “spiritual”. I cannot agree: my conception of “spiritual” is beyond man’s physical environment. And squares seem to me to be the antithesis of the spiritual – our physical world represented in one, solid, uninteresting, never changing form – rectangular. The artist plays a bit with his geometry, subtly shaving the sides unevenly, or placing them out of line by a fraction of a centimeter. The colors are grayed, the rendering immaculate – still, squares on rectangles any way you look at them. I feel the need to pick a favorite, with that greater need – to find “ something” in these works still nagging at my conscience. What I really want to do is move on and forget the forgettable. But I persevere: “Routang” wins! Good! Now I have done justice to the artist. I come to the conclusion, however, that had I not had some previous insights from the artist himself, I would have seen only those squares on rectangles! I still can’t differentiate the building from the flower. Why doesn’t Richard Wilson speak to the viewer? There is no communication from the art itself. And communication, in my opinion, is the sole reason for making art. I feel left out. Would I purchase one of Mr. Wilson’s works to decorate my home? NO. I could copy them just as easily. That disturbs me.

Fighting off a growing concern about where I fit as an artist in today’s art world, I move down the hall to a great splash of color that explodes in bright blue pieces all over the wall! This impressive piece of art by Shari Borkin is called “Paint Lickers.” It is a multi-colored, mural-size work, dominated by thick strokes of acrylic: purple, red, orange, green, blue and purple again that march across the central piece, on which are glued bright blue “melted” glass bottles which climb out of the painting onto the wall toward a dirty artist’s palette high above, like fat blue footprints trying to escape from the work. A good painting to escape from. Someone once said “who said art must be beautiful!” I did. If it is not thought-provoking, inspiring, or beautiful to look at, I’m not interested. I march to a higher ideal. This work is the booby prize of the exhibit. It gets right in my face and literally screams UGLY! I don’t like it and I can’t avoid it.

Turning my back on the blue footprints, I am delighted to find a work that strikes me as beautiful. Just in the nick of time. I was getting discouraged. there on the wall is a lovely “piece of light” – a simple natural wood frame with a glass front enclosing rippling waves of opaque plastic, intertwined at intervals by a thin, supple piece of wood of the same color as the frame. The light falling on this piece makes it appear as if lighted from within. Nancy Lynn Toolan’s “Billow” is simple, light , and full of life. I can’t take my eyes off of it. It lifts my spirits. What is the difference between this simply constructed multimedia piece and the simple squares of Richard Wilson? why does one hold my interest indefinitely, while the others close all the doors to me? I can only venture an answer. Light is sublime. It represents something beyond the material, it draws me higher. It is what I seek to render in my own art, physically or symbolically, and what I seek to attain in my spiritual life. “Billow” is my favorite of the show. It is a light in the darkness. Ms. Toolan’s other work, “Ebb”, is less interesting. Its opacity is too dense. It doesn’t give forth light. It pulls me deeper as I try to discover what it has to say, but it doesn’t let me in.

Encouraged by “Billow’s” fairy presence, I look around for something else to like. I am not disappointed. Bob McGill’s’ “Encounter”, a large black and white acrylic abstract, has my attention. This piece, although containing for the most part, shades of black and gray, has intervals of soft white breaking through, like sunlight coming through a hole in a wall, or rays of light finding their way through a dark cloud. It is interesting. It moves. It reminds me of a personal favorite observation of mine: “Light always expels the darkness, but darkness can never extinguish light.” It is a fact of physics. Of such is hope. There is a lot to think about in this painting.

There is also a lot to think about in his other painting, “Gate,” but that one disturbs me. The colors he chooses in this acrylic work, and their position in the painting make me uncomfortable. Did the artist deliberately break the “rules” of composition and color? The intense reds that dominate the piece are not unpleasant, but there is too much of it. It is too powerful for me. The yellow intrusions of color are in the "wrong places", and make me uneasy. If “good” art provokes feelings, this piece certainly lives up to the reputation, giving it credibility, but I don’t want to remain in its presence.

Almost at the end of my gallery tour now, I find the “pièce de resistance.” My resistance! Drew Burgess has put together a strange multimedia piece that I cannot find it in my heart to appreciate. In “Daedaius Meets the Angels”, there is no higher call to angels, only an elongated wooden box, the upper outer face of which consists of a rectangular piece of wood painted in the now-familiar insipid flecks of color, to which is attached a door. The bottom part of the box is a glass-enclosed collection of rotten leather-brown lemons! What would greatly improve this work would be to make the door long enough to embark both the top and the bottom of the work – and to close it!

There is more… a couple of “cute” works: a three-dimensional “Chicken Sandwich” by Shari Borkin that looks too friendly to eat and an “Alice in Wonderland” wood and glass composition called “Pilgrim”, by Drew Burgess, that has movable doors and windows and shutters covered with black and white newspaper articles. There are a couple of extremely boring “shoe” photos by Lorelle Lindquist, more undiscovered wax works by Susan Schimke, and Shari Borkin’s “Have You Had Your Garlic Today?”, which (I have to say it) is not even as good as my 7-year-old granddaughter’s art. That word, “nothing” comes to mind. Yeah, “nothing on the wall” would look better!

The Shasta College Art Gallery is a small, but very nice gallery. It is open and light, the art is professionally displayed and lighted, the shows are hung with taste and there is always sufficient information on the artists and their views, not to mention the added advantage of the presence, in this show at least, of the artists themselves. One can always look them up if more information is needed. There are benches where one can sit and consider the exhibited works or take notes. Students come and go from their classes, but they are never noisy. They are friendly parts of the gallery.

Whether I appreciate the artists here exhibited or not, this is one of my favorite galleries in Redding. The shows – one way or another - are always interesting or educational. About this faculty show, I wish I could be more positive. I’m struck by the lack of originality, and disappointed overall with the quality of the art. I consider that a work of art lacks originality, although it may be different from what anyone else is doing, when anyone could copy it. These artists/instructors invariably inspire much better art in their students than what I see here from their own hands. That is to their credit. As for their art….Richard Wilson stated that “great art is an artistic medium that most people misunderstand” unless they study. He ventures further to say that not everyone can “belong”. If that is so, then I do not belong! I do not want to belong to this contemporary world of art. I make my judgments as one who seeks in all things a higher good, an Absolute, without which I believe nothing – art included – is worth the effort. As I look at these works of art, the questions “ What is it for?” is ever-present. Is it only playful? That’s OK. Is it a deep expression of each artist’s intimate self? Fair enough. Could it be that the artists are only pulling my leg? Or is it a clear expression of the time in which we live? In my opinion it is the latter. The world we live in has lost touch with its traditions and its direction. There is no depth. We are headed for disaster, and I would like to see art that is part of the cure for, not the symptoms of, society. I agree that art is a fascinating source of history and reflection of current events, but today’s art misses the point completely, the point being that this world is not our “real” place. I value more art that seeks a higher spirit and communicates its findings to others. This is also an elitist world that “not everyone understands”, but I generously hold that no one should be excluded. It is a better place.

Addendum: I respect any artists’ freedom to express himself as he believes and I’m excited to live in a time when this freedom is afforded more than at any other time in the past. In art, as in life, I say "let the chaff grow along with the wheat." A time will come for reckoning. Yet, I’m personally dismayed by the current direction of the world and the arts which reflect it. Lest we find ourselves too deeply mired in the mud, no longer able to see the final goal, let’s keep the light in our lives and in our art – for the peaceful inspiration of all who see it.

Chine Collee, an exquisite detail

Prose and Cons — Tue, 12 Apr 2011 05:19:00 GMT

Chine collee on a monoprint. The art paper is BFK. The art is painted on a plexiglass plate with oil-based printing inks. When printed, the plate leaves an embossed "frame" around the edge of the artwork.

The following are two images of chine collee, used for the presentation of fine art from other media.

"The Mailbox," watercolor, is chine colleed onto another sheet of fine art paper for presentation. The artwork is glued to the larger sheet, a piece of matboard cut to the size of the desired indentation is placed on the printing press first, the artwork with its backing sheet is centered upside down on the matboard, and the whole is run through the press. When it comes out, the matboard is discarded and the artwork is chine colleed, with an embossed edge, ready for framing. If you don't have a press, you can do this with your fingers, carefully pressing along the edge of the matboard to make the indentation.

A Prayer for Japan . . .

Prose and Cons — Mon, 14 Mar 2011 02:21:00 GMT

"There is no bad that good does not come from."
A film, a music, a prayer, from the aftermath of WWII
- and our "enemies" became our friends!
Japanese composer, Akira Ifukube's prayer is again timely.
But this time, we pray together!

Click on the image ...

Read about my experiment with color on the"Screaming Penny."

Prose and Cons — Sun, 13 Mar 2011 14:38:00 GMT

CLICK ON THE IMAGE

A "love" story

Prose and Cons — Sat, 12 Mar 2011 03:03:00 GMT

Matter and energy. A rock or the wind. Which one does more? Matter is inanimate. Energy is a moving, changing, “thing.” Without energy there is no life. Without spirit, our bodies cannot exist. Without bodies, our spirit does exist. It “IS.” Is that what God meant when he created us in His Image? He is “I AM,” by His own definition,

I’m going to jump off a ledge here and say that this scientifically proven “energy,” the moving life force, is our theologically revealed soul. If I’m right, I’ll land on a soft pillow, none the worse for the statement. If I’m wrong, I’ll die and disappear forever. But wait! - nothing disappears in nature: It only changes.

So, when I die, does the real “I” (that loving, feeling person) go on forever? Or does it change into….? If it doesn’t disappear, unbelievers, what does it become? If it just joins the physical give-and-take of matter and energy in the Universe, at random, to what purpose? If, indeed, there is a purpose for the soul, the energy that never dies, what harm can it possibly do to consider that there is a Heaven where forms determined by God alone will be the matter-energy marriage par excellence. Anyone who observes life knows that there is order in nature. Cause and effect reigns. It would be foolish to conclude that there is no purpose to anything, when we see purpose all around us – and science continues daily to reveal to us the purpose of the microscopic and macroscopic universe in which we live.

To believe that there is a Creator God, who made us for a purpose, need not be a stretch of imagination – especially if one knows the story of creation, man’s downfall, and subsequent salvation by the Christ, the final example of a loving God’s ultimate purpose for us.

OK, so you want proof. If God is “a god,” we cannot prove Him! By the very nature of a “god,” He is above and beyond us - but not beyond our comprehension. Why must we incessantly prove everything! Can you scientifically prove a person’s love for you? You know it. You feel it. You see the expression of it, but how can anything so sublime as a loving friendship be “proven” by science! It is, in effect, an expression of spirit. We do not embrace someone through instinct. We embrace because love, that intangible presence, moves our thoughts to move our bodies to the embrace. And we do not separate from the embrace like automatons. Rather we ‘feel’ the love and are the better for it.

What is this word “feel?” Certainly we feel with our hands and that can be an exquisite experience. But to feel with the heart, is far more exquisite. Once we have felt a lovely silk scarf and enjoyed the sensation, then laid the scarf down, it’s over. Gone! But to feel love… that lasts forever – even when the person who embraced us no longer loves us. Then we “feel” the loss deeply. Our bodies do not feel the loss: our heart does. Not a sharp pain as in a heart-attack, but an indescribably pain of the (dare I say it!) soul.

What’s the point of all of this? I have, in my life, known my share of joy and sorrow, and they have deepened my soul to the point of love overflowing. I can’t keep this to myself! It’s an overflowing of “energy” that I wish to share. And where I share it most is in my art. I do not write or paint to become rich and famous. I do so to express the things life has given me that I wish to share with others. My art may not be the greatest in existence, but if it does not contain the greatest love possible, it is of no avail. It may not portray genius brushstrokes and magnificent composition, but it will contain the love of life, the love of art. You’re not an artist? But you have a family to raise, you like to cook, you have a humble job that you do well, or you are in charge of an entire company, you are suffering a physical or emotional challenge, you are a loyal friend….the list goes on forever. Whatever you do, it will be great if done with love. Nothing truly good in life is accomplished without love! Where does love come from? Well...certainly not from a rock. I guess this is where I say ...amen!

Where peace meets beauty...beyond the secular!

Prose and Cons — Mon, 28 Feb 2011 21:28:00 GMT

Back when pharmacies had soda fountains and comic corners and were a cool place to hang out…

Scary movies were dark, ominous works of art, but didn’t ruin your sleep, fun was chips of ice from the ice man in summer and globs of clean tar to chew from the street pavers, love songs were double entendre, but we were innocent enough to “fall in love” with the obvious, comedians were side-splitting funny – and clean!, Norman Rockwell's nearly "corny" but skillful depictions of American life touched us all.

…and life was more peaceful.

But then song writers, cinematographers and comedians just came out with it - not enough people were getting their subliminal message. Popular music can now get down and dirty, movies blow people up and throw guts and gore into your face in real time, pharmacies are “all business,” and the soda fountain, where kids could order a chocolate coke and hang out with their friends for hours reading comic books with “real stories,” have bit the dust! Once the bottle was unstopped, art’s new expression just kept pouring out more viperous with each turn of the calendar. Human nature is such that we are never satisfied with the status quo where emotions are concerned. We seek ever and ever more exciting experiences to keep the “high” going. The artists of the time know it! – and make plenty of money from it – literally at our expense. I believe there is a greater “high” that can be achieved through the arts that withstand the test of time. They touch us more profoundly, and their influence instills a well-being unrivaled by the worldly. We “need” great art!

The arts are essential to a healthy society. When they are not inspired by lofty ideals, they can drag us down instead of lift us up. We need a return to the spirit of beauty in the arts and good, clean fun in our lives. When is the last time you laughed spontaneously in sheer joy at something unexpected that hit your funny bone? Have you ever been at a loss for words after listening to a great piece of classical music that transports you beyond the moment? …or to a song that moves you to tears of compassion? …or seen a work of art that leaves you in awe from the realization that no one else in the world could ever create its equal?

These are things of beauty, and they’re still there if we look for them. Beauty is not in the eyes of the beholder: it is an Absolute accessible to everyone! If you have experienced what I’m talking about, welcome to my world! …and don’t tell me that beauty does not inspire peace. I’ve been there!

When is a signature not a signature....or is it?

Prose and Cons — Sat, 26 Feb 2011 05:11:00 GMT

Sound confusing? I'm talking about signatures that have nothing to do with signing artwork. It’s all about books! When I was in France, I worked for a while au pair in a girl’s boarding school. Besides my reception duties, I had the tedious, but innovative job of opening new books that arrived periodically for the library. This American girl, an avid reader, who loved the feel of an elegantly bound hard cover book, had never given a thought to how books were made, so what was my surprise to find these new books with every other page, or every four pages, a fold instead of an edge. While waiting for phone calls, I would whittle down a stack of newly-arrived books, carefully slicing open each fold with a knife, until the books were page-turning-worthy and ready to read. The folded pages, I learned, were called “signatures.”

A single page folded in half gives the printer two printed pages on one sheet of paper, or folded in half twice, four smaller pages; folded in half again, eight pages; and so on up to as many as 32 pages from one sheet of paper. These are the signatures from which books are printed. The printer uses large sheets of paper and trims the edge-folds off all at once with a machine. That makes for a “neat” book, but I like to think that the dozens of books whose pages I trimmed by hand, one by one, in a boarding school in Paris, left my mark in the world in a rather unique way. How many students through the years will have enjoyed some great reading that they discovered because I opened the pages for them! Some years later, I learned how to make home-made books for gifts, using the same folding process, and sewing the signatures together at the spine with carpet thread, then pasting them into hand-made covers. I taught some of my language students how to do this, and I loved seeing their delight at learning how to make books just like the printer. OK, now round up some "signatures," and lets see some cool books from you.

To sew the signatures of my hand-made books together, I used long-stitch binding. For some cool reading on the subject , check out this Wikipedia link: long-stitch book-binding

Please visit my other blog!

Prose and Cons — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 18:42:00 GMT

Sail on over to my other blog for a more personal look at my art and artistic ruminations. Click on the image to set sail...

Is it a print...or a print?

Prose and Cons — Thu, 20 Jan 2011 22:16:00 GMT

Fine art reproductions, or giclees, are commonly referred to as prints, yet even though the reproduction process involves some kind of printing process, the "product" has nothing in common with fine art prints, which are a time-honored and intricate art form that requires a hand- or printing press.

Printmaking is one of the oldest fine art forms known to man. Essentially, any object or surface can be inked and transferred to another surface through pressure, creating a print. Remember the cut potato stamps we used to make as kids? That’s a print.

As a fine art, printmaking traces its history to the Orient, and is responsible for some of the most exquisite, lasting works of art in existence. Fine art prints have a unique, timeless beauty, a life of their own, that comes as much from the medium as from the subjects of the works themselves. Although the image is worked differently in each process, the print is usually formed in the same way, by placing an inked image plate face up on a press, covering it with a paper and running them together through a printing press, transferring (printing) the image to the paper. The technique that precedes the printing press is still in use today in the orient and involves applying pressure by hand, using special tools or stones. This is an over-simplified explanation of the art of printmaking, which involves a great deal of skill on the part of the artist in preparing and inking the plate (the actual “work”) for printing. The plate is of different materials depending on the technique being used. Special, high-quality printmaking papers are normally used for the printed artwork.

An embossing is made by building surface textures on a plate and printing the “image”, without ink, leaving only the impression of the image on the paper.

A collograph is an embossing that has been inked before printing.

Giclee is a common term for fine art digital prints of paintings and photographs made from an inkjet printer, resulting in reproductions of very high quality Many speak of ‘prints’ of an artwork, when what they are referring to is giclees. When speaking of prints, in reality, one should be referring to works of printmaking, which is a time-honored art form that should not be confused with reproductions.

Chine collee (French for ‘glued a la Chinese’) means originally a lithograph printed on a paper that has been collaged to a second sheet of paper. The technique is often used to attach an original work to another, larger piece of quality paper, by gluing the back of the original to the larger sheet and passing the two upside down through a printing press on a sized piece of mat board. The art is attached firmly and when the mat board is removed, it leaves an embossed ‘frame’ around the original. It is a presentation technique that adds a touch of sophistication to a work, especially of small proportions.

Some common printmaking techniques are: etchings, monoprints and monotypes, embossings, collographs, wood cuts, linotypes, and rubbings. I will present the tools and materials for each of these and a few finished works, with a brief explanation of each process. I will demonstrate a monotype and a way to chine collee a work using materials one has on hand in the home, for those who do not have access to a printing press. Come back soon...

Yoshiko Shimano, gallery show review

Prose and Cons — Tue, 28 Dec 2010 18:51:00 GMT

Show Title: “Unity Brings Peace”, a combination of printmaking techniques:woodcut, linocut, collograph and silkscreen - and sumi ink

My first reaction was: Oh no, another exhibit of huge abstracts with hardly anything on them. Wrong! As I went through the gallery and looked at each piece, one by one, I found myself becoming intrigued by Mr Yoshiko's style and the subtleties of his designs and use of color and media. I was pulled into his works, and I began to see more and more content, as well as (the most beautiful aspect in my opinion) more and more mystery. It seemed as if he were giving us just enough information to 'hook us', and then letting us discover the rest of his message on our own. The first thing that becomes apparent in viewing his work is the richness of the textures, created both by Mr Shimano's weaving of soft colors and the media itself. It was all that I could do to keep my fingers off of these works, as the sign instructed! As a printmaker at heart, I wanted to poke them, run my fingers over them and try to determine how the artist made them (No, I didn't..)

A delicate landscape of leaves in soft colors is the first thing you see in “Wa Issho” (woodcut/linocut/silkscreen), his largest work just to the left of the entrance. Then as you're looking at it, bits of nature slowly start to emerge from around the leaves – parts of flowers and more leaves, a few well-placed bright strokes of color: apple green, pink and sky blue, not in contrast, but in complement to the muted blues, greens and rose of the central pattern of leaves. A very delicate and sophisticated work of art in my opinion. This one made me think of Japan's parks surrounded by flowering cherry blossoms, with new buds bursting forth in all the corners of nature, waiting to be discovered. The texture is beautiful.

The title piece of the show, “Unity Brings Peace”, (woodcut/collograph), seems to embody the main subject of the show: studies of flowers. Although these appear to be dahlias, the artist uses hydrangeas throughout most of the other works, and in the studies. I did not like “Unity Brings Peace” or “Patriotism” as much as the other works, although the title of the first one seems to indicate that it is the inspiration for the show.

My favorite work in the show is “Eternal Home.” Lovely! The texture is irresistible – formed both by the soft blend of colors and the media itself. Hydrangeas seem to be emerging from this piece in different stages, some full, others partial, others nearly unseen, except for a couple of tiny petals – almost as if they were on different levels or planes of existence. Again the air of mystery: where are these flowers?...where are they coming from?..or where are they going? They are beautiful. I found myself wanting to reach out and gather them up into a bouquet before they disappeared, if indeed that is what was happening.

The two “Menani Street” works, where the artist uses combinations of woodcut, collograph, silkscreen, and sumi ink, show the same beautiful blend of colors and textures typical of all of the works here. The only work that I disliked was: “Three of Us”. This one disturbs me. I don't believe this work embodies the same spirit as the rest of the show, which, true to its title, left me with a feeling of peace. Curiously, my final reaction to these works of art was that the apparently “unfinished” qualities of the subjects, left me not with questions – but answers!

What's in a Signature?

Prose and Cons — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 23:38:00 GMT

A note about signing artwork...

I often avoid putting my name on a work of art. If there is a place to sign the work that is "perfect" for the work itself, I go for it. If I feel that my signature will distract from the composition, I don't sign the artwork. Instead, I sign just below the corner of the painting on the inner mat, in the space between that and the second mat. This is common practice in printmaking and I do this occasionally on a watercolor work that has no "good" place to sign. In all cases, I put my signature, the date and title of a work on the back of the work itself.

Back to the front: I have tried signing with first initial/last name and full name, but decided to purposely sign only my first name from now on, with the wonderful thought that my first name will some day be recognized even beyond other artists with the same name. When people hear the name "Lorena" my artwork and writing will come first to mind. I like this thought - even if it never happens - it's a good one.

I was told by an artist from whom I took a class once that I shouldn't sign on the diagonal. The reason: that would distract from my painting. However, when I do sign a work - usually in another media, but sometimes in a watercolor, I prefer the diagonal signature. I succumbed to this man's guidance for a time and signed many works on the horizontal, but it looks weak and commonplace. I don't like it. To make my point, I have made a graphite rendering of my glasses in a case marked with the maker's name: "Signature". I could not resist the temptation to write my name with a fourish on the diagonal, just below and to the right of the image. I like it! From now on, my signature is likely to appear anywhere on an artwork, in any position, but never on the horizontal! I am, after all, in charge, am I not?
Here is an interesting bit of information from Stephen Pugsley, etcher/printmaker, published in the Artist's Magazine: Why artists use pencil in signing original prints: "They are signed in pencil because graphite can't be printed! A signature in ink might just be a part of the printed image, but a graphite signature authenticates that it was added by hand."

We live and learn! If you have an opinion to share about your 'signature' experiences, I welcome your comments.

Exhibit Critique: Michael Bishop, sculptor

Prose and Cons — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 23:07:00 GMT

Michael Bishop exhibit, Shasta College Art Gallery, Redding, CA, 2005

My first reaction: Amusing. I like it! The metals with their varying patinas are beautiful in themselves.

But after viewing the entire exhibit, I was less amused. "One and Three", cast iron, aluminum and fabricated steel with electronic components, did strike me as amusing, but my impressions of the remainder of the works ranged from "hmmm" to "morbid". There is nothing "light" about this show, either in materials or content. It speaks of heavy, underworld themes to me, and the heavy cast iron that is so much a part of the works, give a sense of the eternal to them.

I found the repeated heads that cover the walls and make up portions of the works to be morbid, like visions of the damned. The faces portray souls that are lost, in agony, or vacant like zombies. The faces that cover the floor under "Plain Truth", all in neat little rows, all in the same direction, except one, make me wonder what truth is represented - perhaps that we are nothing, encased in the earth, looking perpetually upward for help? There's at least some encouragement.

The free-standing works are the most interesting to me: the contrast in materials and loose compositions are not unpleasant to look at, though, personally, I find this kind of work to be not art, but only a collection of stuff, put together with some imagination. I'm not uneducated concerning the ways of modern art, but do not agree that "everything is art".

Overall, the exhibit reminds me of a newly opened ancient tomb, with people important to the deceased in life, portrayed over the entire space of the walls, and objects in disarray through the settling of the earth over time. For that reason, I find that Bishop's work is most similar to - perhaps inspired by - Egyptian art. The sense of timelessness, the references to a calendar, the heads which stand through eternity to harbor the receptive "Ra", the permanence and darkness of the materials, the boat and oars to carry the soul forever through the afterlife...everything speaks of the Egyptian tomb, but the materials are cold and dark, and the emotions portrayed are of despair: together, they represent an unhappy after world - souls lost forever. Only the horse is amused! If the Egyptian period is what inspired the artist, then he has done it very cleverly, but I'm hoping that the artist sees himself represented by the horse, high on a wall, who stands out as the one piece of light, overseeing all with amusement - and not by the rest of his work.