Friday, July 24, 2009

Love and Loathing....

I have no desire to rip on any artist that is producing...but I was in a personal conundrum as I viewed these works at the Rocket Bakery on Main. I rarely say "well a kid could do that"; simply because I know how hard it usually is to actually do THAT...whatever "THAT" is. And in fact, most people probably could "DO THAT" but what separates them from real artists...is that the artist "DID DO THAT"...and where most people just sit on their excuses and distractions and never really do anything. But these pieces almost made me angry....on one level...and made me hopeful on another...sometimes the trick is just getting out there and showing, doing and engaging the world of art in order to make doors open. Some people just have more guts...they expose themselves to the process and are not willing to allow the fear that is inherent to the process...stop them. I think its the artists that do not have chronic phobias that get known in life...and the ones that do have those hang-ups...get the notoriety after death. How we are wired can impact the eventual publicness of our work on so many levels. I admire this artist's accomplishments...even though I can't stand the work. So artist, whoever you are; don't hate me if I pick at it...at least you are showing in a public space...my pieces are still hiding in the garage or on a fridge somewhere.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

I think that persons set should be called "the narcissism of modern man"
Yes, Eric this makes a case for bravado (I also have a feeling that a healthy understanding of networking also doesn't hurt)

*Cole

Mel said...

I *totally* understand where you're coming from, Pastor Eric. There's this piece of "art" at City Hall, right above the entrance to the Council Chambers, that I used to think looked like a pile of junk from the junk yard. Then one day Linnea came with me to work for "Bring your child to work day" and when she saw it, she asked "What is that?" to which I replied, "I have no idea." Then she looked at it for a few minutes, tilted her head to one side, and said, "Oh, I know what it is! It's a forest!" And ever since then, that's exactly what I've seen every time I've looked at it. Maybe you could take an artistically-inclined child with you to the Rocket Bakery next time, and have them give you their interpretation of it...? :)

BTW, if you really want to have your art recognized, as I hope you will and think you should, you might want to contact Karen Mobley with the City of Spokane. She's the Arts Department Director, and is in charge of the monthly displays in the Chase Gallery. I'm looking forward to seeing your art there someday. You can find her on Facebook. :)

God bless,
Mel

hp3 said...

You're hanging in our living room :)