Off Book is a web only series from PBS. Each video is under 10 minutes and discusses different aspects of modern art, from online culture to light painting to typography. My favorite so far features the street artist Swoon whose work I really love:
Friday, September 30, 2011
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Video: Highpoint Editions - Decade One
The Highpoint Center for Printmaking currently has an exhibit on display at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts. Here's a sweet little video about Highpoint and the exhibition:
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
Another blog!
I'm going to do a little self promotion here and toot my own horn. I've tried to keep Art Helpline focused on art (duh) which makes up a pretty big majority of my passions. Mainly what I post here are resources I find that I think would be beneficial for you in teaching your kids about art. When I tag posts as "real life" it's in relation to my doing art or struggling/triumphing/whatever with being a creative, art-making person. However, I do have a life and actually am interested in other subjects as well. So, this week I started a more personal blog over at elisabethpreble.blogspot.com. I won't be trying to teach anybody anything or posting links from around the Internet (if I do, it'll just be stuff that I find interesting), it's just a place for me to share about my life for any interested readers. So, if you want to tune into my stream of consciousness, go ahead and take a look. If you're just here for the art stuff, that's fine too.
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Book: Art Attack
Another book has been added to my must-own list: Art Attack: A Brief Cultural History of the Avant-Garde by Marc Aronson. The title sounds way more pretentious and overtly academic than the book actually is. "Avant-garde" simply means "advance guard;" in relation to the arts it refers to work that's innovative or cutting-edge, that pushes the envelope of what's acceptable. Art Attack gives an overview of the last 200 years or so of art and world history. I powered through the entire book in one day, I enjoyed it so much. The whole thing comes in at just under 175 pages, yet it's full of great information. What could be an overwhelming and confusing topic, the author makes accessible and interesting. Art Attack is aimed at curious teens, but it's so well written, I could see it being used in a college classroom.
Each chapter begins with suggestions for music to listen to or a movie to watch to give the reader a better feel for the time period discussed. I pulled up Youtube and easily found all the suggested composers' works. Listening to the different music styles really helped each section come alive. Most chapters took me under 10 minutes to read, which fit nicely with the length of the accompanying musical selections.
Art movements aren't discussed as abstract concepts but through stories of individual artists. I really appreciated how the author shows what happens in the arts isn't separate from world events, but affects and is affected by what happens in the wider world. So often art books can present artists as working in a vacuum when really they are so influenced by and are responding to what's happening in the culture around them.
Art Attack leaves the reader with some great questions to ponder: When what is avant-garde becomes acceptable, where can you go from there? When it's normal for everyone to push the envelope, how do individuals stand out? This book was published in 1998, but the issues it discusses are still relevant today, especially with the continuing growth of the Internet. One quote that really stuck with me: "The avant-garde is, and is meant to be, disturbing. Is that because it forces us to see the shocking world in which we already live?"
Each chapter begins with suggestions for music to listen to or a movie to watch to give the reader a better feel for the time period discussed. I pulled up Youtube and easily found all the suggested composers' works. Listening to the different music styles really helped each section come alive. Most chapters took me under 10 minutes to read, which fit nicely with the length of the accompanying musical selections.
Art movements aren't discussed as abstract concepts but through stories of individual artists. I really appreciated how the author shows what happens in the arts isn't separate from world events, but affects and is affected by what happens in the wider world. So often art books can present artists as working in a vacuum when really they are so influenced by and are responding to what's happening in the culture around them.
Art Attack leaves the reader with some great questions to ponder: When what is avant-garde becomes acceptable, where can you go from there? When it's normal for everyone to push the envelope, how do individuals stand out? This book was published in 1998, but the issues it discusses are still relevant today, especially with the continuing growth of the Internet. One quote that really stuck with me: "The avant-garde is, and is meant to be, disturbing. Is that because it forces us to see the shocking world in which we already live?"
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Articles: Why I Make
American Craft Magazine has a section on their blog called Why I Make. Each article is written by an artist about what inspires them to create. Some of the reasons are pretty simple (ex: therapeutic release), others go much deeper (ex: creating a lasting legacy). Browsing the articles brings to mind why I make art. If I were to sum it up into a short headline, I think it would be something along the lines of: As an Act of Worship.
Whenever I work on art, I feel like I'm doing what I was created to do. Eric Liddell's quote from the movie Chariot's of Fire really speaks to me: "I believe God made me for a purpose, but he also made me fast. And when I run I feel His pleasure." I've paraphrased that for myself: God made me with a love for art. And I when I create I feel His pleasure.
Whenever I work on art, I feel like I'm doing what I was created to do. Eric Liddell's quote from the movie Chariot's of Fire really speaks to me: "I believe God made me for a purpose, but he also made me fast. And when I run I feel His pleasure." I've paraphrased that for myself: God made me with a love for art. And I when I create I feel His pleasure.
Sunday, September 4, 2011
Motivation or the lack thereof
I wrote about this on Facebook the other day, so I'll expand on it further here on this lately neglected blog.
I'm an artist, on top of working 40 hours a week at Half Price Books. I create art prodigiously -- I have over 100 paintings sitting in my basement that I've made over the last couple years. I usually have anywhere between 20-30 pieces in various stages of completion at any given time. I catalog each painting by having it photographed, archiving the information in various places, uploading the image to three different websites, and keeping track of where each piece ends up once it's out of my possession. I can tell you a story about every painting I've done.
And not only do I create, but I fill my mind with art through various ways: visiting art museums and galleries, reading voraciously (blogs, magazines, books, articles), making connections and having good conversations with other artists. I have a lot of artistic input and output, to say the least.
And yet, lately, I feel like I'm in a rut creatively. Do I make because I have something to communicate, or am I just repeating colors and patterns because it's habit? Am I still asking myself questions about what I'm doing? Am I pushing myself beyond the familiar or is it just comfortable catharsis? What do I do with all this knowledge I've gained? How can I share it, encourage and help others with what I know? Does anyone care what I have to say, is it helpful or am I just blabbing into the ether?
These are some of the things that I've been thinking about recently.
As a Christian, I am called to pursue excellence in my endeavors. I can't be satisfied with the status quo, with being merely competent. I strive to do my best, because God says I'm working for Him and not others' approval or accolades. It may seem silly to you if you don't believe in God and the Bible, but for me, it's freeing yet a weighty responsibility. I believe God has given me artistic skills and passions that I've worked to hone over the years. If I don't question and critique my work, pushing myself intellectually, I feel like I'm not doing justice to what God has blessed me with. Art calls to me, and when I create I feel God's pleasure.
I guess I haven't been feeling a lack of motivation so much as a bit of discouragement. Part of me wants accolades and praise from others. It's discouraging to apply to gallery after gallery and get nothing. To show my work and not sell anything. To set up showings that fall through. To put in a full day at work, then come home and have barely any energy (or none, depending on the day) to devote to my true passion.
I know you have to put in time and sweat to become successful, but it's just hard to see if I'm going anywhere right now.
I'm an artist, on top of working 40 hours a week at Half Price Books. I create art prodigiously -- I have over 100 paintings sitting in my basement that I've made over the last couple years. I usually have anywhere between 20-30 pieces in various stages of completion at any given time. I catalog each painting by having it photographed, archiving the information in various places, uploading the image to three different websites, and keeping track of where each piece ends up once it's out of my possession. I can tell you a story about every painting I've done.
And not only do I create, but I fill my mind with art through various ways: visiting art museums and galleries, reading voraciously (blogs, magazines, books, articles), making connections and having good conversations with other artists. I have a lot of artistic input and output, to say the least.
And yet, lately, I feel like I'm in a rut creatively. Do I make because I have something to communicate, or am I just repeating colors and patterns because it's habit? Am I still asking myself questions about what I'm doing? Am I pushing myself beyond the familiar or is it just comfortable catharsis? What do I do with all this knowledge I've gained? How can I share it, encourage and help others with what I know? Does anyone care what I have to say, is it helpful or am I just blabbing into the ether?
These are some of the things that I've been thinking about recently.
As a Christian, I am called to pursue excellence in my endeavors. I can't be satisfied with the status quo, with being merely competent. I strive to do my best, because God says I'm working for Him and not others' approval or accolades. It may seem silly to you if you don't believe in God and the Bible, but for me, it's freeing yet a weighty responsibility. I believe God has given me artistic skills and passions that I've worked to hone over the years. If I don't question and critique my work, pushing myself intellectually, I feel like I'm not doing justice to what God has blessed me with. Art calls to me, and when I create I feel God's pleasure.
I guess I haven't been feeling a lack of motivation so much as a bit of discouragement. Part of me wants accolades and praise from others. It's discouraging to apply to gallery after gallery and get nothing. To show my work and not sell anything. To set up showings that fall through. To put in a full day at work, then come home and have barely any energy (or none, depending on the day) to devote to my true passion.
I know you have to put in time and sweat to become successful, but it's just hard to see if I'm going anywhere right now.
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