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Markup of lights & iPhone artifact from cinema Project Hail Mary. Reference photo on Instagram
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The road to hell is paved with good intentions.
So is a road to heaven.
Every "real" artist usually gets prompted at some point to write an artist statement. This is in the higher echelons of fine art – not crafts, which often receives an unfair snob-nosed glance downward from 'serious' art collectors. I did not make these elitist rules by the way, I'm just cluing you in.
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An artist statement is comprised of intentional questions and explored ideas, media, methods, and process toward completion. It typically references a body of work from a unique point of view.
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For what it is worth, you can create your own artists' statement whether or not you consider yourself an artist. My guess is you make things, no? Even if your creations are plans and proposals, events, lessons, or family traditions. Maybe you make bread, elegant code, hand lotion, blankets, or communities?
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Yeah, you are creative too. You kind of can't not be.
I'll go first:
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I cover things that are important to me, like a free-spirited, journalist protector. And I actually cover these things by drawing on them with the simplest of digital tools. If you have seen my personal Instagram, you'll notice 75% of my art is digital marks obscuring natural places, creating a symbolic language that I refer to in future pieces. I call these "SymbolWorks."
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This is a body of work that references itself and keeps evolving. Like language itself. Like people too.
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And because media is also the message – and I've been working directly within digital spaces that has it's own syntax and conventions – I break the rules routinely. For nature-based art, I rarely tag location, unless the place is so popularly known, that tagging will have zero impact on the place itself.
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That's the protection: not telling too much, so people don't go there and F it up.
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Sometimes I misdirect too. And I can as an artist: I never said I worked for BBC news, a cartographer, or wrote dictionaries. I cover things the way I see them. Often with a veiled metaphoric blanket and digital markup, at least in my art life.
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Nobody goes there anymore. It's too crowded
- Yogi Berra
Marking nature pieces is my way of tagging (in the graffiti sense) natural beauty without ever disrupting the real place, which I hold in reverence and protection.
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Of course beaches, trees, stumps, rocks, roots, moons, and sun light, do not need my protection, but I cover them in ethereal, digital marks like someone would give a warm coat to a shivering child.
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This matters to me. I love nature, and our planet is something worth loving daily.
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Why Ryan Gosling in a Fisherman's Cap?
Another perhaps 10% of my work is markup is like the piece above. This one represents a view others' work that moved me. This piece shows the magic of a movie with references to the craft of costuming, writing ancient metaphors, prop continuity (with PERFECT) glitches featuring eyeglasses, and creatures without faces. To experience rocks as alive is a pretty cool thing for us to do, even if just for an hour or two. When it was over, I got inspired by the lobby's lights.
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Awe lingers.
And I do tag places like theaters and crowded beaches because spots like my local theater house could use some promo, and likely doesn't mind being "found" by friendly consumers. And my contractor-marketing self is still open for good business, doing most things by the book, but with an innovative approach, because you know, I have an addiction to paying my bills and buying mocha lattes.
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But for my personal stuff, I have my own way. I hope you do too.
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Today, could you consider weaving together a statement that describes your process, your body of work, your concerns, your process, your life? It's kind of helpful. Let me know if you'd like to talk about it.
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With a nod of loving thanks to all my teachers,
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More Text & Images
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Dude, March 20, First Day of Spring
phone markup on moss and stone
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I shouldn't be happy when my 15 year old daughter is home sick, but I am. I delight in getting to take care of her because there are so few of these days left. I got the call today, so I rushed to pick her up. The high school nurse was holding her there. Parallel parking out front, I wave …
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You received this email because you signed up here, or I thought you might find this interesting and added you to my weekly roundup of text & images. You may unsubscribe at any time at bottom. Your replies, questions and comments are welcome. |
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In the days of AI and excessive optimization, mess is leading edge.
Some content here is political, some personal, much of it philosophical, and all of it meant to shine some light into the lives of my readers, because it was written to shine light into mine.
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I hope my work stirs your soul, ignites your creativity, and helps you feel connected to all the good things this life can offer. If it doesn't, please promptly forget it!
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POLITICAL ACTION AREA It's likely best to plug into your local groups, and show up in the ways you can. Peaceful crowd sizes matter, as does your positive energy and adherence to non-violence. Next nationwide No Kings rally is March 28.
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