GEORGIA O'KEEFFE...What a delight

        After several years of painting, I discovered Georgia O'Keeffe, and what a delight she was.  I love some of here statements and her body of work was amazing.
      
        If I may quote a paragraph  from the book O'Keeffe by Benedikt Taschen.  Her popularity and outstanding position in American art, are attributed not only to her painting, but to her remarkable personality.  
        Her career as an artist spanned over a half a century, a period ranging from the early days of modern realism to the abstract tendencies of the fifties and sixties.  The fame of her pictures, which resonate with excessive force of color and encoded sensuality has long since traveled across the Atlantic.

        Her subjects, above all her magnificent flowers and her New Mexico landscapes, reflect her intimate bond with nature.

        In 1914 she had read Wassily Kandinsky's Concerning The Spiritual In Art, which had just been translated into English.  Kandinsky's fundamental thesis, namely that color and form should no longer be indebted to outward appearances in nature, but rather to the feelings and "inner world" of the artist, would have an enduring influence upon O'Keeffe's attitude to painting.

        O'Keeffe first came to the attention of the New York art scene in 1916.  She made large format paintings of enlarged blossoms, presenting them close up as if seen through a magnifying lens and New York buildings from the same era.  She became known as the Mother of American Modernism.

        In 1930 O'Keeffe wrote to William Milliken, director of the Cleveland Art Museum: I know I can not paint a flower.  I can not paint the sun on the desert on a bright summer morning but maybe in terms of paint color I can convey to you my experience of the flower or the experience that makes the flower of significance to me at the particular time.

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URBAN SYMPHONY

Urban Symphony, acrylic on canvas.

This abstract painting depicts a steamy night in urban America, with its cruelty, struggles but through it all a perceived cohesiveness.  

Not much has changed since those days, most urban neighborhoods are still blighted, poverty still exists, however many of the old buildings are now vacant lots.  There is however some improvement in new housing, and many more parks, playgrounds and green space.  Unfortunately there is more violence today than there was in 1970, and that’s a sad commentary on what direction our society is moving.  

I placed much symbolism in this piece, from the buildings stacked one on top of another, to the many figures that seem to appear through out.  My use of color, form and structure also play a large role in describing this era in American history.

       There is much depth in this painting, by using different shades of blue, it gives you a look into the endless structures that makes up the inter city.  The continuous red lets the imagination take over, it definitely depicts much suffering and everything that goes with it when one lives in such an environment.  

      I believe that every painting I do, should reflect that particular moment in time from my prospective.  That isn't necessarily always how others see it, but that's the beauty of abstract art.

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Art is Fun...

     In 1969, just for fun, I painted Geo Prisms, a colorful display of art using geometric shapes. I used acrylic paint on a canvas board.  Many times you can use lines and shapes to achieve an over all structure and depth.  In this case I used color to make you wonder what the true background really is, plus by inserting the window in this piece it opens up many possibilities for thought.  The lines take you into an abyss, which gives the piece an added dimension.

    My mental process at that time was to look for a less complicated world, which I now have come to realize does not exist.  I personally love the color combination.

     I believe you can truly express your feelings or in this case, capture a moment in time on canvas by using color to achieve abstract art.  Many artists I know take art to serious and it becomes work, they get stressed out and they never enjoy the process.  I believe and always will that for me, art is fun.  If you just let it happen, it will, and you will experience a real feeling of accomplishment.

Geo Prisms, 1969, acrylic on canvas, print available at ADJECTIVEART.COM

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Moving forward in time - My first Acrylic, Oil and Water Color Abstract Art

        MOVING FORWARD IN TIME….   AFTER DOING MANY ABSTRACT PAINTINGS FOR FRIENDS IN THOSE DAYS, WORKS THAT ARE PROBABLY LOST FOREVER, I BEGAN TO KEEP TRACK OF MY CREATIONS.  THE PAINTINGS YOU SEE ON THE ADJECTIVEART.COM WEBSITE REPRESENT MANY YEARS, MANY LOCATIONS AND MANY EXPERIENCES.  ONE OF MY FIRST DOCUMENTED PAINTINGS WAS (MOTION-FIRST OF MANY), WHICH IS ON OUR CONTEMPORARY ART PAGE.  IT WAS A COMBINATION OF ACRYLIC, OIL AND WATER COLORS ON CANVAS, COMPLETED IN 1968.

        I WAS SO EXCITED TO DO THE PAINTING THAT I COULD NOT DECIDE WHICH MEDIUM TO USE, SO I USED THEM ALL.  THE FEELING AT THAT PARTICULAR TIME WAS TO MOVE OUT OF THE 60’S, WHICH BRINGS TO MIND A FAMOUS QUOTE OF CHARLES DICKENS “IT WAS THE BEST OF TIMES IT WAS THE WORST OF TIMES”.  FROM THE HOPES WE HAD IN J.F.K. BEING DASHED, TO THE VIETNAM WAR REMOVING THE INNOCENCE OF OUR GENERATION, IT TRULY WAS A TURBULENT TIME TO COME OF AGE, BUT WE GOT THROUGH IT.  MANY GOOD THINGS WERE BIRTHED IN THAT DECADE HOWEVER, FROM THE PEACE MOVEMENT TO THE BEGINNING OF THE STRUGGLE FOR RACIAL EQUALITY, BOTH OF WHICH I CONTEND BATTLE ON TO THIS DAY.

        THE GREAT THING FOR AN ARTIST SURVIVING THOSE DAYS IS THAT IT GAVE ONE A LIFETIME OF EMOTIONS AND EXPERIENCES TO PLACE ON CANVAS, AND I AM.    (MOTION-FIRST OF MANY), WAS MY FIRST AND EVERYTHING I HAVE PAINTED SINCE EXPRESSES A FEELING FOR THAT PARTICULAR MOMENT IN TIME.  AS YOU MAY HAVE NOTICED, I LOVE TO EXPRESS MYSELF WITH COLOR.  I THINK THAT COLOR CAN CHANGE ONE’S MOOD.  BY USING COLOR IN ABSTRACT ART YOU CAN ACHIEVE BALANCE, STRUCTURE AND THE ILLUSION OF MANY DIFFERENT SHAPES.

MOTION FIRST OF MANY, 1968, OIL, WATER COLOR AND ACRYLIC, ON CANVAS.  PRINT AVAILABLE AT ADJECTIVEART.COM

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ZMAKEY ART STUDIO AND GALLERY

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