M Castaneda Fine Art Oil Portraits - Paintings - City Scapes: Memorial Day - Proud to Remember

M Castaneda Fine Art Oil Portraits - Paintings - City Scapes: Memorial Day - Proud to Remember

REVIEW OF SIMON SCHAMA THE POWER OF ART - Caravaggio

"GREAT ART HAS DREADFUL MANNERS" Schama says at the start of this series.

Who is Simon Schama and what qualifies him to produce a series for the BBC titled THE POWER OF ART? Schama is the University Professor of Art History and History at Columbia, previously teaching at Cambridge and Harvard. In the documentary series, THE POWER OF ART tells the story of eight remarkable artists and how they transformed the world of art.

I had seen some of this on PBS last year, and decided to start at the beginning. First up is Michelangelo Merisi de Caravaggio. Schama delivers his story with an almost boyscout zeal of enthusiasm and passion, asking Caravaggio questions, which he then answers.. The documentary has three elements; Schama standing in front of a particular piece of art, Schama standing in a place that was important to Caravaggio, and last but not least, effective recreations.

The result was a fascinating story of an artist whose dramatic life was as dramatic as the paintings he painted. Even though he was considered dangerous, he never lacked commissions. He was jailed frequently, and actually killed a man in a duel and was forced to leave Rome with a price on his head. He fled to Naples, and finally to Malta, where he actually became a knight. He often tried to paint his way out of trouble, which is exactly what he was doing with the painting shown above. He painted it to give to the Pope's counsel in payment for a pardon. Along the way back to Rome he was jailed again, left by the boat, and died of a fever.

Why is his art important? When he arrived in Rome, art consisted primarily of beautiful paintings of Christ, Mary and the apostles. Caravaggio believed Christ was human, made of flesh and blood. He proceeded to paint him that way, making people more earthy and physical, something that had never been done before. He took his models from the street, taverns and brothels. With this, he changed forever what a painting could do, bring the viewer into the painting and often making them very uncomfortable. His paintings began a shift to naturalism with an almost theatrical use of lighting. Art was no longer "safe".

Watch the dramatic first 10 minutes here. The question Schama poses in the first 10 minutes was why would Caravaggio paint a self portrait of himself as the severed head of Goliath. I was hooked!

If there is anything you'd like me to review, please leave me a comment. I'd love some feedback on this post

ART HAPPENINGS IN ATLANTA OVER MEMORIÅL DAY WEEKEND

I am considering beginning a weekly series of blogs about the art happenings in Atlanta. I'm beginning with a weekend that is jammed packed with events. Here goes:
Friday 5/22
Decatur Art Stroll; 5-10p downtown Decatur (I will be at the Decatur Market and Gallery!)
SYNTHESIS: A Delicious Fine Arts Soup: Recent works from 14 fine art majors at SCAD. ONE NIGHT ONLY. 6-9p
final show at Gallery 709, 709 Myrtle Street
CIVIC REMEDIES - new works from Tokyo by Scott Silvey at Whitespace, 7-10p
AYANO THESIS SHOW "Centimeters to Japan", 7-9p, Naomi Silva Gallery, Tula Arts Center, 75 Bennett Street
Shannon L. Clark COMBAT, Tula Arts Center, 75 Bennett Street, 7-9p
Castleberry Art Stroll; 7-10p

Saturday 5/23
Mark Wentzel discusses his installation on Moral Hazards at the THE CONTEMPORARY
POLAROIDLAND, The Mint Gallery, 8-11p


FESTIVALS

DECATUR ARTS FESTIVAL
MONDOHOMO
AMERICAN INDIAN FESTIVAL
ATLANTA CARIBBEAN FESTIVÅL
ATLANTA JAZZ FESTIVAL

SERIES OF POSTS

I have decided to review a movie/documentary about an artist or art once a month and post the review on my blog. I wish I could do it weekly, but I doubt if I will watch one that often. Maybe bi-monthly. So - I went back to netflix, where else can you find the great documentaries. First up - Simon Shama: The Power of Art

MUSINGS ABOUT ART FESTIVALS - are they worth it?

Yesterday, I exhibited at the Kirkwood Festival in Atlanta. Because lately it has been raining everyday, I had an hour of down time during a steady rain. I used that time to reflect on my observations from exhibiting at festivals.

First of all, let me explain. This spring was my "dress rehearsal" into the festival business. I have been experimenting with different setups to see what works best. We all know, it isn't always the good art that sells, it is often the art that generates a buzz and has a story. But, my dress rehearsal is coming to an end, and I am going to apply to festivals in the future that I think will attract an audience that really has an interest in the arts.
So, here are my 10 observations:
1. Where is the festival located? While the Kirkwood Festival was in a city neighborhood where young families have relocated for the past several years, I now know it is a close knit neighborhood. I estimate 90% of the festival goers walked there. People were not there to purchase art, or even look at it, they were visiting their neighbors and having a family day out.

2. How much should you expect to make? General rule of thumb is your booth fee should be 7-10% of what you make. But for me, just starting out, there are other things I want to happen. While I want make a good profit, I also want to network with other artists, learn of other opportunities, and be recognizable to festival goers. Artists at festivals have a wealth of information about what works and what doesn't. There is an agreement from artists which neighborhoods in Atlanta are more supportive of the arts and have residents that like to purchase local art.

3. It is an art festival, or a community event? If there are alot of family activitiesl, purchases probably will be few and far between. I unwittingly did a festival that had rides, complete with a ferris wheel and pony rides. Every parent was literally being pulled to the rides by their children and very few were able to stop for very long. However, if your product is geared to children, this might be the place for you!

4. What kind of company are you in? Look at past websites and see who has been exhibiting at this particular festival. For me, being a fine artist, I want to be in a festival that has art. While crafts are good, I want art to be prevelant.

5. Do you down size in the recession? I don't have the answer for this one. Yes, I have done smaller pieces for under $100. However, you don't want to cheat past collectors by "cheapening" your work too much. If someone that had paid $600 for a painting walks by and see everything now is $50 - how is that person going to feel? You must tread gently here.

6. Why is continuity important? If you are embarking on a career in festivals, doing them with consistency is important. But, once you have a toe-hold, you need to pick and choose the events that are good for you. I have done 4 festivals this spring, and had someone at each festival tell me they have seen my work before and have been looking for me ever since.

7. What should an artist do when there are no patrons? It is easy to take a book and sit down and read. However, I reserve that for a storm, when no one will be coming by. As a festival goer, I never go into a booth where someone is reading. So, when I nothing to do, I straighten up, organize, clean, stay busy. I'll talk to my neighbors and learn new opportunities, never straying far from my booth.

8. Is the festival desperate for artists? I am no longer going to submit to festivals that are "until full", except for a couple in town that have been very profitable for me already.

9. How do you greet clients? Never say "can I help you?", you will get the SAME answer, "No - I'm just looking" - and I feel at that point, conversation is over, until the client opens it up again. Just offer to answer questions, and if they look at something with interest, start telling the story about it.

10. How do you get someone inside your tent? When someone would stop in the opening of the booth and look around, I'd urge them in by telling them the art is more interesting up close, there was alot of detail they couldn't see from there. I have also tried having drawing for a free print, to grow my mailing list. But, I'm open to suggestions on this too.

If you have any observations to share, please let me know. I'm learning, and I know there is not any right or wrong way.

My GOALS

GEOGRAPHY OF THE WORLD © 2007


There is so much I want to accomplish within the next couple of years. I wrote everything down at the first of the year, and I just relooked at that post. Some of the things I have accomplished include creatiging a line of greeting cards to sell at festivals, and I have made bookmarks out of one of my dresses. I have learned how to set up a tent and my presentation is getting better. But the things I want to accomplish as:

1. Become more self-sufficient, I have a dollar goal in mind. This is my retirement after all.

2. Continue to learn

3. Expand my Rhythms of the Universe Series. I am incorporating constellations as an overalay in them now.

4. Read more about art - serious art. Understand some of the articles in Art in America better

5. Learn more art history

6. Have a gallery show within a year.

7. Find alternative spaces, and working with Leitch Fine Art is helping me there

8. Be more involved in the Atlanta art community

9. Blog, and continue to learn more about blogging. I'm kind of lost in the technical aspect, but I'm working on it.

10. Update my website when I finish a new body of work

I think that is enough for now!

Beyond the Art Fair: How Long Did That Take to Make?

Beyond the Art Fair: How Long Did That Take to Make?

HOMEWORK HOMEWORK

So - the most recent lesson in my Blog Triage class was to put five links in an article. Well, I could sit down and write a very compelling article, but it took me all afternoon to figure out how to insert the links. I think I might have it now.
First of all, I want to congratule Lance Carlson on his inclusion in the juried show which is hanging at the Knoxville Airport.


Secondly, I want to mention Joel Conison's show at Naomi Silva of his Birds series. He now has 30 completed, and plans on going to Cincinnati and Charleston to shoot more taxidermied birds. They are getting great reception, and giving him the attention he so deserves. When Naomi learned he had 30 finished now (the show has 17), she told people this was the inaugural showing of this series! He is investigating London galleries now - he needs to get a passport, mine is valid!


I really like my friend Jacqueline Allison's new series of work called relational . She has really been experimenting with new techniques and she isn't afraid to try something new.

Why the homework? I am currently taking a class entitled Blog Triage from Alyson Stanfield and Cynthia Morris.. I hope to migrate this blog over to Wordpress soon, so I've been playing around over there!

Atlanta 1970 - how to organize a page

I was looking for a way to organize a page and chose to take a picture of the skyline of Atlanta in 1970. I took the shapes it created and collaged the background. The collage included my airplane tickets to various places and Atlanta memoriabilia, such as coke labels, CNN and such. Oh - and I also used failed mono-prints I had (don't throw anything away, you will use them someday!).
After I had my interpretation of the skyline of Atlanta, I began painting over it. Many people living here in 1970 will not recognize it. The Polaris at the Regency was the highest point, at least to me. If I could find it in the sky, I could get to Peachtree and get home. So - notice the building with the circles that is painted blue, it is the Polaris with the color inverted.

Not only do I paint, but I have given historical tours of Atlanta, (i.e. Fox Theater and Druid Hills) so sometimes the city pops up in a work!

PICTURES OF MY SHOW AT TROY PEERLESS LOFTS

I really like the space, and it was a very successful show. I decided it was important to show what my work looks like when it is actually up on a wall!