Sunday, May 9, 2010
Philip Guston
Philip Guston is notable for his cartoonish sketches of various objects. Born Phillip Goldstein in 1913, he grew up to break away from the Abstract Expressionist movement to help start the Neo-Expressionism. He went to the Los Angeles Manual Arts High School at the same time Jackson Pollock was enrolled.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philip_Guston
http://walkingollie.files.wordpress.com/2009/02/philip_guston_1971_lg.jpg
http://arttattler.com/images/Europe/Austria/Vienna/Albertina/Philip%20Guston/04.gif
http://www.arcadja.com/artmagazine/en/wp-content/gallery/081031-high-conte/02-phillip-guston.jpg
What interests me about Guston is that his work is simple, somewhat confusing and rather comical. Many of his figures seem to be simply imagined, and imagination is an important aspect of any work of art. In terms of imagery, he's no Da Vinci. But he doesn't have to be, because that's not really what art's about. Art is about creation, inspiration, and Guston's ideas serve well to the movement of Expressionism.
Saturday, May 1, 2010
Final Post
Egon Schiele was controversial for his erotic depictions, similar to how Leni Riefenstahl was controversial for the propaganda in some of her films. Many of the artists had some connection to the Nazi regime, even Gottfried Helnwein, who did "Epiphany I (Adoration of the Magi)". Some artists, like Riefenstahl, respected the Nazis, while others, like George Grosz, hated them more than anything. Then there were those, like Helnwein, who had the philosophy that while many viewed them as evil, others saw them as heroes. It all depends on perspective.
But what draws all these artists together is how they all fell into the category of expressionism. Otto Dix and George Grosz both drew bizarre caricatures and had similar views on the German war. Gottfried Helnwein also expressed with disturbing images and Daniel Richter showed a similar attitude with his own eerie style. There was Leni Riefenstahl who gave her views and experiences through film and photography. Then there was Egon Schiele who expressed his troubled life and childlike curiosity. Joseph Beuys made many eccentric pieces, primarily sculptures, and Neo Rauch expressed his feelings of the crossing between timelines and dimensions with surreal narratives.
They each had their own specific styles, which set them all as different. Each artist is defined by their work...
http://www.mess.net/galleria/dix/1922beauty.jpg
http://www.puzdro.pl/obrazki/54.jpg
http://ishallchangered.files.wordpress.com/2009/08/egon-schiele-nu-assis-1910.jpg
http://contemporaryartsem.files.wordpress.com/2008/12/daniel-richter-jawohl.jpg
http://scrapbook.citizen-citizen.com/photos/uncategorized/josephbeuys_2.jpg
http://www.helnwein.com/stc/ghpicts/gh1729.jpg
http://www.abcgallery.com/G/grosz/grosz10.JPG
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2tiCSnSNbyurfRO8fN2Jaki6BtRlYR5OALMExNfAHzrAIKh1LYK9rUNbjfpLvzb9qca9BkKB68oTxmXnYuGDBqJw8C7SoBGeT5GY0J6aIHPQCi9HTC_fgmXGoIYuxyltD9x95NEGCsw/s400/leni-riefenstahl3.jpg
All in all, they are all brilliant artists each in their own unique ways. Their work sets each other apart as well as unites them as one. Expressionism is an art form that goes deep into the soul, that delves into the human condition, into our very characters. And in the end, it sets a fine definition for the world of art.
Sunday, April 25, 2010
Gottfried Helnwein
"Helnwein studied at the University of Visual Art in Vienna (German: Akademie der Bildenden Künste, Wien). He was awarded the Master-class prize (Meisterschulpreis) of the University of Visual Art, Vienna, the Kardinal-König prize and the Theodor-Körner prize.
He has worked as a painter, draftsman, photographer, muralist, sculptor, installation- and performance artist, using a wide variety of techniques and media.
His early work consists mainly of hyper-realistic watercolors, depicting wounded children, as well as performances - often with children - in public spaces. Helnwein is concerned primarily with psychological and sociological anxiety, historical issues and political topics. As a result of this, his work is often considered provocative and controversial.
Viennese-born Helnwein is part of a tradition going back to the 18th century, to which Messerschmidt's grimacing sculptures belong. One sees, too, the common ground of his works with those of Hermann Nitsch and Rudolf Schwarzkogler, two other Viennese, who display their own bodies in the frame of reference of injury, pain, and death. One can also see this fascination for body language goes back to the expressive gesture in the work of Egon Schiele."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gottfried_Helnwein
Gottfried Helnwein, "Beautiful Victim", watercolor, 1974
Gottfried Helnwein, "Epiphany I (Adoration of the Magi)", mixed media on canvas, 1996
"Sehnsucht", (Rammstein), album cover artwork by Gottfried Helnwein, 1997
"The Golden Age of Grotesque", (Marilyn Manson), photographs by Gottfried Helnwein, 2003
This artist has a very large gallery of different media. Just about all of it has something shocking or disturbing about it. I'll take a better look at him when I'm comparing him with all the other artists I've studied.
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Daniel Richter
Daniel Richter
Jawohl und Gomorrah
2001
oil on canvas
225 x 370cm
Daniel Richter
Still
2002
Oil and Ink on Canvas
280 x 380cm
Daniel Richter
Gedion
2002
Oil and Ink on Canvas
306 x 339cm
Daniel Richter
Trevelfast
2004
Oil on canvas
283 x 232cm
Daniel Richter
Those who are here again
2002
Oil and lacquer on Canvas
259 x 393cm
I find this artwork to be quite similar to Otto Dix and other such German artists I have studied so far. Strange, mysterious, but is getting some kind of point across...at least to those who can understand it...
I'll do some more thorough compare and contrast after I write about one more artist...
http://www.saatchi-gallery.co.uk/artists/daniel_richter.htm
Monday, April 12, 2010
Joseph Beuys
Saturday, April 3, 2010
Neo Rauch
"Neo Rauch (born 18 April 1960, in Leipzig, East Germany) is a German artist whose paintings mine the intersection of his personal history with the politics of industrial alienation. His work reflects the influence of socialist realism, and owes a debt to Surrealists Giorgio de Chirico and René Magritte, although Rauch hesitates to align himself with surrealism. He studied at the Hochschule für Grafik und Buchkunst in Leipzig, and he lives in Markkleeberg near Leipzig, Germany and works as the principal artist of the New Leipzig School. [1]
Rauch's paintings suggest a narrative intent but, as art historian Charlotte Mullins explains, closer scrutiny immediately presents the viewer with enigmas: "Architectural elements peter out; men in uniform from throughout history intimidate men and women from other centuries; great struggles occur but their reason is never apparent; styles change at a whim."[2]"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neo_Rauch
Rauch's paintings are well-known for matching real with surreal in a somewhat convincing fashion. Characters interact with other characters that mismatch the supposed time-period or world.
http://www.cmoa.org/international/the_exhibition/artist.asp?rauch
(Titles Not Given)
http://www.lostateminor.com/2007/08/15/neo-rauch-at-the-met/
Thursday, March 11, 2010
George Grosz
Similar to Riefenstahl, his artwork was primarily following the events of the first World War. The difference is that while Riefenstahl may have been loyal to the German troops, Grosz despised them. His anti-war movement had him in much trouble throughout his time in Germany, including being arrested in 1919. Soon, he moved to America and became a teacher at the Art Students League of New York.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Grosz
Suicide. 1916. Oil on canvas. 100 x 77.6 cm. Tate Gallery, London, UK.
Lovesick. 1916. Oil on canvas. 99.7 x 76.5 cm. Private collection.
Republica Automatons. 1920. Watercolor on paper. 60 x 47.3 cm. The Museum of Modern Arts, New York, NY, USA.
Eclipse of Sun. 1926. Oil on canvas. 210 x 184 cm. Heckscher Museum, Huntington, NY, USA.
Self-Portrait, Warning. 1927. Oil on canvas. 98 x 79 cm. Galerie Nierendorf, Berlin, Germany.
http://www.abcgallery.com/G/grosz/grosz.html
So overall, I'm finding few similarities between this man and Leni Riefenstahl, but they both appear to be genius artists. With such bizarre imagery and caricatures, I find George Grosz a bit more similar with Otto Dix.