Grounded to Reality Through Representational Art
North Carolina Dogwoods, oil, 12x9". Playing with color vibrations in space, doing some edits via my color theory. It was cold and wet when I started this live, The edits made it a little richer, and I feel the dampness like when I was there. There were no pink flowers but the atmosphere and distance are sienna colored, so the pinks go back in space. I am so blessed that my life 24/7 is art making, and thinking about it. This piece aside from being like a whisper, has a much bigger role than one would think, I get to push the boundaries, to explore everything I know about art. Is painting dogwoods important? Yes, at least taking a few hours, to recapture being grounded in reality in the woods, just looking and feeling the experience. Does the visual color theory matter? Yes, innovative artists are often ahead of the science. Rembrandt was 40 years older than Newton, and Rembrandt's understanding of light led the way. But the added thing, is that artists make the end point, they are both the theorist and engineer. The majority of people are being tested to their limits, and they are suffering psychologically. Perhaps the greatest way to be grounded and not lose it, is to reconnect with reality, with perception, double-check our mental networks, keep it upgraded and running smoothly, Art, representational art at its best does that, for both the creator and viewer. And it helps keep the psychological conversation honest.
Michael, Idyllwild, 12/15/2021
Frame of References:
Klus, Dr Helen. PhD in Physics, masters in Philosophy. Newton's Theory of Light. http://www.thestargarden.co.uk/Newtons-theory-of-light.html
Morality: I am definitely a moralist, in art it is fundamental, facing a blank canvas and making a choice what to paint is a normative abstraction, what is the end game, why paint this rather than that, etc. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morality
Normative Abstractions (Ethics): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Normative_ethics
Mateer, Patrick. Photographer, excellent article on Rembrandt lighting, Guide to Rembrandt Lighting: https://shotkit.com/rembrandt-lighting/