O mistress mine where art thou roaming?

Posted on August 1, 2013 by maryannadair

austen-abbeyO Mistress Mine  (Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool) is influenced by Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night Act II, Scene III, where Duke Orsino’s invocation to music and love begins. “O Mistress Mine where art thou roaming?” as sung by what can be termed as either ‘the clown’ or ‘the lutist’ depicted on the right-hand right side of this painting.

This depiction is by Edwin Austin Abbey (born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on April 1, 1852), an American artist, illustrator, and painter. His art is referred to that painted during the “golden age” of illustration, and he is best known for his drawings and paintings of Shakespearean and Victorian subjects. His most famous work, “The Quest of the Holy Grail”, resides in the Boston Public Library. He became an illustrator for Harper’s Weekly (1871-1874) and his illustrations were strongly influenced by French and German black and white art.

Edwin Austen Abbey | A Lute Player (1899)

Edwin Austen Abbey | A Lute Player (1899)

According to Wikipedia, in 1908-1909, Abbey painted a number of murals and other artworks for the rotunda of the new Pennsylvania State Capitol in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. His works in that building include allegorical medallions representing “Science, Art, Justice, and Religion”, in the State Capitol Rotunda. Unfortunately, Abbey became ill with cancer and died on August 1, 1911.  never finishing his commission for the State Capitol.

However, if you are interested in hearing a modern-day depiction of Shakespeare’s “O Mistress Mine” you can do so via Elvis Costello’s soliloquy on John Harle’s album entitled “Terror & Magnificence” which is available on YouTube.

For further artworks – see my A-Z Artists page.

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“I know, it’s only tongue-in-cheek, but I like it, like it – yes I do”

Posted on July 30, 2013 by maryannadair

Flanigan Lane 1-11What do a pop artist designer, an English Knight, Shakespeare and an anonymous stencil artist have in common?

You may recognize the lips insignia used by the Rolling Stones band for many a year. Its presence has often aided the nickname to its lead singer – Mick Jagger – “lubra-lips,”  who has recently celebrated his 70th birthday. He became a Knight of the English Empire gaining an OBE  (Order of the British Empire) medal  on 12 December 2003.

But who created the original  “Tongue and Lip Design”  logo in 1971? Well, that was John Pasche, (born 24 April 1945).  He completed his B. A. in graphic design from the Brighton College of Art in 967; and his M. A. at the Royal College of Art in London, in 1970.  He also created a film poster in 1970, for Roger Vadim’s film “And God Created Woman”

The next piece of the puzzle involves the quote: “Art made tongue-tied by authority“.  If you are unsure about this one, see William Shakespeare’s Sonnets,  No.#66 – which is one of his 154 sonnets.

Lastly, I took this photo on a quiet lane-way wall about two years ago and not sure whether this still exists. But needless to say, this is what the silent recognition  of street art can represent.

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A stranger knocking at the door…how would you cope?

Posted on July 27, 2013 by maryannadair

charles west copeThis 1844 picture comes from the Victoria & Albert Museum – entitled “Palpitation.”  My interpretation is that the young woman’s heart is all a flutter; due to the kerfuffle happening on the other side of the door.   I reckon there was a man and he said something like “Why don’t you come upstairs and see my etchings”.

This is because the Victorian era artist of “Palpitation“, Charles West Cope, founded an artists’ society called “The Etching Club” which included fellow artists William Holman Hunt, Richard Redgrave and Samuel Palmer.

Charles West Cope was born in Leeds, Yorks on July 28, 1811. He studied at a few art schools before enrolling at the Royal Academy and exhibited there until 1882. Some of his more impressive pieces include several frescos in the House of Lords, in London.

He married Charlotte Benning  on September 1, 1840, and four years later, created “Palpitation,” at the age of 33. Perhaps Charlotte was his model? A decade after Charlotte died, he married for a second time to Eleanor Smart. Four years later, he retired to Maidenhead, Berks, taking up both boating and cycling. He wrote “Reminiscences“, his autobiography in October 1889 and after a brief illness, died in Bournemouth on August 21, 1890. Quite a lot to cope with actually.

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Hopper birthday to you

Posted on July 23, 2013 by maryannadair

storm-jamesonEdward Hopper (July 22, 1882 – May 15, 1967) was a prominent American realist painter and print-maker. His stark renderings reflected modern American life in his oils, watercolours, print-making and etchings. Hopper was born in upper Nyack, New York, and raised in a strict Baptist home. According to Wikipedia, from an early age, his parents encouraged his art.

Hopper began art studies with a correspondence course in 1899, transferring to the New York Institute of Art and Design. There he studied for six years, with teachers including William Merritt Chase, who instructed him in oil painting.  Hopper was also influenced by Édouard Manet and Edgar Degas, however, sketching from live models proved a challenge and a shock for the conservatively raised Hopper.

He died in his studio near Washington Square in New York City on May 15, 1967. His wife, who died 10 months later, bequeathed their joint collection of over 3,000 works to the Whitney Museum of American Art.  Other significant paintings are held by the Museum of Modern Art in New York, The Des Moines Art Center, and the Art Institute of Chicago.

My photo has been taken from a detailed section from Room in New York from the Sheldon Memorial Art Gallery, University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

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Here’s a Psalmple of Psalm’s work

Posted on July 20, 2013 by maryannadair

Psalm has been one on Melbourne’s earlier and more productive stencil artists. Psalm is more noted for monochromatic stencils which often feature monks or angels. Psalm’s work can often be identified by the incorporation of his moniker into each of his stencils. Psalm tries to never vandalize public property as part of his tenet.

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To be or not to be…is Saskia Flora or is Flora Saskia?

Posted on July 18, 2013 by maryannadair

You might have noticed a few days ago that Google had a tribute to Rembrandt’s birthday (15th July 1606).

floraRembrandt Harmensz van Rijn (15 July 1606 – 4 October 1669) was a well known Dutch painter. His paintings are a part of what is historically referred to as being part of the “Dutch Golden Age” of art.  He is responsible for teaching many Dutch painters his craft. In his latter career, he concentrated on portraits, self-portraits and illustrations of scenes from The Bible. During this time, he suffered financial hardships and personal tragedy. But in his earlier career, he had some success as a portrait artist. For example at the age of 28 he painted this oil on canvas entitled “Flora” based on the Roman goddess of spring and flowers.

“Flora” lives at The Hermitage in Leningrad. It has been purported that the model was Saskia van Uylenburgh who  became his wife in 1634.  It appears that doubts about “Flora’s” authenticity emerged in 1838, but these were later dispelled. There appears to be a record of a painting by Rembrandt entitled “Flora” which was sold in 1770 at the auction house of Harmen Arentsz in Amsterdam. Interestingly, another version of the painting, said to be identical in treatment and dated 1635, is in the National Gallery, London where it is known as “Saskia van Ulenborch in Arcadian costume“.

So, once again I ask, is Flora… Saskia and likewise, is Saskia…Flora?

“To be, or not to be…that is the question“. – Shakespeare (Hamlet).

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What’s so Forain about this tightrope walker?

Posted on July 14, 2013 by maryannadair

forainAs a further salute to our Francophile friends! I thought I would showcase a ‘lesser-known’ Impressionist French painter. This is (c.1880) oil on canvas, from the Art Institute of Chicago.

Forain, (according to Wikipedia) (23 October 1852 – 11 July 1931) was a French Impressionist painter, lithographer, watercolourist and etcher. Born in Reims, Marne and later from Paris,  he began his career working as a caricaturist for several Paris journals including Le Monde Parisien and Le Rire Satirique. He later enrolled at the École des Beaux Arts, studying under Jean-Léon Gérôme as well as another sculptor/painter, Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux. He became friends with Arthur Rimbaud and Verlaine as well as many writers, including Joris-Karl Huysmans, and the painter,  Edouard Manet and Edgar Degas at the Café de la Nouvelle Athènes.

Influenced by ‘Impressionist’ theories on light and colour, he preferred to depict scenes of everyday life: his watercolours, pastels, and paintings focused on Parisian popular entertainments and themes of modernity— the racetrack, the ballet, the comic opera, and bustling cafés, even the odd tutu-wearing trapeze artist.

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Joyeux Le Quatorze Juillet! aka Happy Bastille Day

Posted on July 13, 2013 by maryannadair

eiffell tower 1997Went down to my local patisserie “Gateaux” to buy a celebratory slice of cake (for a friend’s birthday). The shop was getting ready for Bastille Day celebrations, so I thought it was time to salute La Tour Eiffel.

Any visitor to Paris has ample opportunity to see this omnipresent iron lattice tower which was engineered  by Gustave Eiffel, who built this as the entrance portal to the 1889 World’s Fair. The tower  stands 320 metres (1,050 ft) tall, about the same height as an 81-storey building.  Of course it is art, architectural art. Vive le France and Joyeux Le Quatorze Juillet.

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Who’s robb’n who?

Posted on July 11, 2013 by maryannadair

charles robb - trophyWhen I first saw “Trophy”  in the foyer of the National Gallery of Victoria it ‘quite blew my head off’.  It is  made from fibreglass, polyester resin, synthetic polymer, paint and steel. It was created in 2002 by sculptor Charles Robb, (and yes, I have uploaded the picture ‘the right way up’ in case you are wondering).  If you are interested in Charles Robb and his installation, you may even be interested in reading his thesis submitted to Queensland University of Technology (QUT) for his BA (Hons). entitled ‘The Self as Subject and Sculpture‘. Other quals include: BFA (Sculpture) from the Victorian College of the Arts.

adelaide-wall-artTwo weeks later, when I was in Adelaide, I came across this piece of street art by local street artist Jimmy C, along a lane way wall and immediately saw a distinct similarity. So, as an opposite to a ‘heads up’ – I offer the opposite, a ‘head’s down.’ May I also suggest that perhaps, two heads are better than one!

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Compare the pair #6 Trolley Wallies

Posted on July 8, 2013 by maryannadair

Yarn bombingCan you spot the difference? One is considered art and the other is not. For example, both involve abandoned supermarket trolleys. If nothing else, both examples could be seen as a form of ‘still life’. However, the first example is a piece from the ‘Sweet Streets’ street art exhibition from a couple of years ago. The supermarket trolley containing leaves from tree branches sits inside the trolley. The trolley is attached or ‘trussed’ to the wall by strings of yarn. This form of art is known as ‘yarn bombing’. The pieces of yarn attached to the brickwork stretch around to the other side of the wall. I must confess, I’m a little perplexed, especially in relation to the ‘fodder’ in the trolley, but I accept it is a form of art.

rubbish-artHowever, a few weeks ago, I was at the back of a railway station car park (and it is often around these areas you do see some great street art), that I spied this piece. Yes, it reminded me of the above piece of some time ago, but what of its difference? Both carry dead branch ‘fodder’; both are in trolleys. This one also contains other rubbish as well. But if the purple rubbish bin next to it is empty, why not put the rubbish in the bin! and why did they choose the trolley to ‘dump’ if a bin is nearby? And yes, there is no string or twine to hold it together, so it doesn’t look like some ‘yarn bombing’ installation. So, is that all it takes to differentiate? – or is it a matter of position?

If you put the object in the proper context; it is considered art – and when it is out of it; it is exactly that – “out of it”. So, when is rubbish art really rubbish art? – I’m confused – Let me know what you think otherwise I’ll leaf it there.

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Hedging your bets on race results – a hare-raising story

Posted on June 29, 2013 by maryannadair

hedgehog&rabbitChildren’s books, and parables are a great way to teach our young the tenets that will help build and prepare them for the rigours of adulthood. Regardless of whether you do this by reading to them from modern stories, or demonstrate it through reading “classic” tales probably does not matter, so long as they learn and enjoy. The added bonus is that children respond positively to illustrations in books. I know I certainly did. Here is an example of such visual pleasure.

“The Hedgehog and the Rabbit” by Ivan Franko. This tale is translated from the original Ukrainian story by Mary Skrypnyk. It is illustrated by Valentin Hordiychuk and published by Dnipro Publishers, Kiev: 1982.

In a nutshell the story-line is: A hedgehog and a rabbit embark on a running race where the rabbit thinks that he will ‘cream it in’ every time he challenges the hedgehog and win every race. But after 73 point-return races, the rabbit cannot believe that the hedgehog has beaten him every time to the finishing line. Each time the rabbit darted over the finishing line he heard and saw the hedgehog decree “I’m already here.”  On the 74th attempt, the rabbit was totally bushed and collapsed in the middle of the run and died from exhaustion.

What the rabbit didn’t know was that the hedgehog and his wife were at both ends of the running course and took it in turns to appear at the finishing line and shout out “I’m already here,” indicating they had beaten the rabbit to the line. So the moral to the story is – never try to make a fool of anyone weaker than yourself.

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Oh what a beauty… I’ve never seen one as big as that before!

Posted on June 27, 2013 by maryannadair

John-PiperIn this instance, I am referring to the gaping mouth-hole on this picture which is an inset of a section of curtain painted by John Piper in 1942 for the Edith Sitwell/William Walton production of Façade. So, who exactly was John Piper?

John Egerton Christmas Piper  (born 13 December 1903 – died 28 June 1992) was an English painter and print-maker. For much of his life he lived at Fawley Bottom in Buckinghamshire, near Henley-on-Thames. Piper, the son of a solicitor, was meant to follow in his father’s profession, but instead went to the Richmond School of Art, and later, the Royal College of Art in London.

  • During the early 1940’s Piper was invited to the Sitwell household at Renishaw Hall, by Edith Sitwell’s brother Osbert. Over a period of time, Osbert asked Piper to paint the house and illustrate an autobiography he was writing.
  • Piper also met Edith, who, for 20 years, had been exploring the relationship between music and poetry which culminated in the production of Façade; a series of abstract poems and rhythms which composer William Walton counter-parted with music.
  • In her1942 stage production of Façade, Edith stood behind a curtain designed by Piper. His curtain depicted a painted face with a hole in the mouth. Edith then placed a megaphone through the hole in the curtain and began her recitation.
  • On the first night of Façade, the audience were bemused by her strange production.
  • Like many first-night receptions, some of the audience embraced the work, whilst others were shocked.
  • Interestingly, among the audience were Evelyn Waugh, Virginia Woolf and Noël Coward; and it appears that Coward was so outraged by the avant-garde nature of the performance, that he stormed out of the theater.
  • The following day, some of the Press responded with headlines such as:  “Drivel That They Paid to Hear”.  
  • Ultimately, it took about 10 years before the public accepted this work which was converted to a popular ballet of the same name choreographed by Frederick Ashton.

Finally, a quote from the artist may provide some clarity to his art. “Abstraction is the way to the heart — it is not the heart itself”.

For further examples of items like this, see my Textiles page.

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What is it about bananas?

Posted on June 26, 2013 by maryannadair

josephine bakerPaul Colin was a Junerian. He was born on 27th  June 1892 in Nancy, France –  and died on 18th June 1985 in Nogent-sur-Marne, 8 days before his 93rd birthday.

Colin was a famous French theater set, costume and poster artist. His most famous piece-de-resistence was his 1925 Art déco poster “Le Tumulte Noir“, which helped to launch the career of Josephine Baker, (who later became his mistress).

A student of Eugène Vallin and of Victor Prouvé, he is considered a master of the modern school of poster art.  Le Tumulte Noir is part of the Victoria & Albert Museum collection in London.

In the old ‘concert hall’ tradition, if we all sang along to: “Yes, we have no bananas, we have no bananas today...” the likes of Josephine Baker’s costume would be barely there!

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Klee-rly you do not look a day over 90

Posted on June 23, 2013 by maryannadair

Paul KleeIt’s been 73 years since  Paul Klee  died. (18 December 1879 –  29 June 1940). But it is difficult to realise that this piece, entitled “Senecio” was painted by Klee back in 1922 (that’s already 91 years ago!) and it still looks fresh and modern today.

Klee was born in Münchenbuchsee, Switzerland and is considered both a German and a Swiss painter.  His style included expressionism, cubism, futurism, surrealism, abstraction and orientalism. Klee was a natural draftsman and mastered the art of colour theory. He wrote a notebook “Writings on Form and Design Theory” and also taught at the German Bauhaus School of Art, Design and Architecture. Klee worked in various  media: oils, watercolour, ink, pastel, etching, etc; often combining  one or more into the one work.

His works are often been descried as “difficult to classify” but, they do reflect his dry sense of humour and his sometimes childlike perspective. P.S. Senecio is located at the Kunstmuseum, in Basel.

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When laneway art = gallery art

Posted on June 20, 2013 by maryannadair

frankston gallery laneThere’s a place in Frankston, called Gallery Lane which has become a Frankston landmark. When  the Frankston City Council launched the initial project nine years ago; it was aided by various community groups to help beautify a disused Frankston laneway.  Many of the contributions were submitted by local students from the Monterey Secondary College, who helped brighten the dank and boring space with artistic street murals. A spokesperson from the local Rotarian group has commented that; the lane – now called “Gallery Lane“, had been an undesirable kind of place in the past to walk through in the past and due to the art’s project, people were now more comfortable walking through it. So, in this case, it has shown that “Gallery” (Lane) Art as “Laneway” Art has worked well within a local community and made a positive impact on the community’s spirit.

-Love those shades man!

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