Schizophrenic artist showcased at Venice Biennial: Carlo Zinelli

During my tour of the Biennial in Venice (2013), this was one of my favorite exhibitions. The Museum of Everything, featured a schizophrenic venetian born artist; Carlo Zinelli. 

The exhibition was in a unique setting- the outdoors. Each print was displayed under temporary structures that sheltered the art, like an art garden and was fun to stroll around the pieces. Literally, AROUND the pieces! 

Each print is double sided, with two different paintings on each side. As the paintings and prints were hung and displayed outdoors ( which provided a lot of light), a third dimenstion to the art was featured. The ability to sneak a peak of the art behind through the trace of the colors and shapes against the front print, was a fun element that created a source of interest as well as maddening the image. Maybe an insight to what his double personality provided in regards to art or maybe our interest to see the something more that what is presented.

Below are various photos I took of the exhibit. Let me know what you think and follow me for more exhibitions and art to inspire.

Artist: Carlo Zinelli

Medium: Paper, Temera Paints, Color Pencils

Other resources
1) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carlo_Zinelli
2) http://www.artinamericamagazine.com/news-features/news/the-museum-of-everything-brings-carlo-zinelli-to-venice-/

Artists go to jail for this! (Venice Biennale 2013)

In some countries, artists like Giuseppe Veneziano can go to jail for his provocative or political satirical  art. 

Italian born and like many renaissance men, he is an architect as well as a painter. Starting his art career through comic design for publishers such as Paruzzo Publisher and the Capital Editor, he continued painting his comics into large scale satirical pieces inspired through politics or mass media. 

While walking the streets of Venice, such pieces can surely catch your attention. A ploy to sell art or a true muse to create a conversation, either way the artist ventures into a playful surreal world and takes us with him where some may mock, snigger or walk shyly away from.

 

Below are some of his images during the Venice Biennale, showcased at Contini Gallery.

Let me know what you think...

You can continue learning more on the artist on his website (translate please) http://www.giuseppeveneziano.it/biografia.html

Check out more of his work on his website

 http://www.giuseppeveneziano.it/opere.html

Gallery: Contini Galleria d' Arte
http://www.continiarte.com

We Speak the Souls of Ancestors, Black History Month Art Exhibit

We Speak the Souls of Ancestors

Black History Month Art Exhibit

Feb 2013

I know this is a bit of a late update but it is always interesting to witness art created through historic references and how each artist deals with the subject. Some look towards  african motifs, patterns, statues, while some use historic references that occurred in the USA and the African American culture.

This exhibit was not only interesting by the variety of art work that African Americans artists are creating today, but also in regards to how the art was placed.  Some artists were combined with each other through media, some through meaning and some through type or historic reference.

What do you think?

Provide some feedback and opinions as you check out the featuring artworks by:
Akili Anderson, Osereime Aimua, Anne Bouie, Sharon Farmer, Rik Freeman, Vaimoana Niumeitolu, Ellington Robinson, Wilmer Wilson IV

 

Akili Ron Anderson: Akuaba, Fiberglass, Bondo, Wood

 Osereime Aimua: Wise, Mixed Media

 Anne Boule: Earth Shield, Mixed Media

Wilmer Wilson: Henry Box Brown Part 3

Skin of stamps

Photograph of Performance

Both placed next to each other to reference the historic inspiration of the the art. 

Elizabeth Catlett

Roots, Silkscreen 

Ellington Robinson

Track #88

Rik Freeman

A liberated de Maria Felipe, 2011

Oil on Canvas

 

both placed next to each other to showcase the time difference and the style each artist has used to portray a similar theme. 

 

Jacob Lawrence

Revolt on Amistad, 1989

Silkscreen

Akili Ron Anderson

Wood, Fiberglass, Bondo

 

Anne Boule

Earth Shield, Mixed Media

Osereime Aimua

Release

Mixed Media

 

Ellington Robinson

Unscrambling of Africa

Found Objects, Mixed Media

Cynthia Sands

Fufu Pounding Sticks 2009

Osereime Aimua

Facilitator, Mixed Media

Vik Muniz in Sao Paulo

Vik Muniz, a Brazilian Artist has created some amazing art pieces! Using his photographs to create representations using everyday objects and materials such as such as 

diamonds, sugar, thread, chocolate syrup and garbage!

While in Sao Paulo, we came across a gallery exhibiting his work and I fell in love with his style and technique. However I was not too convinced with the subject matter, as most pieces look very familiar and evoke images of other famous artists' work. What is cool is getting up close and realizing that the whole image is a collage made out of photos from books and magazines. 

check it out...

for more information on Vik Muniz- http://vikmuniz.net

Roy Lichtenstein; Retrospective

A major contributor to the pop art movement, Roy Liechtenstein work was showcased at the Retrospective exhibition at the the National Gallery of Art, where over 100 paintings walked us through his evolving style, techniques and various sources of inspiration.

Roy Liechtenstein was born in 1927 in New York, where he studied art in the Art students League, later receiving his B.F.A from Ohio State University. He served in the army during serving in Europe for three years. When he got back, he started to paint and take inspiration from the expressionist movement.

Trying his brush strokes at this, he then looked towards the cheap comics that were part of his childhood and found in every home. He reworked the comics to express different issues such as advertisements, products (the hot dog, composition book, transistor radio), the war and romance.

He then took inspiration from other artists and their paintings (the nude, Picasso's cubist paintings), painting studios and landscapes that found inspiration from the print method as well as traditional chinese landscape techniques.

 Roy Lichtenstein- Artist Studio "Look Mickey, 

1973 Oil, Magna and sand with aluminum powder on canvas.

His studio collection was inspired by Henri Matisse's paintings of his studio. He thus always placed references back to the artifacts found in Matisse's paintings.

Henri Matisse (1869‑1954) studio Interior

Roy Lichtenstein, Galatea

Roy Lichtenstein, Entablature, 1975

Oil, Magna, sand with aluminum powder on Canvas

Roy Lichtenstein, Lacoon, 1988

Oil and Magna on Canvass

Roy Lichtenstein, Painting with Statue of Liberty, 1983

Oil and Magna on Canvas

During his later life, he started to introduce expressionist strokes to his work that links back to his first few paintings and attempts at expressionism. 

This then leant its hand to his final chinese inspired landscapes that used expressionist painterly strokes as well as his signature print of dots that covered the canvas. 

Lichtenstein's "Landscape in Fog" from his Chinese Landscapes series. One of his many non-Pop works in National Gallery's retrospective. Credit: Private collection. © Estate of Roy Lichtenstein

Click here to read more on his biography- http://www.nga.gov/cgi-bin/tbio?tperson=4711&type=a 

To view more of his art works- google images roy lichtenstein retrospective