Hey, Duck!!!

Well, not "duck" as in "reduce altitude." "Duck" as in "mallard duck," "wood duck" and other assorted ducks.

I get a kick out of ducks. They're colorful, cute and clownish all at the same time. One of the few downsides of living in the desert is: there are only a few places with water where ducks might be found -- even that takes considerable luck.

I don't hunt ducks (or anything else), but sometimes I feel like I must be part duck. When autumn is near, I start feeling antsy and excited, as though I want to migrate or something.

Instead of wanting to paint deserts, I want to paint scenes where fall has reached its full glory. And since I paint better than I fly, I try to squeeze in some autumn landscapes along with the desert material. Fall landscapes are not my specialty, and I don't feel they turn out quite as well as the "vast spaces of the southwest" (my tagline -- it appears on every page on my Website: http://www.southwestspaces.com/) . But I am getting better at them, and painting autumn when it actually IS autumn seems to heighten the excitement I feel about the season.

The attached image is "Autumn Marsh" by David A. Maass, one of my favorite sporting art painters. The view is desert-like in some ways -- lots of space. When fall is here, the framed prints I normally hang in my studio come down, and a number of David's prints go up in their place. From around mid-September to year's end, the season in my studio is unquestionably fall. And ducks dominate the walls.

Dutch in the Desert

In the Bio/Statement on my Website (the link is posted below), I mention some influences from the Golden Age of Dutch painting, particularly landscape artist Jacob van Ruisdael. He livened up the flat Dutch countryside by adding dark cloud shadows and spots of sunlight. The results weren't entirely naturalistic, but they certainly are dramatic!

The attached painting is an example of van Ruisdael's influence on my art. The scene is in Joshua Tree National Park, where smoke trees dot a wide dry wash that drains into the distant Pinto Basin. It's spring, and although you can't see it due to its small size, a desert cottontail bunny-rabbit sits, unconcerned with our presence as we gaze across miles of space.

I'd like to think this is how ol' Jake might have painted the scene had he stood at this spot -- "Dutch in the Desert"!

http://www.southwestspaces.com

Art and the Church Part III

Nudity in art -- talk about a hot-button topic! And it's a tough issue for the Christian who wants to master traditional art. After all, the Bible tells us to dress modestly, to avoid all appearances of evil and all that. And for some, nudity (in art) = pornography -- period.

But, as always, exceptions exist. Most obvious: sometimes it is necessary to disrobe -- partially or completely -- the body when undergoing a medical examination or procedure. What about artists? Do we also have an exception?

Well, the Bible doesn't really say one way or the other when it comes to artists. But this is a case where if one wants to become the best traditional artist one can be, it means we MUST draw and paint the nude. In fact, traditional studies in ateliers called for mastering the figure, still lifes and landscapes, then -- if the artist desired -- specialize in one of those areas.

Any artist who has mastered the figure will claim the human body (and face) are the most difficult subject to get right. So if you do well with nudes, you can do well with virtually anything.

So to the Christian artist who wants to work in traditional realism I would say: you MUST commit to doing what you have to do in order to become great in your craft. As with those in the medical community, dealing with the body and body parts goes with the territory. You may prefer to look at nudity as a necessary evil -- then so be it -- but it is a part of becoming a great artist worthy of the talent God has given you.

Here's a quote by Michelangelo: "To copy each one of those things after its kind seems to me to be indeed to imitate the work of God; but that work of painting will be most noble and excellent which copies the noblest object and does so with the most delicacy and skill. And who is so barbarous as to not understand that the foot of a man is nobler than his shoe, and his skin nobler than that of the sheep with which he is clothed, and not be able to estimate the worth and degree of each accordingly?"

Art and the Church Part II

I've dealt with Christians who believe if you're a Christian and you're involved in the arts in some way, the only subject you should be covering in your art is Christianity. This is especially true if you're a musician or singer, but I've heard it applied to the other arts as well. In fact, I know of one woman whose daughter was majoring in film production in college. The mom requested prayer for the daughter, that she would make only "Christian" films.

For some reason, this line of thinking doesn't apply to other occupations. Christian auto mechanics are not expected to engrave John 3:16 on the sides of engine blocks. Christian bakers don't apply the ichthus/fish design onto every muffin or loaf of bread they make. Double standard? Or do we have different standards for those who communicate via the arts and those who work in other fields, communication-driven or not? Are these standards biblical?

This entire notion is actually a relatively new idea in the Church. It used to be there was no distinction between Christian and secular creations. In essence, anything that fulfilled Philippians 4:8 was acceptable. Even today, one can hear organ preludes using works by J.S. Bach that are not overtly Christian or even "Christian" at all: "Sheep May Safely Graze" pays homage to the crown, not to God. Yet, because Bach is recognized as a composer who was Christian, anything he wrote is eligible for playing in a church service. Not the case with today's artists.

The sad part is: God has given creative skills and abilities to many who honor Him, and they have no opportunities to use those talents to God's glory.


"Art and Church Part III" will probably be my last post on this topic for awhile. It should appear tomorrow (Monday, 25 August 2008) or soon thereafter.

Art and the Church Part I

At one time, the Church was the artists' biggest patron. Today, for the most part, the Church (especially the Protestant Church) seems mostly uninterested in the arts, except for music. What happened?

During the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, church structures were, in a manner of speaking, "palaces for God." The elaborate architecture and decor, complete with paintings and sculpture, seemed to be a visual expression of the Glory and Majesty of God Almighty.

But after the Protestant Reformation, attitudes changed. Gradually, church leaders moved away from palaces for God, using the money instead to develop ministries to people in need. And today, since so many of us artzy types want to get rich instantly by doing what we love, even the Catholic Church doesn't pursue traditional art as much as in the past, 'tho' that may be more of an affordability issue than one of a desire to use art.

Many Protestants also see art as one of the worldly possessions Christians should renounce; after all, it's all going to burn someday anyway, and we can't take it with us, and it's "worshipping the creation instead of the Creator," and we're seeking the applause of men rather than the applause of God, and we can't serve two masters...on and on.

Thus, Christianity has left a huge vacuum in the field of art, and nature -- and artists -- abhor a vaccuum. Christian influence is now mostly limited to complaining and griping about the offensive art, movies and music that are out there today. Unfortunately, the Church doesn't seem to believe in taking a more positive approach -- encouraging its members to become active in the arts and making art for the sheer love of it, not simply generating proselytizing drivel that promotes the Gospel.

I tend to agree with a number of authors, including the late Christian philosopher Francis A. Schaeffer. Everything we do can be done to glorify God (1). God is beautiful, and so He created us with the ability to love beauty in all its forms. We're told to dwell on, among other things, truth and beauty (2); therefore, everything that IS true and beautiful falls within the realm of Christianity. In short, making art glorifies God; in fact, the creativity, desire to make things and the skills to do so come from God (3), and we'd be wasting His gifts by not using them.

Unfortunately, I and others like me are not in a position to take on the entire world of Christianity regarding this school of thought. But I have sold art to customers who identified themselves as Christians (often, Catholic), so: we're out there. We are among the Church's numbers. Maybe someday, we'll prevail!!

Footnotes:

(1) I Cor. 10:31

(2) Phil. 4:8

(3) Exodus 31:1-6

Artwork: Michaelangelo's Ceiling of the Sistine Chapel

Rest in the Midst of Art

I mentioned in a previous entry a phrase by Rolland May in his book, "The Courage to Create" that always seemed profound and accurate: something about how "artists confront their art."

I would rather work at creating art than work at a so-called "real job," given the choice. When things are moving along and the inspiration is there, creating artwork seems to involve a combination of being in a meditative trance and being on meth ('tho' I must admit, I have no experience with the latter -- I have to make some assumptions here). We artists zero in on what we're doing, oblivious to time or even to hunger. Yet, we're filled with energy to continue creating for long periods of time, and interruptions can be particularly startling and frustrating. When the artwork turns out well, we (or at least I) reach an emotional high that, I would guess, outmatches any chemical high a person can get.

At the same time, artwork IS, after all, work. We confront our art every time we work on it. And it's work that requires focus and energy -- we can't fly along on autopilot as we create that next masterpiece.

So when one paints for a living and one is tired, distracted, lacking motivation or just needs a change of scenery, making art can seem like the hardest job in the universe -- including all of the alternate ones!

It doesn't help, either, when artists like me feel like we MUST paint all the time, forgetting there is a business side that must be attended to. AND we need downtime, too -- maybe one day a week for some guilt-free relaxation, a lot to ask of a driven, type-A personality like me!

God Himself took a day of rest, and He told us to take one day a week to rest, too. Maybe I otta take him up on that!

Sun 'N' Surf

Ahhh...California! Just the name conjures up scenes like this, doesn't it?

This state has it all when it comes to scenery -- sandy beaches and rugged coastline, mountains, deserts, redwood forests, the highest and lowest points in the continental USA, Yosemite, a theoretically active volcano, and a totally inept state legislature -- but we won't get into that. This time, anyway.

My wife and I lived in Colorado during the 1990's -- and we missed California terribly. We realized California isn't the perfect "sun 'n' surf" place it's made out to be, and it isn't always the "land of fruits and nuts," either.

But as a landscape painter, the variety of spectacular scenery would be hard to match anywhere else.

On the other hand, much of the scenery resulted from earthquakes and land movement. Someday, the area we live in will be devastated -- it's inevitable. It could happen in our lifetimes, or it may not. We prefer "not." We hope to continue enjoying the results of nature's handiwork, and I hope to continue to paint it for as long as I'm able to do so.

Someday, too, the cliffs on the right in the above painting will collapse, and this area (in Laguna Beach) will look quite differently than the way it looks in the artwork.

That's California for ya!