what is surrealism?

Since I find myself working as a surrealist after all these years, I decided to find out just what I really got myself into. Surrealism started in 1920 as a cultural movement. It’s the element of surprise and the juxtaposition of imagery that brought it to the attention of the public during the period around World War 1. It was a movement embraced by writers, painters, filmmakers, musicians, philosophers and lawmakers which came out of the DaDa movement and was centered in Paris. Well-known surrealists are Salvador Dali, Max Ernst, Man Ray and Joan Miro.

None of this had any impact on me until recently when I started working with collage. What brought me to this form of expression was the way collaging pushed my compositions to the absurd. I was looking for another way of expressing myself and I found this journey into the unknown intriguing and a little bit intimidating. Since there aren’t any guidelines to follow outside of my own intuition, I have no clue where I'm going until I'm finished. What I find most interesting is how this new fascination with the unusual and bizarre allows me to get into my subconscious. It’s in my collages that I’m able to free myself and allow anything to happen. I’m often surprised by the imagery which opens limitless possibilities to me. The rules for this form of art are different from those of the photorealists, which is my background.

When I was a young girl my father took me to the Metropolitan Museum of Art where I saw this strange man dressed in white like Colonel Sanders. He stood in front of a painting of melting clocks, leaning on his white cane with a diamond handle and was twisting the tip of his long mustache. My father told me he was the artist Salvador Dali. At the time it didn’t mean anything to me, but I was so taken by the man that I never forgot the moment I saw him. Little did I know how much his work would have an influence on me all these years later.

after the storm

I feel like I've been dream-walking these past two weeks. Getting through the worst hurricane recorded in over thirty-five years was a frightening experience, but it was the loss of electricity that tested our resilience. Life became dependent on the daylight. I’m a night person and this turned my days upside down. I was, however, luckier than many because I did have a generator, which we purchased after last year's blackout. Our challenge was in finding gasoline to keep the generator running. Yes, my husband was one of those lost souls wandering from one gas station to another. Everyday brought a new challenge as many of the stations ran out of gas. My heart goes out to those people who are still without heat and electricity.

Now that my life has come back to what I used to call normal, I'm amazed at how much art I created during this period. As I said before, light became this golden commodity that couldn't be squandered. I actually found myself waking up at seven a.m. and going directly to my studio. I found the light was best between the hours of ten and twelve and remained good until three p.m. It became more difficult to paint in the fading light.

I had an overwhelming drive to create. Somehow, not having other distractions gave me a freedom I wasn't able to tap into before. I owed it to myself to dig in and see where it took me. During the evening hours, I was able to work on some large collages. I listened to a book on tape while I worked under two 100 watt lamps. The sound from the generators outside was like a marching band of lawnmowers creating a white noise that blocked out everything else.

When the electricity finally came back on five days later, I was shocked at how much work I had accomplished. I nearly completed a 48"x48" painting and was amazed with how loosely I had painted it. I didn't suffer over small details or stay to the original design. There was a freedom I hadn’t had before. I was so obsessed with getting the most out of the light that I seemed to have lost myself in the art. I completed four large collages as well.

This whole experience has been an invaluable lesson to me. There are too many distractions that pull me away from my studio and I need to take another look at that. In the end, allowing myself to not put expectations on myself seems to increase my ability to produce.

waiting for the perfect storm

I’ve decided not to post the blog I originally wrote for today, since I'm preoccupied with hurricane warnings on the TV. It seems the perfect storm is heading straight for us and while we are not yet asked to evacuate, the fear of having to do so is in the air. What surprises me is how this impending danger has energized me. There’s nothing I can do to avoid what’s coming, and yet, it’s become the fuel behind my need to paint today. I’ve been working all morning, taking a break only to write this blog.

I’m listening to Steven King’s, “11/22/68” on my IPhone, which drowns out the sound of wind outside. It’s about a time-traveler who goes back to stop Lee Harvey Oswald from assassinating JFK. It’s a gripping story that has my mind engaged while I paint and block out the storm growing around me.

So my advice for today is to stay safe, tap into that nervous energy and listen to a good book. 

how to approach a gallery

September opens the art season, and for me, this is the real beginning of the new year. I admit, I’m more of a winter person anyway, so I tend to be more energized at this time. I love Fall and the changing weather. There are less distractions to pull me away from my studio and this is a time I’m more preoccupied with my work.

I recently went to Chelsea to check out the new season of gallery openings. It’s hard to believe how this area has expanded despite a bad economy. There are more galleries in the area than ever before. The boundaries of Chelsea are ever expanding. In the past I could see most of the art in one visit, but it will probably take at least three days or more now. There is just so much to look at. Many of the major galleries of the world have a presence here, which makes New York truly an exciting place for artists and art appreciators. I feel lucky living so close to it.

In general, I find the people at the front desks of these galleries to be friendly and easy to talk to. Many of the young men and women who greet the public are interns and are eager to share information about their gallery. It’s a good opportunity to find out what the gallery is about and whether they’re looking for new artists. My experience is they all say they’re not looking, but in fact are always interested in finding new art. One intern told me an artist has to find a way to get the gallery dealer’s attention. This is where the internet may come in handy. I noticed in one of the galleries the intern was scrolling through art websites. A good reason for every artist to have a website and a Facebook page. Also, it helps to visit the gallery often and talk to the people at the front desk. It can’t hurt to show an ongoing interest in the art shown there.  

When contacting a gallery, you should send an email with resume and attached photos of the artist’s work. They contact only the artists whose work they're interested in. This is a lot more economical than the old way of sending slides. My advice is to make a list of galleries that suit your type of work and go for it. 

trends in framing

When I go to the museums the first thing that hits me is the incredibly ornate, gold-leaf frames which often overpower the paintings. Many of these frames are a work of art on their own. Still, while the craftsmanship is inspiring, the combination of frame with painting is almost too much to take in. To my eyes they seem in conflict almost to the point where the painting loses it’s power.

So how did frames come to exist in the first place? They appeared three thousand to four thousand years agoon tomb paintings. Frames were used primarily as decorative borders in early Christian art using gold and gems in frames around the alters. Later the frames, while still ornate, were used to protect the art as well as decorate it. During the Renaissance,  frames were commissioned by monarchs indicating wealth and power. Later these frames were copied for the average person to use.

This made me think how a frame might influence the way a painting is received. When I first started doing watercolors in the early 1980’s, they were framed with double mats and wood moldings. Soon came the silver and gold metal frames which were easy on the eye and less expensive on the pocketbook. They moved away from the heavier moldings and had a cleaner look overall on the artwork. Acrylic paintings were framed with wood stripping around the edges. In the 1990’s simple oak frames were favored.

This brings me to the latest trend in the New York galleries today. Most of the work is shown in white frames. The larger the painting the heavier the frame. I admit to liking this trend very much. It enhances the art and gives the work a sense of importance. The way a painting is framed depicts the times in which it’s shown. For that reason alone I feel it’s a good idea to know what’s being shown in the galleries and museums. These institutions influence the way art is accepted and frames of a time depict the way the artwork is seen.