This piece is profound because it is so simple. You, as a viewer, are a part of the artwork. You influence how it is seen and how it is reflected. It is as much about how you see it as it is about how the work actually is displayed.
Category: European Art
Thursday
I love that this painting has a very child-like way of looking at the world like stick figures and lines and angles and nothing is quite right or real and yet none of it is really wrong, either. It’s very strong and forward, yet not so much as to alienate the viewer completely.
Wednesday
This painting is dark, powerful, horrific, and beautiful all at once, and in that disharmony there is a balance.
Tuesday
This painting is both jarring in its unrealistic hues and unnatural forms. And yet, there is something very sculpted and gentle about it, and something quite elegant.
Monday
There’s always been something about this painting that I’ve loved that I can’t quite put my finger on. It might be a combination of the knowing way the cow in the lower left corner is looking at you and going, “Yeah, dude, I know. Crazy shit’s going down.” And the bright cheerfulness of the absurd combination of colors. It’s playful in a way when we don’t realize we need playfulness.
Saturday
Look, it’s Monet! But not just any Monet: this is stereotypical Monet, in the style that would come to define him. You can see the choppiness of the water in the reflections, the sketchiness of the grass (that would later be emulated by van Gogh), and the bitter carelessness of the clouds in the sky as if he just doesn’t give a penny farthing of shits anymore about them. This is Monet before he got famous, when he was out testing his trainers and playing the club scene.
Friday
Nothing to see here but a little man titty on Valentine’s Day…
Thursday
On the one hand, this is extremely gorgeous and a wonderful example of enameling. On the other hand, the Virgin Mary looks like she’s going, “Oh shit, are you fucking kidding me?” in response to the news that she’s going to have the baby Jesus. Guess it’s not just the modern teenaged mothers with the elements of shock and awe on their side, eh?
Wednesday
This icon not only shimmers, it glows. It’s a unique kind of enameling process and a unique outcome, and definitely a hell of a result.
Tuesday
While this platter doesn’t look like much and seems rather plain, it is actually a testament to patience and perseverance on a number of levels. The craftsmanship is flawless, especially when you get close enough to the glass to be able to see that the glue lines are basically invisible (meaning they were sanded away to flush with the wood itself), and the entire effect appears as wood grain or even as age rings, rather than a disjointed affectation. The overall effect is that you are looking at something natural rather than something manufactured.