art history 2222
Ira Sluyterman van Langeweyde is an artist that I’ve been following on Instagram for a while ….” Illustrator based in Munich with a passion for watercolors, autumn, nature, birds and cozy things”<- straight from her Instagram page>>>>>> Iraville Instagram
I discovered this artist a while back while I was looking into affordable housing: she lives in a 13ft Scamp trailer with her boyfriend and their dog.
Elsa Rhae sells small prints, decals, stickers, and will do doodle commissions in peoples’ houses.
(this is 100% not art history related, I just wanted to cry over my favorite artist)
I don’t have any artist friends outside of the internet. Most of my friends growing up excelled in maths and sciences, so social media became my #1 way to interact with other artists who were my age and who were also struggling to be seen in the art community.
I think that the main reason that I started seriously practicing art was because I was so inspired by all of these artists that I was seeing starting to pop up on YouTube and Instagram. In the early days of YouTube I would spend hours watching Speedpainting videos. I would literally sit with my notebook and jot down their tips and tricks, and soon I started drawing with the videos playing in the background.
One artist in particular that has continued to inspire me is a Canadian artist by the name of Audra Auclair. Through a mixture of pop art and the female form, she creates these exceptional surreal pieces. Her use of color is game-changing and she is a constant inspiration to me. Now I’ll admit that she’s kind of like a celebrity to me, and I have never spoken to her. I’ve never commented on her works, but I’ve seen all of them, and I can honestly say that I love every one of her pieces.
I think that the internet has done wonders for many artists. Many of my artist friends work from home and rely 100% on their websites and selling their art to pay the bills. (That’s the dream)
Here’s some of Audra Auclair’s work (my personal favorites)
Her use of color is just kind of amazing.
“Modernism: a style or movement in the arts that aims to break with classical and traditional forms.”
As artists, we are constantly striving to create something new, something eye-catching, something that has NEVER been seen or done before. We are creatures of adaptation and creation. We paint, sculpt, sketch, break, cover, and present new ideas everyday; anything to pour out content, anything to have our work seen.
So is there an invisible line between what is considered ‘art’ and what isn’t? What is ‘art’, really?
Everywhere in art museums you will hear the same thing: “But that just isn’t art to me”.
I had never really paid attention to modern art myself before starting my art degree. Coming from a largely self-taught background I was obsessed with perfection. I used to spend hours studying perspective, anatomy, symbolism, really anything that I could get my hands on. I wanted to be the Best. So you can imagine my surprise and just a little ( a lot) of irritation when I FINALLY sign up for classes and… they want me to cut up black paper and arrange it on a white page in a way that is ‘balanced’ and abstract… they want me to look at a square on a canvas and tell them how it makes me feel. The square makes me irritated, just so you know.
I get the appeal, I get the ‘hidden message’ I really, truly do. Do I respect it? I’m not sure… A lot of modern art seems like a huge scam to me. Licking jam off a car, 4’33 of absolute silence, entering an empty room to ‘enter the void’, a square on a canvas? A 3 year old could paint a f***ing square.
Don’t get me wrong, I like some modern art. I just only like the ones where it looks like the artist has actually put some WORK and thought into their piece.
If we can’t define art, if we can’t draw a line between art and a money grab, then what is the point?
BONUS: Here are some ‘art works’
Household- Allan Kaprow, 1964
Yellow Over Purple- Rothko (really any Rothko makes me roll my eyes), 1956
Nativity- Guillermo “Habacuc” Vargas, 2008 (just plain animal cruelty)
Read more about Nativity here
I’ve recently stumbled across this sculptor, and I’m kind of obsessed?
From The Atlantic Mueck “[uses] resin, fiberglass, silicone, and many other materials, Mueck constructs hyperrealistic likenesses of human beings”, and they are actually crazy.
Look at that!!!!!!!
This is completely unrelated to Art History but I just wanted to share how nuts this sculptor is….
Source:
I’m a little behind here…
Question: Would you ever buy a Louis Vuitton Bag designed by Koons or Murakami?
In short: No. Personally I think Louis Vuitton bags are tacky and overpriced. I understand the balance of art and fashion, however, seeing my favorite Rubens painting on a handbag… Why? Just why.
To me, the name Vuitton has become another thing that the rich can spend their money on. Do they really appreciate the images on these bags? Or are they just looking to impress their friends? Putting a famous piece of work on something such as a backpack or a handbag feels like an insult to the artist. Would Rubens have liked his work to be showcased in such a way? Maybe. To me however, its honestly disrespectful. This is consumerism at its finest.
Saying that these bags were ‘designed’ by Koons is problematic to me. Koons did not create this art, he did not design it. He took famous works of art, arranged it on a already overpriced bag, and then slapped a $3600.00 price tag on it. To me this isn’t art. This is a way for someone to make quick and easy money. There will always be people out there who and are willing to drop that kind of money simply because they have it in their bank account. Its disrespectful to the artist and disrespectful to other artists who are trying to make a name for themselves in the modern day.
This is not art.
(Can you tell I’m heated about this?)
meg 