ART DISCUSSION: What is art? Who/what inspires you?

Originally Posted by Boys Noize

Not big on the Surrealist artists I have come across but I absolutely love Rene Magritte's work. He is one of my favorites. I did a charcoal drawing recreating his "This Is Not A Pipe" with a glass pipe (for pot) instead

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Not big on Surrealists? Why's that? I'll have to drop some knowledge sometime.

Originally Posted by Mitchellicious

Originally Posted by Boys Noize

Not big on the Surrealist artists I have come across but I absolutely love Rene Magritte's work. He is one of my favorites. I did a charcoal drawing recreating his "This Is Not A Pipe" with a glass pipe (for pot) instead

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Not big on Surrealists? Why's that? I'll have to drop some knowledge sometime.

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Please do!
I'm not big on the ones I've come across because, frankly, the stuff I've seen hasn't been that interesting to me. I've seen several Dali pieces in person and each time I leave underwhelmed. I think I'm just more drawn to other styles.

I'm about to graduate this upcoming Spring with a BA in Studio Art (emphasis on Graphic Design/Printmaking) and I didn't realize so many artists were on NT. I've read through this thread and I pretty much agree with what everyone has been saying is "art". And props to Boys Noize for making this thread because it made me realize how out of date my "personal" website is and I would like to update it to share with you guys.

Originally Posted by Strawberry Milkshakes

and those photos from 9-eyes are crazy but i'm not sure how they fit into this discussion of art. I mean... the description itself says the photography is artless and indifferent. Yes, it captures some interesting shots, shots that we might even consider art had they been considered by a human, but these shots are nothing but coincidence (UNLESS these people were posing themselves hoping to be photographed like that by the Google cam... in that case... mind = blown

)

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photographs arent art? Im not familiar with "9-eyes" but if he found those pictures through google maps and picked them out himself and put them on display then he can call them art. If he had put those in a hardcover book no one would know any difference, whats the difference between that and taking a picture of a homeless person on the street? Is the fountain by marcel duchamp not art? Andy Warhol's pictures of car crashes not art?

I don't like like all art but art shouldn't have ANY limitations or constraints or any single definition for that matter.


I take back what I said, I was actually only going off of the photos posted on here and didn't check the actual website. I had no idea there was some guy actively combing Google Maps for these photos (I did wonder after seeing the photos here who went looking for those photos.) Yes, I agree, what he's doing, repurposing Google Maps images is art.
I mistakenly assumed that 9-eyes was just a website where people put up interesting pictures they found on Maps  and of course photography is art. I used the same Duchamp argument as you did in that other thread. And I agree that there isn't any limitation or constraints but I do think that all art must be intentional.

Also, for you cats out there that are into Printmaking, what are your plans? I've done linoleum, plate litho, copper etching & engraving with aquatinting, screenprinting, and woodblock cutting & engraving. My main focus is Graphic Design but my professor and I don't quite see eye-to-eye on a few things. Long story short, he has worked in the advertising industry and I understand where he is coming from but he tries to mold us all into that type of designer which I don't want to be. Due to this I've dabbled, quite heavily as you can see into printmaking and when I graduate I'll have enough experience to comfortably shoot for an MFA in either fields if I choose to go this route. All the jobs I've held have been due to my graphic design background. I've interned for a freelance designer doing logos, layouts, etc, this past summer I worked at a screenprinting place doing creating all the artwork in PS/AI, and then my job during the school year is working on campus creating logos and other stuff for our school/government co-op program. 
I just want to know what kind of jobs you printmakers are looking at getting once you are done with school? And what kind of experience do you have and does that dictate where you would apply?

Printmakers to check out (all friends of my professor or former classmates/students:

Jon Goebel 

Tom Huck

Meghan O'Connor

Andrew England 

David Reimer 

Lori Ary 

p0tat0 5alad, check out Neil Shigley's work. He's an instructor at my school and he has an ongoing series right now called 'Invisible People.' He walks around the downtown San Diego area, meets and talks to the homeless people that live in the area, gets their photograph, and creates these really impressive large-scale prints. I don't know what they're exactly called but he carves his images into Plexiglass and then prints onto paper.

http://www.neilshigley.com/

I read about his process and it seems like its a cheaper alternative to a woodblock because you don't need a printing press. I don't like the fact that he was complaining how intense it is using a machine to carve out the plexiglass but the entire process taking no more than an hour. I spent 14 hours last week carving out a woodblock and I got 2 more to do so 1 hour is nothing

Originally Posted by Mitchellicious

Originally Posted by Classy Freshman

I'm a big Edward Hopper fan.

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This.
I personally like Grace Crossington-Smith, Dali, Magritte, just to name a few. I did a whole project on Surrealism and Dadaism for 12th grade. I might have to pull that sucker out and see what I wrote. 

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I can't wait for december, because I'm heading over to Wien to view huge Magritte exhibition. The dudes ideas are outrageous. Very unique and intelligent.
@WILLd540
Thanks for the info, yeah those are what I've heard of, Chicago is considered the best along with Rhode Island and Pratt, of what I've heard of, but I have to agree, they are extremely expensive, only way to manage is with a scolarship, only way it makes sense, in my opinion. 

As for the Royal Academy (I'm located in Europe btw) it is only a grad school, but they accept upon portfolio mostly, I suppose. It's free and is amongst the best. 

Mediocre is no way to go with art, thats why I'm aiming for the best and with enough work I think it's managable.

It was mentioned, that finding a true mentor is very important and yes I have to agree. I decided not to enter a fine art institute here in Hungary, because it's smarter in my opinion to have a degree in something you can make money from, business whatever and besides that one has the time to paint, sculpt, whatever. And talk to, learn from a master. Lucky as I am, I have two teachers, one I consider a master. Here are their websites check them out, pretty dope, both abstract: 

Fajó János: http://fajo.hu/ 

Szegedi Csaba:http://www.szegedicsaba.com/

It's great to have a master until you learn to draw and paint fundamentally, but afterwards you have to get rid of their style, because that tends to stick. Which isn't good.

9eyes is cool. But it's on the edge of art, like Cage or Ready-made or whatever, not the "classical" form of art, which isn't bad.

Originally Posted by Boys Noize

p0tat0 5alad, check out Neil Shigley's work. He's an instructor at my school and he has an ongoing series right now called 'Invisible People.' He walks around the downtown San Diego area, meets and talks to the homeless people that live in the area, gets their photograph, and creates these really impressive large-scale prints. I don't know what they're exactly called but he carves his images into Plexiglass and then prints onto paper.

http://www.neilshigley.com/

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Just checked out his website and holy ishhh those prints are impressive.... I would have thought that they were woodblocks though, but it honestly makes little difference. You say he prints on paper? Cool--but he would have hit a home run x 10 if he were actually printing on those cardboard sheets.... But then his prints would likely not have looked that great after the fact.... PLexiglass though--very interesting choice of medium. Know why he uses that? ( I can imagine that one benefit of using plexiglass is that you wont have any of the unwanted wood chip breakage that comes along with working in/on wood blocks).
Even though I'm a senior, I'm just now taking my first printmaking class (basic) and I'm really enjoy it. The physicality of the art-making process one experiences while making and working towards prints is really unmatched, I find, and in my opinion, in any of the other studio fields. 

Originally Posted by p0tat0 5alad

Also, for you cats out there that are into Printmaking, what are your plans? I've done linoleum, plate litho, copper etching & engraving with aquatinting, screenprinting, and woodblock cutting & engraving. My main focus is Graphic Design but my professor and I don't quite see eye-to-eye on a few things. Long story short, he has worked in the advertising industry and I understand where he is coming from but he tries to mold us all into that type of designer which I don't want to be. Due to this I've dabbled, quite heavily as you can see into printmaking and when I graduate I'll have enough experience to comfortably shoot for an MFA in either fields if I choose to go this route. All the jobs I've held have been due to my graphic design background. I've interned for a freelance designer doing logos, layouts, etc, this past summer I worked at a screenprinting place doing creating all the artwork in PS/AI, and then my job during the school year is working on campus creating logos and other stuff for our school/government co-op program. 
I just want to know what kind of jobs you printmakers are looking at getting once you are done with school? And what kind of experience do you have and does that dictate where you would apply?

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Me, I plan on taking about 3-4 years off from school after concluding my BFA to really develop my skills before applying to an MFA program. I'm kind of a weird case in the sense that I've only been an art student, formally and academically, for two years (including this academic year) but by the end of the spring semester, I would have met all the requirements necessary to obtain my BFA. While I'll have me "degree", it is my opinion that I still have much to learn. THis is why I'm taking the extended time away from school to really build myself up + developing a solid portfolio of work before I get back into school as an MFA candidate.

There's actually a master printmaker around my way that I will be contacting in due time to see if he's in need of an assist (I work for free, you teach me stuff--fair trade, right?...). As I'm situated in the NYC area, there's also of good art schools around where I can take classes here and there, meet people, build a network, etc. I'm also looking into/researching volunteer/job opportunities in the area (MoMA, Met, Jewish Museum, Gugg, Chelsea area galleries, etc). Honestly a lot of opportunities that I will be exploring.

I think in art, the only experience that matters when applying to graduate programs is that which concerns itself with the question--"how well do you know field"? Of course, that question is very broad and takes into consideration not only studio practice, but an awareness of the contemporary direction your field is heading in. That latter point itself will be dictated by the historical underpinnings of the field + present day influences and last but not least, those leading figures within the field who are actively shaping it with their work. In a way, it's a lot to know, but it's certainly necessary and worthwhile to know if you are serious about your practice. It behooves all artist to know ishh like this as it will both inform their/your practice and contextualize said practice.

Lastly, and personally, I don't think that "job prospects" should be a major factor, if one at all, in deciding to pursue the fine arts at any level. Can't really explain it, but there's something great, dare I saw even spiritual, about these various artistic enterprises we're involved in and a part of. I know there's bills to be paid and in this economy, money is a serious and legitimate concern, but to me art transcends all this. I am an artist because I'm concerned with the world and its inner-workings and I see things in a way that is both beyond and incomprehensible to the scientist and mathematician, etc. My vision is not polarized by any single school of thought (math, science, religion, history, etc), but is rather an amalgamation of knowledge from all these schools. I am a visual poet--we all are--and to reduce our "craft" down to the level of a "job" is, for me at least, insulting. 

Consider this:

The poet is the sayer, the namer, and represents beauty. He is a sovereign, and stands on the centre. For the world is not painted, or adorned, but is from the beginning beautiful; and God has not made some beautiful things, but Beauty is the creator of the universe. Therefore the poet is not any permissive potentate, but is emperor in his own right. Criticism is infested with a cant of materialism, which assumes that manual skill and activity is the first merit of all men, and disparages such as say and do not, overlooking the fact, that some men, namely, poets, are natural sayers, sent into the world to the end of expression, and confounds them with those whose province is action, but who quit it to imitate the sayers. But Homer's words are as costly and admirable to Homer, as Agamemnon's victories are to Agamemnon. The poet does not wait for the hero or the sage, but, as they act and think primarily, so he writes primarily what will and must be spoken, reckoning the others, though primaries also, yet, in respect to him, secondaries and servants; as sitters or models in the studio of a painter, or as assistants who bring building materials to an architect.

For poetry was all written before time was, and whenever we are so finely organized that we can penetrate into that region where the air is music, we hear those primal warblings, and attempt to write them down, but we lose ever and anon a word, or a verse, and substitute something of our own, and thus miswrite the poem. The men of more delicate ear write down these cadences more faithfully, and these transcripts, though imperfect, become the songs of the nations. For nature is as truly beautiful as it is good, or as it is reasonable, and must as much appear, as it must be done, or be known. Words and deeds are quite indifferent modes of the divine energy. Words are also actions, and actions are a kind of words.

The sign and credentials of the poet are, that he announces that which no man foretold. He is the true and only doctor; he knows and tells; he is the only teller of news, for he was present and privy to the appearance which he describes. He is a beholder of ideas, and utterer of the necessary and casual. For we do not speak now of men of poetical talents, or of industry and skill in metre, but of the true poet.

Whether or not we realize it, as artists, we're concerned with revealing the previously mentioned "primal warblings" to men with lesser and/or limited vision--men with polarized visions. These "warblings" are truths about our world straight out of nature, and the man with the "delicate ear"--the poet, the artist--is the man best capable of deciphering these warblings. 

Pardon me if that comes off as being pretentious and/or insulting and/or condescending, because that is not my intention, but it's the truth. Limiting ourselves to the canon of Western art history, look at just how important a role many of our esteemed and artistic heroes have played in their respective societies--the truths they revealed about said societies to jaded contemporary citizens and to us as onlookers from the future. That's why I personally go "" anytime I see one of these "ignorant" college major threads on here, that always hums to the banal tune of "Math, Engineering, Professional level Science majors > Liberal Arts and the Fine Arts...." Y'all wouldn't hold those opinions if y'all really courted a holistic approach to understanding the world.

I could keep going on and on, but I guess all that it boils down to is this--don't allow "job prospects" or lack--there--off-- to influence your formal education in the Fine Arts. The entire history of western civilization was captured and illuminated by men and women who were more concerned with presenting some sliver of truth, than with "job prospects." Present your truth to the world, man. If it's earnest, money will be the least of your worries.

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^^Pretty much on point, but an important point is that while expressing the truths about nature we add an essence of oourselves, which makes it not good, but genious.


Something I've recently "discovered" is the importance of philosophy in everything. Since art is pretty much the tip of the iceberg and that very iceberg is philosophy, thats why I attend lectures and so on, I found it very useful in moving my art foreward and understanding a lot of things around us. Reading and understanding and thinking of thins like Platon, Hegel, Schoppenhauer and Nietzsche is pretty much as important to becoing a good artist as learning to draw. Just an idea.





Oh and about mediums, BOys Noize, on point, and the most important sentence was about understanding what your work needs. I used to hate acrylic only worked with oil, but recently I can't, because I need the quick drying property of acrylic. Experiment!!!!

Do Ho Suh



‘karma’, 2003

installation at the artsonje center, seoul

image courtesy artsonje center



‘cause and effect’, 2007

installation at the gallery lehmann maupin, new york

image courtesy gallery lehmann maupin



‘screen’, 2004

installation at the museum for world culture in gothenburg, sweden

image courtesy gallery lehmann maupin, new york





‘who am we?’ (detail)

photograph [emoji]169[/emoji] designboom

the portraits are of about 40 000 teenagers and were taken from photographs in the

artist’s high-school yearbooks. at a distance, the faces cannot be distinguished.

on closer viewing dots become recognisable as photographs.





floor’ installation, venice art biennial, 2001

photograph [emoji]169[/emoji] designboom

in the italian pavilion, viewers were encouraged to walk on a thick glass floor with

thousands of tiny plastic human figures.

they represent the multiple, the diverse, the anonymous mass… supporting and

resisting the floor.









‘some/one’, venice art biennial, 2001

in the korean pavilion the floor is blanketed with a thousands of military nickel dog tags.

evocative of the way an individual soldier is part of a larger troop or military body,

these tags swell to form a hollow, ghost-like suit of a traditional korean dress.

photograph [emoji]169[/emoji] designboom



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Originally Posted by nocomment6

^^Pretty much on point, but an important point is that while expressing the truths about nature we add an essence of oourselves, which makes it not good, but genious.


Something I've recently "discovered" is the importance of philosophy in everything. Since art is pretty much the tip of the iceberg and that very iceberg is philosophy, thats why I attend lectures and so on, I found it very useful in moving my art foreward and understanding a lot of things around us. Reading and understanding and thinking of thins like Platon, Hegel, Schoppenhauer and Nietzsche is pretty much as important to becoing a good artist as learning to draw. Just an idea.

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You know, I've always wanted to take more Philosophy classes (took 1 my freshman yr as a gen-ed course and that was it) but just never had the time in my schedule, word to having 3 majors (Fine Arts included) and a minor. I think I will try to sneak into some lectures for Spring, though--thanks for that, really.
...

The beauty of art is that it can be anything. It's completely subjective. What's art to one person may not be art to another. And I can respect that.

I'm not much into abstract art. I'm more into photographs of real things - like a picture of a perfect smile, a perfect laugh, a perfect moment. Maybe a nice scenery - it could be a picture of a building, a house, a bridge, the water, the sky. Whatever.

Art history lesson continued: PAINTERS 19th Century- Painters are starting to do there own thing. Getting away from the confines of patronage. Landscape painting becoming new interest. People finding new ways to apply paint.[h1]Friedrich[/h1]


Goya



Monet



Van Gogh



Gauguin



Cezanne

Yo, is that nter Ant up there?

That Goya piece inspired one of my favorite paintings by contemporary Chinese artist Yue Minjun

Great thread... Bookmarked as well.

And I don't know if it's a bad thing, but I found 98% of those Art Owl memes which seemed to really relate...

Anyways, for my fellow undergraduate visual art students, how do y'all network within your college, or outside of it? I understand that there are tons of freelance work, but are there any types of jobs based off of stability, not just the 'do whatever assignment you get' sort of thing?

Oh, and if anyone can put me on some artists who work with 'found art' sculptures, let me know

I'm gonna have to bookmark this.

Yue Minjun is wicked, love his cynicism. And that painting did fetch him about 6 million I believe.

Originally Posted by Epidemik The Great

Originally Posted by Elpablo21

Thanks NikeAirs & Boys Noize on the suggestions. Yeah I was basically looking for some stuff to read on art in general and the history of it. I always wanted to get into it but didn't know where to start exactly

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try this site
http://artrenewal.com/pages/search.php

i've spent hours on in just browsing through it

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Thanks for the link. This is GREAT

Originally Posted by FOG

Great thread... Bookmarked as well.

And I don't know if it's a bad thing, but I found 98% of those Art Owl memes which seemed to really relate...

Anyways, for my fellow undergraduate visual art students, how do y'all network within your college, or outside of it? I understand that there are tons of freelance work, but are there any types of jobs based off of stability, not just the 'do whatever assignment you get' sort of thing?

Oh, and if anyone can put me on some artists who work with 'found art' sculptures, let me know

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I definitely related to the Art Owl  it's equal parts sad and funny really
As for networking, most of the people I'm close to at school are also artists that I really respect. I was lucky last semester to be thrown into an advanced painting class that had a handful of ambitious students that were both technically proficient and conceptually strong. Through that group I even met a bunch of really impressive tattoo artists in the city (one of my friends is a fellow painter and tattoo artist at the best tattoo shop in San Diego.) I've also found some opportunities for the future by getting to know my professors (especially the ones in more advanced classes.) I have an offer to volunteer at the school's downtown gallery even though I haven't taken the curatorial classes. If you do good work and really put in the hours, it'll show and your instructors will definitely notice. It's something I'm really looking forward to trying out. I've met others through traveling and even through my pops. My dad is an artist too (as is my grandfather) and, recently, he held an exhibition in Shanghai that I went to go check out. There, I met one of the head curators at the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco, and was able to pick his brain for a good two hours. Talking to him really inspired me to pursue an MFA someday and also to try my hand at curating (he says it will help the artist to try curating in order to see the other side of the art world... better feel for what museums and galleries are looking for.) I also got his personal email and I'm supposed to meet up with him to talk more when I go home during winter break. I kind of rambled, not really even sure I answered your question.

I don't know if this counts as "found art" but one of my favorite installation artists is Tara Donovan. She's a Brooklyn-based artist that uses everyday household items and creates these incredible, organic pieces. These pictures don't do her work any justice, if you get the chance, see it in person.



Untitled, 2003

Styrofoam cups, hot glue



Bluffs, 2009

Buttons, hot glue





Transplanted, 2001

Ripped and stacked tar paper





Haze, 2003

Stacked drinking straws

Originally Posted by FOG

Anyways, for my fellow undergraduate visual art students, how do y'all network within your college, or outside of it? I understand that there are tons of freelance work, but are there any types of jobs based off of stability, not just the 'do whatever assignment you get' sort of thing?

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There are a couple of routes to take for networking
1. Who you know can matter. I've had a friend find an internship with a freelance graphic designer through craigslist and he referred me to him so I got on there too. But then again I've gotten 2 graphic design positions just being proactive and applying.

2. Ask your professors. One of the photography professors at my school likes to work with students a lot and he'll let you work with him to get valuable experience. And then our printmaking professor (along with students that are interested) travel to SD every summer for Frogman's which is a printmaking workshop. A lot of the top printmaker's & professors go there and teach a week long class to students who gain valuable experience and college credits if they choose. 

3. Join relevant clubs. We have a graphic design club here and these is where we'd bounce ideas off each other as far as techniques to help us grow as artists. Our professor was a chairman in a regional graphic design group and he would notify us when the next formal luncheon was and would invite students so they could speak with potential employers.

4. Apply for shows. Nothing feels better than showcasing your artwork for others to see. I've done a few local group galleries and I even got shown at an out-of-state one. Portfolio exchanges also are cool to showcase your artwork to others who might not necessarily see your stuff.

5. Meet other artists. I don't live in a big city (Huntsville, AL - pop about 180k) but even we have an "arts" area. Its a former mill that they have slowly renovated and opened to the public since 2005-2006 and its studio space for artists of every discipline you could think of. They even have weekly artist's market, monthly galleries, plays, and live shows performed there a few times a month. My internship was located there and whenever I had the chance I'd walk around to see some of the other studios and spoke with a few of the artists about stuff. I even helped set up a studio space for the printmaker and she now sells some of my stuff there. I know most of you guys live in much larger cities than me so there is bound to be many outlets for you to meet other artists.

Most importantly though, work on your portfolio outside of school/class. This can't be stressed enough and it doesn't just apply to art but everything. If you really love/want to do something as a career then you must continue to work on your craft. It will definitely give others a feel for your personality and show the kind of technique/dedication you have. 

One of the artist I posted earlier works with materials that would technically put her under the umbrella of "found art."

Sayaka Ganz-- her sculptures are essentially composed of everyday "kitchen-ware".

Emergence



















I implore you to check out her website. She has many other sculptural pieces that are equally as wonderful as the sample I just posted.

Also, check out Edouard Martinet. Very beautiful scrap-metal-%#% art pieces.

...

Those horse sculptures are incredible! Reminds me of another artist that does animal sculptures. Yong Ho Ji is a Korean artist that creates sculptures, usually of animals, out of used tires.



Lion 2, 2008



Buffalo 1, 2010



Rhinoceros 1, 2009

Check out more -> http://yonghoji.com/