The view from here -- New Year's Eve 2018

December 31, 2018, about noon today.  Now it's 8:30 p.m. and I'm counting down.   Inevitably, a time for introspection and retrospection.

This time last year, I was eagerly awaiting the first week of a weekly on-line art class that would focus on the portrait.  By February, my enthusiasm was fading but I resolved to press on.  I'd decided to do my own thing with whatever Artist-of-the-Week was scheduled, and I had moved into passive LURK mode on the class's Facebook page.  I could not stand the superficiality of Like-Like-Like critiques and what, despite different instructors and media, seemed a repetitive roll-out of long-haired young female models. 

But some good things came of the experience -- and here's a quick recap via some of my output.  First, I became more committed to delving into art history through renewed acquaintance with artists such as Piero della Francesca:

and Giovanni Bellini:

Second, even though I'm immersed in painting, I remembered how much I love drawings when I chose to work with pencil in the weeks featuring Caravaggio and Anna Dorothea Therbusch.

 

Therbusch and several artists made for a third benefit of the course.  They were people I'd never heard of, or was only vaguely aware of, and in some cases they were *great* discoveries.  There was Henry Ossawa Tanner:--

Ferdinand Hodler:--

 Maurice Denis:--

 A fourth benefit of the course was spending more concentrated time with some familiars -- Gustav Klimt, for one:--

 And of course, Van Gogh:--

As I look through the almost fifty portraits I've accumulated in this way, I note that three are particularly striking to me.  Further acquaintance with the artists they represent is likely, in one way or other, to have an impact on my development.  They are Gwen John:--

 Alice Neel:--

 ...and, most significantly, Irma Stern -- who was formerly unknown to me.  These little punk kids, as I call them, are the genies of my studio now.  I'll feel very good if  I again do something that pleases me as much as they do:--

So....that was then.  This is now.  What's next?  Welllllll.....this is as good a time as any to announce that:  I've signed up for another on-line course!!   Do I hear a collective groan?  Do you think my brain has turned to mush from some of the last quarter's artists who were collectively kind of strange, like Afarin Sajedi?

Time will tell.  But the very structure of the course addresses the shortfalls of the just-ended On-Line 2018.

• It was developed by a professional artist who aims to present the content of  a year of art school, with a focus on painting.
• It operates within a highly sophisticated website with a wealth of teaching material -- reading, videos, and examples.  A brief weekly newsletter is an added friendly touch.
• There are no hard and fast requirements for participation, but if/when you choose to participate, there are very definite guidelines about what you're expected to achieve and where and how you are expected to post your completed assignments.

In contrast to the Facebook stuff that I couldn't stand, the communications among students takes place within a secure "on-line classroom".  There are firm do's and don'ts about critiqueing others' work:

• It's an expectation.  Before you post your own assignment, you're expected to comment on at least one other student's post.
• It is explicitly stated that it's unacceptable to say, "I really like this, Fred."  Instead -- and there are numerous examples as guidelines -- you're expected to hone in on something specific and to recommend a remedy.

I've been enrolled for two weeks now, and I'm really impressed with the curriculum and with the calibre of the "on-line community" -- serious people (many retirees like me) who know that they have a lot to learn and are eager to work seriously to get where they want to go.

For now, I'll hopefully sign off with a favourite quote from the poet Rilke: 

"Come let us welcome the new year,

full of things that never have been."

YES - Done, finished, fini, fertig, terminado!

This figure is a quick study I made a few years back from a dance poster -- and I bring it out from time to time when I need a forceful reminder to "GET IT DONE!!!"  Well, I did it.  I finished the year-long on-line art course about which I've had such mixed feelings.  More about that next time, but for now....let's do a wrap with the final Artists-of-the-Week.

First, as the rain pours down here in Vancouver, I'll do a quick check out the window for bowler-hatted gentlemen holding umbrellas, drifting down from the sky.  No sign of 'em.  But you've guessed I'm summoning the spirit of Magritte.  For my lesson, I preferred his blue skies, usually with puffy clouds and occasionally with a prominent eyeball.  I put them all together for a weird riff called "Head in Hands" --

Everyone knows Dali, right?  Sagging watches.  Weird artifacts strewn about desert landscapes.  Butterflies doubling as sails on a 7-masted schooner.  Yes, that Dali.  But he also did some rather lovely women's faces, as in his mysterious "Adolescence".  The painting itself was once the subject of an art heist from a Dutch museum -- finally recovered after seven years' absence.  Here's my take on this, my favourite among all the Dalis I've seen:

After these surrealistic offerings, the course moved next into the era of so-called Contemporary Realism.  I wasn't keen on Roberta Coni whose females often wrap their heads in turbans -- and despite the protective covering, find themselves smeared with paint from the artist's hand.  My rendition:

Then we hit familiar territory again with Chuck Close, who I've known for decades for his wonderful pencil and charcoal portraits -- often reaching awesome proportions, say 15 x 20 FEET.  Lately, his giant works in colour have combined Klimt-type shapes with mosaic-type layouts.  Check this link and wait for about the fourth head to appear and you'll see what I mean.

With a self-serving strategy, I opted for small rather than large -- about 4" x 6", done in coloured pencil.  Copying an earlier class exercise, I did a close-up of Van Gogh's eye in one of his self-portraits.   Here's my version called, "Chuck and Vincent See Eye-to-Eye."

Up next were two contemporary artists I'd never heard of but whose work I found interesting.  Michael Carson often places his figures and portraits on a plain flat background, sometimes using a particular rich rusty red colour.  I used these two aspects for a painted version of an unrelated photograph I happened across on-line.  Using my favoured el-cheapo support, I painted on a piece of cardboard to produce "Corrugated Carson."

 Casey Baugh does gorgeous charcoal portraits -- sometimes smeared or speckled, sometimes on the large size -- maybe 5' across.  My spin-off from another on-line vintage photo was not very satisfactory but...hey, I was wanting this course to end!!

 -- and it did for me, finally, with artist Tony Scherman -- another whose style involves blurring and smearing.  I hadn't much interest in emulating this so opted for a simple pastel-like treatment.

 And now:  A new year is waiting in the wings, and what that will mean for my art goals will become clear before very long. 

Right now, things aren't quite "terminado" with my household and studio reorganization , but I'm getting it done!