vertigo wrote:
I don't mind the pictures you post and I can see the thought behind many (not all) of them. I am not sure I agree that one must silent the internal voices in order to create art. For me the arguments of the internal voices is important. It is conflict that drives my creative juices (if I have any). Many of the pictures I post are not art with a message, nor even a time line. They are more about learning and testing craft. As a potter I have heard many beginners talk about the vitality and kenetic energy of their sloppy pots. Actually you can see the pots they make are because they haven't mastered the craft of throwing a round pot. Then you watch a master craftsman throw a tall, perfectly symmetrical pot and finally stretch and pull into a moving art piece--there is a difference. So I am trying to simply master the craft and the art can then "become". I have listened to multiple accomplished, and art educated, people give definitions of modern art and none of them quite agree on everything.
Working with models becomes a cooperative endeavor. I've worked with various experienced models that have resulted in zilch--we just didn't connect. On the hand I have started with a model that is not the usual definition of "beautiful" but we connected and the results pleased both the model and me. It is still a moment in time, and there is certainly a past and a future but capturing the moment is a part of what I try to do. Just sometimes the moment becomes a story. Many times is a moment that makes my eyes and brain feel "happy" a little (or larger) burst of endorphins. Even trying to make art I am still a biologist. We need to observe, cogitate, and then let those inner conflicts direct our growth.
Can't argue with you on art--don't have the depth of knowledge in the area to even fully understand the vocabulary. So no arguments--just they way my brain works (sloooowly).
I don't mind the pictures you post and I can see t... (
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Hey Vert! So, you are one of those guys who inhabits the World Of Mud! Too kool! I could never do that clay thing, I just don't have that ability to focus in that way. It is a great skill as you state. I cut and play with wood, but I'm no carpenter, not even accomplished at driving nails (use screws and drivers). My studio training was NOT in photography, it was in sculpture. More hours were taken in the realm of 3D design. It was rather odd as I entered a new and rather weak MFA program still getting established. So as I looked around I had all these disciplines to 'play' in but no lead professor to direct my development.
As I looked around I was taken by the notion that to do ceramics would require skills and knowledge for that crafting. The same for Intaglio and Gravure, print making. I played in these as well as drawing and painting but all demanded a level of skills that would take years to develop. That's when I 'found' sculpture. No real skills needed unless you wanted to do certain aspects and I did not want that. What dawned on me was that to do photography truly in a gifted manner one needed to grasp how a 2D image is transformed from 3D space. It is precisely what is so often missed by photographers who are not compelled to understand this concept.
As to a discipline, I had some basic parts there having gone to San Houston University in the photography/graphic printing department (NO Art was allowed in there!), yes vary basic skills with no intellect. Then I graduated and landed a job as a photo tech with MD Anderson Hospital. Rapidly dropped into the main support for the Pathology people, morgue, Frozen Section, animal research and scientific photography. What a great teaching curve that was. But still no art of any real sort.
The MFA program is demanding in that of the History of Art and Criticism. More than half of the classes were Art History with deep discussions with regards 20th century art. That educates one into the realms of what an artist is, how they think and what motivates and directs their attentions.
So from the hospital I learned the discipline of the craft with no other reward but to be able to deliver images for another purpose and with no excuses. The MFA program was all about the why, how the thinking goes, but more important why and how to feel about what the artist is doing from a thoughtful feeling position.
One important thing that was apparently misleading in my posting, that of 'internal voices'. I was speaking to what I have been told is internal dialogue. It is the constant bombardment that is an apparent 'thing' that human beings do. I am of course parroting this idea as I am free of this effect. It is said to be distracting, even madding for most of the human race. I can only say that I some what understand because I can simulate what I believe to be this internal conversation. As soon as I stop supporting that internal dialogue I go back into a state of quiet. Yes, there are internal voices, but they are more momentary impressions, ideas, they come as images, images of memories from some experienced idea or event. The are fleeting, like impressions, but they are never vocal, though the effect of sound does come in momentary spurts. I hope that makes some sense.
This statement that you made is vary true and critical, " Working with models becomes a cooperative endeavor. I've worked with various experienced models that have resulted in zilch--we just didn't connect. On the hand I have started with a model that is not the usual definition of "beautiful" but we connected and the results pleased both the model and me. It is still a moment in time, and there is certainly a past and a future but capturing the moment is a part of what I try to do. Just sometimes the moment becomes a story. Many times is a moment that makes my eyes and brain feel "happy" a little (or larger) burst of endorphins." So often the new worker does not connect to this 'connection'. This is where the magic happens. After working with a model that there is a connection with and one has gotten many sessions with models under ones belt as it is said, then something weird happens. Time becomes protracted. In some films this is when that weird zoom happens and the main character is frozen on the screen and the surroundings seem to change interdimensional by zooming out. Nice effect in a movie, I mention this because most everyone has seen a film with this effect in it. The weird thing is that it actual does happen as a special moment, not just with a model but out in the world with locations, landscapes, still lifes, excreta. It is a real effect and the artist both feels and sees this effect. The main thing is that time slows down to a crawl, then it just jumps back to the 'normal' time frame. This is what I call 'the cubic centimeter of chance popping out". When working with figure models this may actual happen twice but no more than twice. The second time is so far beyond the first time during the session and it is actual debilitating. Ones energy is drained totally. The only thing for it is to go to sleep and recharge one's inner core.
So, there you have some more fun food for thought.