Wayne Thiebaud: Hungry for More

Wayne Thiebaud

What surprised me the most about “Wayne Thiebaud: 70 Years of Painting” was how little cake there was. In fact there was only one piece of cake! Wayne Thiebaud is best known for his eye popping, buttery, Americana paintings that won him recognition in the 60’s. He became known with the Pop Art movement in the US at that time. A painting of a glass enclosed pastry display case filled with repetitive perfect confections is typically what you think of when you think of Wayne Thiebaud’s work. At least, that is what your Art History 201 professor showed you in class.

This show is not saccharine sweet. Thiebaud painted images of people, landscapes, beaches, and hot dog stands. All of his work is a social commentary on contemporary United States and perhaps even specifically, California culture.

The first painting that surprised me was “35¢ Masterworks”, 1970-72. Thiebaud has painted a stand of catalogs that might be found in a gallery or bookstore. In the context of his work, I find this a very powerful and ironic statement about the art world. The books become objects stripped of context and presented without explanation. Here are some of the greatest artists in the world and their work in packaged up; slick, orderly, manufactured for a convenient purchase by you. And it begs the question; is Thiebaud happy or sad that he is not included in that rack? Maybe he is both.

The “Watermelon Slices”, 1961 are the most typical of Thiebaud’s subject matter that I’m including in this article. They are painted lusciously, mouthwateringly. Maybe that is why there weren’t many pastry confections included in this retrospective, the galleries didn’t want drool on the floors! The food in his work become symbols, transformed by the way we have presented it. Triangle wedges of watermelons, triangular wedges of layer cake, round and oblong pastries with gooey sweet frosting brightly tempt us. Thiebaud is teasing us with temptation, pleasure and inaccessibility. Many of the pasties are behind glass. The watermelon in the bright sun is an illusion.

Speaking of the bright sun, here we have people baking in it, “Three Prone Figures”, 1961. This blinding, washed out painting conveys the California light that happens at the beach, over exposed and very white people. I guess these people are tourists. They are presented so matter-of-factly you wonder what they are doing, then it dawns on you that they are trying to get a tan, face down, uncomfortably in the sand. These people don’t look relaxed they look purposeful!

Thiebaud has blinded us by forcing us to stare at this painting “Beach Group III”, 2003 and figure out what it is. Ants? No. They are people at the beach, some are playing, some are laying out. Yes, it is overexposed, but not because of the camera work. He gives us a birds-eye-view of people at the beach maybe from the view of a high rise apartment or hotel. This is the most surprising painting to me of the lot. It breaks his rules of painting static, color saturated objects. I like artists that break their own rules.

Least you think that Wayne forgot how to paint with color, we have another take on the beach scene, “Lands End”, 2005. This is probably, a metaphorical landscape not painted from observation. Pleasure sometimes takes us off to our own peninsula apart from the world.

We are back to objects, but this time they have legs and faces. “Swim Suit Figures”, 1966 is a nice work. I love this painting, not quite Adam and Eve, but perhaps California’s Adam and Eve. The not quite profile views and the shadows in this painting are what make it alive.

I’ve got a detail for you. The shadows are treated just like his signature confections.

This piece was also surprising to me. It is a part of a series on dances, “Ballroom Room Trio”, 2003. If I would have pictured Wayne Thiebaud painting a California ball (think stars and lots of glitter), I would have pictured a much different painting than this: exaggurated, lucious dresses, styled hair like whipped cream etc. But these dance paintings seem to be coming from a much different place in Theiboud’s mind. They are the most personal and allegorical works in the collection. There is loneliness and intimacy, perhaps a love triangle theme. He does not explain, but customarily presents. Again there is the idea of desire, and inability to have the desire.

Maybe that was too deep… Ah, here we are the “Hot Dog Stand”, 2004-5. Everyone loves the hot dog stand. What else do you feel like eating when you are hungry and deep in Americana? I have to mention here that some of these photos, I took with a point and shoot and some I scanned from the catalog. The image in the catalog has better lighting and proportions, but it darkens that putrid purple color surrounding the hot dog into nothing. In my opinion, that color is the metaphorical color of industrial food.

“Flood Waters”, 2006 could be my favorite painting in the show. In fact, all of his quirky landscapes were stunning. I love them even though the San Franciso views made me feel vertigo. The views are impossible and lovely.

What a refreshing show. I loved the journey and being introduced to a number of Thiebaud’s works that I’d never seen before. Who knew he painted people at a dance? The down point of the show for me was the framing of the work. They were thick gold frames and they distracted from the work in my opinion. Other than that it was divine!

This show traveled to the Springville Museum of Art in Utah from the Laguna Art Museum in California. See original posting on ArtBistro

How to Photograph Your ArtWork: Backgrounds

Four times a week I look through your portfolios on ArtBistro to choose work to go in the Featured Portfolio on the home page. This is one of the best parts of my job. I get to see what you are working on and often am very impressed with the caliber of work on ArtBistro. There is one main way that I think that the portfolios could be improved. That is the photography of artwork. In many cases, the medium of the work makes a big difference in the presentation. For example, work that is created on a digital platform is ideally suited for presentation on a computer screen. The same goes for video (even though it is a little small), and photography. However when it comes to artwork that you make on a different material and then transfer to a digital format, problems a rise. The main problem that I come across is bad photography of paintings, drawings and sculpture. As a result I have to select a piece that is less interesting and better photographed instead of one that is better photographed, but more interesting.

To get your work featured on ArtBistro go here and join the Featured Portfolio Group. Please follow instructions before joining the group.

Big picture

The whole purpose of photographing your work is to present it to others. They may not be able to see it in person so taking a photograph is the next best thing. You want the image to portray your artwork in the most accurate way that you can. If you don’t get good photography of your work, it is like making precious thing then destroying it before you show people. The work itself may be wonderful but if your photography of it is bad, the work is bad. Your work is only as good as your photography of it. The opposite is true. If you have some work that is fine, but no masterpiece and you get good photography of it, the work will look more professional and impressive. I’m not talking about photo manipulation here, I’m just talking about common sense and applying good photography principles.

Note: If your two dimensional work is small enough you should consider scanning it rather than photographing it. Make sure the image is clean and the scan bed is dust free. If your image is not completely flat, you will have better luck photographing it.

Main problems:

Background choices

Uneven lighting

Warping of proportions

In this article we will discuss background choices

Background

Three Generations of Dawn’s, 2003, Oil on Panel, 24” x 42”, Valerie Atkisson

The background of a two dimensional piece should be black or white. You need to decide which will flatter your work better. If the work is on paper you can temporarily tape it to the wall, without the tape showing, to photograph it. Paintings should hang on the wall as flat against it as possible. Make sure that your wall is clean, and nail hole free. For three-dimensional work, the background should be a sloping gray paper that comes down from a roll above and sits underneath your work. This creates a gradation of gray behind the piece when photographing it. Work that is photographed on other surfaces looks less professional and may call attention to the surface rather than your piece. A big roll of photography paper is very expensive, one alternative could be gray or black cloth, but paper is the best choice. If you know any professional studio photographers they may have some big used pieces that are clean enough for you to use.

Raku Fired Vessel Balcones Clay, Don Christiansen

For large outdoor sculpture obviously the background will be where it is installed.

Unframed

All work should be photographed before it is framed not after. Any frame is a distraction to the work. Also, if it is behind glass it is very difficult to get a good shot with no reflection.

Cropping

With Photoshop, now it is easier to crop your images. Some artist prefer to crop out the background so that it does not show at all. Others prefer to leave it in. While you are photographing the work however, you want to fill the frame as much as possible with the work itself.

Next time we will cover correct lighting and warping/proportions.

This article was originally published on ArtBistro.

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Are Flowers Art?

You may have heard of Modest Mussorgsky’s “Pictures at an Exhibition,” a piece of music that he composed about going to a gallery and seeing different paintings. The music changed according to what the paintings communicated to the composer. This composition has long been an inspiration of collaborative projects between visual artists and artists of other genres, one of which I saw at the De Young Museum (part of the city’s Fine Arts Museums group) last weekend. I was visiting “headquarters” for work, and this museum was on my agenda.

At first glance I had to wonder why the florists’ arrangements had been so prominently displayed in the museum. Then I understood that area florists had been invited to make a flower arrangements (in some cases it was more like a sculpture) in reaction to a work of art. In fact, this “24th Annual Bouquets to Art” was a fundraiser for the Museum. In most cases, this was a difficult and uncomfortable experience. The fragrance in the galleries was intoxicatingly beautiful but some of the flower arrangements were so badly envisioned that they did not hold there own as works of art or flower arrangements. There were a number of pleasant surprises though. I’ve picked out a few of the best to show you. You can judge for yourself.

I did find some that were interesting in relation to the work of art that inspired them:

This one seemed to have a lot of personality and the flowers seemed to match the origins of where this work of art was made (South America 16th Century)

The painting is wonderful, but this arrangement is very creative of itself. As a flower arrangement, definitely unusual, as a sculpture, it captures my interest.

This is not the best painting by Gauguin. However, I love this flower arrangement in reaction to his work. The bulbous nature of the pot, flowers, and color really work for me. By itself it is a beautiful arrangement and isn’t trying too hard to be art.

You may not see what I would call “Black Trumpets with Cinderblock” at your next wedding, but this is the first arrangement that really caught my attention. I loved it!

This piece was the show stopper. A green flower totem towered over the gallery. By itself, it is a work of art that could be in any museum. It is too bad that it will wilt and die. As an installation I’d give it five stars! I love the close-up below.

Originally posted on ArtBistro

New York City Galleries with Valerie

New York, NY – Come with me on a Chelsea walk. Last weekend, I picked the worst day to go to Chelsea. The five inches of slush wasn’t too bad, I only wish I’d waterproofed my boots. Despite the dismal weather, the art I saw for the most part was surprisingly good – that does not always happen. Here a look at some of the better work that I saw and a quick summary.

Maria Magdalen Campos-Pons
The Other Side
Feb 21st – April 5, 2008
www.saulgallery.com

Watercolor and striking imagery is a hard combination to handle. The large size of these paintings helps and as does the way they are loosely painted. I love watercolors that look like they were painted with water. Why hide the fact? This artist shows off the drips to her credit.

Miguel Angelo Rocha
January 10 – February 23rd, 2008
www.atmgallery.com

These sculptures were a delight. They seemed to play with the air that surrounded them and tease the viewer at the same time. They were not all whimsy though, there is an edge to them that lets you take them seriously

Karen Arm
New Works
February 15 – March 22, 2008
www.ppowgallery.com

At first glance I was bored. I was also surprised that PPOW was showing this artist’s work. Usually I see challenging work here, but dots? Okay…. finally I got up close. These are no ordinary dots. Who knew dots could be so interesting? These are dots within dots within dots that could fit on the end of a pencil eraser or smaller. Still, not particularly conceptually challenging, but very sensual.

Bjarne Melgaard
February 15 – March 15
www.greennaftaligallery.com

I couldn’t tell if the woman in the installation was suppose to be part of it or if she was just doing some afternoon reading in a quiet place. So I asked her. She replied that there were some “very valuable objects” in the installation and she was there to make sure they were not disturbed. There was something humorously twisted about that statement. The found objects were of hardly any notice amongst the Basquiat-like paintings and custom printed futons. I wondered why she wasn’t sitting on one of the futons. Overall it was a disjointed installation. I didn’t get it, but thought the conversation was worth mentioning.

I liked these paintings. I wasn’t sure if this was a retrospective of sorts or if they were all recent works. I found out some took 10 years to paint. I like making work that has an obvious different thought behind it. I feel sorry for the artist whose show I walk into and there are 15 of the same painting. How boring to do.
Chris Martin
http://www.miandn.com
January 1 – March 1

At first glance I thought this painting might have been a collage of yarn. I was at a distance and was throughly amazed at the color saturation and vibrance. Upon closer inspection, the painting only became more engaging. “Now wonder this artist is in this gallery”, I thought. (Sometimes you do wonder why). The paintings were brilliant. Stripes… I never thought I could get so excited about stripes, or dots for that matter. The artist is happily engaged in this work, you can tell he is excited about what he will learn next.

Juan Usle
February 7 – March 15
http://www.cheimread.com

I was sad to learn that I was just missing the opening of Amy Cutler’s work and the whole West 27th street galleries’ new shows. You can’t always get them all I guess. I hope you enjoyed the walk with me. Originally posted on ArtBistro.

What You Didn’t Know: The ADAA Armory Show

New York, NY – The biggest surprise for me at the Armory Show this weekend was seeing Olafur Eliasson’s work at Tanya Bonakder. His new sculptures are spherical mirrors that hang or are mounted on the wall. It is not his best work, but the departure from installations was new for me, and interesting. These seem to have movable parts that can be angled to reflect the environment around. In this case, it was the The Art Dealer’s Association of America. The Association proved to be the other surprise of the Armory Show

ADAA Supports Artists

Tanya Bonakder is one of the newest galleries that can claim membership to the “The Art Dealer’s Association of America”:http://www.artdealers.org/. The Association, 170 galleries strong, benefits contemporary artists in direct and indirect ways. The most obvious way the ADAA supports artists is that it supports galleries, which support artists. But also, the ADAA has a standard of business practices that it holds the gallery members to. The galleries must follow good business practices in relation to their artists. Executive Director, Linda Blumberg said, “I would like to hope that the standard that we set influences the business practices of galleries outside of the organization.”

Gaining Membership

You may be interested to know that to gain membership in the ADAA, a gallery is recommended by a member of the organization and must have been in business for a minimum of five years. Next, the gallery fills out a form that gives the organization information by which they can consider the gallery. Scholarship, reputation, program of artists and business practices are the criteria considered by committee. Committee members visit the gallery and conduct formal and informal interviews to find out if there are any complaints or objections to the gallery membership.

Artist Tax Deductions

Another way the ADAA helps artists is that they are actively lobbying to change to laws dictating the tax benefits for artists who donate their work to museums. Now, if an artist donates their own work to a museum they can only deduct the amount of money it cost to produce the work. Frank Moschiano, a CPA in Albuquerque, N.M. states, “When you donate something you made yourself, you can only claim deductions for the cost of the materials used and maybe even the mileage you used to get your artwork to the gallery.” ADAA is trying to change that. Under rules that they lobby for, artists will be able to deduct the current value of the work. Concievabley, a collector can claim a tax deduction for the current value if he donated the work to a museum the day after they purchased it, but the artist cannot.

Admission Is a Benefit

The full admission to The Armory, benefits the Henry Street Settlement and has every year for 20 years! The Henry Street Settlement has been an artist community for 114 years. The fact that the ADAA donates the price of admission to an artist community truly stets it apart from the other Armory shows and art fairs. I believe it is in indicative of the experience a visitor will have visiting the fair. If you want an afternoon treat, visit The Armor Show. The artwork to be experienced is daring, interesting and smart. Unlike the monstrous Armory in a month, this show is beautifully presented, and the atmosphere is by far more generous than that on “The Piers.”

Originally posted on ArtBistro.