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Court Ladies Preparing Newly Woven Silk Emperor Huizong, 11th cantury, The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.
Emperor Huizong is the one of the most famous of the Song Dynasty emperors. He followed the Taoist religion and was known to be a fine artist, poet, and writer who surrounded himself with others who shared his interests. His interests in things artistic led to his downfall when his army, such as it was, was easily overtaken and he was replaced as emperor by the Jin forces.
Life Death, Knows Doesn't Know, 1983 by Bruce Nauman.
Neon words flash on and off in this piece. It references the conflicted nature of life. Words have been included in art since the beginning of time.
Welcome the World Famous Brand Name by The Luo Brothers, 1993-94.
The Luo Brothers draw their inspirations from the modern world and Chinese propaganda images and combine the two to make statements about China's "modernization" and all that it entails.
Winslow Homer, The Berry Pickers, 1873.
The fresh blueberries in Maine and Nova Scotia really can’t be beat. This work by Maine resident Winslow Homer (who moved to Maine in his later years) and brings back memories of traveling from Ohio to Nova Scotia by car.
Sioux Seed Player by Oscar Howe
Oscar Howe was a Yanktonai Native American who combined Native traditions with modern art methods. His work allowed the Native artists who came after him to expand the arts that are usually practiced by native peoples. His work is in collections and has been exhibited all over the world.
Dump Truck, 2013 by Wim Delvoye
Belgian artist Wim Delvoye takes everyday objects and just makes them nicer and prettier. His work reminds me of another favorite of mine, Cal Lane.
Love his series of pigs decorated like Persian rugs.
Prototypes for Modular Ceramic Wall Dividers, 1958 by Eva Zeisel
A designer of ceramics and dinnerware. Zeisel designed the shapes and often the decals that adorned them. However, because the factories owned the shapes, quite often they would put decals on the pieces that were not designed by her, and she often felt they did not match the design.
La Naissance de Vénus (Birth of Venus)1879 by William-Adolph Bouguereau, Musee d'Orsay, Paris.
Very similar in composition to Botticelli's work.
Bouguereau had a very successful career. His realistic style appealed to a large number of people. A contemporary of Degas and Monet; they even conceded his extreme popularity.
The Water-Lily Pond by Claude Monet, National Gallery London.
Monet is the most famous of the 19th century group of artists known as the Impressionists. The effect of the light upon the pond that Monet sought to capture was accomplished by using millions of small brush strokes. The water garden is part of his home at Giverny and he built it so he could paint the same scene at all the different times of the day, in order to capture all of the different effects of the light.
The Hunter (Catalan Landscape) by Joan Miro, 1923-24, MoMA, NYC.
Miro began his work as a painter doing portraits but soon found the work of artists like Picasso and the Surrealists with whom he socialized in Paris, to influence him to try other directions in his paintings. The Spanish Civil War drew his work into a political realm as his countrymen suffered at home. His career lasted well into the later part of the twentieth century, in fact a large tapestry he did for the World Trade Center was one of the most valuable pieces of art work that was destroyed on September 11, 2001.
Figure 6 by Joan Miro, 1974, The World Trade Center (destroyed 9/11/01).
The Harvest Moon, c. 1894 -96 by Charles Rennie Mackintosh, Glasgow School of Art
My favorite artist. He was also an amazing architect. He was so far ahead of his time and although he was a contemporary of the Art & Crafts and Art Nouveau movements, his take on the aesthetic was really unique.
Maharaja Jaswant Singh of Marwar, ca. 1880, watercolor, The Brooklyn Museum.
The simple setting of this watercolor work is unusual and it has more in common with a photograph than a painting. It reflects the influence of the British on India in it's more austere setting and pose.
Liza Lou, Color Field, 2013, glass beads, stainless steel, Perspex, , 20 x 26 feet (dimensions variable). , Courtesy the artist. © Liza Lou 2010-2013. Photo credit: Dean Eliot.
Artist Liza Lou’s works with beads which appeals to me because I make jewelry using beads. This piece is from an exhibition last year where she used thin pieces of wire each with a single color of beads that were then put together in patterns.
Liza Lou, Kitchen, 1990–95. Whitney Museum of American Art, New York
I first saw her Kitchen at the Akron Art Museum and was blown away by the amount of beads and time it must of took to complete at life-size room. She had people helping her with the beading or she would probably still be working on it.
Detail of the sink from Kitchen.
Yet Another Fight For Remembrance by Titus Kaphar, 2014
Time Magazine commissioned African-American artist Titus Kaphar to create a work after the Ferguson Protests in Missouri in 2014. The protests were sparked by the fatal shooting of Michael Brown by Police Officer Darren Wilson.
I feel an affinity to Kaphar as he and I are both from Michigan and were both introduced to the study of art history in Community College. He infuses his work with art and history and and makes his own voice and the voice of modern African-Americans heard in this work, as well. His art is very important, especially these days, as it reminds us we need to look backwards and know history, in order to move forward.
Salisbury Cathedral from the Bishop's Grounds, ca. 1825 by John Constable, The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
This one is a favorite of mine by Constable because the cathedral is so clear and detailed.
Salisbury Cathedral from the Meadows, 1831 by John Constable, Tate Britain.
This version of the cathedral is the most "romantic" with the horse and cart in the foreground and the rainbow in the background, which was apparently a later addition to the work.
Stained Glass Panel in Frank Lloyd Wright’s Style at Arizona Biltmore, Phoenix.
Frank Lloyd Wright always liked to create an entire environment in his buildings and homes. He designed furniture, rugs, light fixtures, stained glass, pottery, fabrics - whatever a home would need. His student Albert McArthur, who collaborated with Wright on the design, included a glass panel typical of his teacher's style that now serves as a beautiful focal point at the entrance.
Gateway, Tangier by Henry Ossawa Tanner, c. 1912, The St. Louis Art Museum.
Tanner studied art at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, which was highly unusual for an African American at this time. He was also lucky enough to study under Thomas Eakins, who revolutionized the way that art was taught and influenced many. Robert Henri, founder of the Ashcan School, was also a student at the same time. Tanner felt the burden of post-slavery racism (his mother was a slave who had escaped through the Underground Railroad, even in the north, and decided to strike-out for France, where he spent most of his life. He continued his studies at The Louvre where the great French masters, such as Gustave Courbet, influenced his work further.
Jesus Loves Me by Varnette Honeywood, 1983
A good friend first introduced me to the art of Varnette Honeywood about the time this work was made. I have always been fond of the way Honeywood combined, colors and shapes to perfectly capture her scenes. Sadly, she passed away in 2010.
Christo and Jeanne-Claude "Lower Manhattan Packed Buildings" (Project) (2 Broadway and 20 Exchange Place) Collage 1964-66.
This proposal for a project in Lower Manhattan was rejected but Christo and Jeanne-Claude did get a NYC project called “The Gates” done in 2005. They put orange “gates” in Central Park and the citizens were sorry to see them go when they were taken down.
