Gustave Courbet and Public Outcry

Since I have mentioned Courbet in the blog before (http://617midway.blogspot.com/2007/05/death-of-artist-death-of-horizon.html), it seemed only fair to make mention of the article in this week’s New Yorker (July 30, 2007) by Peter Schjeldahl “Painting by Numbers,” that reviews the new book “The Most Arrogant Man in France: Gustave Courbet and the Nineteenth Century Media Culture” by Petra ten-Doesschate Chu.

I have grown to really look forward to Schjeldahl’s pieces— in fact, it was one of the only reasons I renewed my subscription to the New Yorker. The whole Boston/New York thing runs deep in us Chowdaheads, and there is something strange about acknowledging any item titled “The New Yorker” as good, never mind being a subscriber. But Schjeldahl’s pieces on art are always great food for thought.

And of course, I am fascinated by Courbet. The piece, which is a book review, explores the idea of Courbet being the first truly “Modern” artist. The first to truly explore the idea of controversy and public outcry as essential in the advancement of the individual artist and the individual artist’s works. Basically, we can thank Courbet for every time you hear someone at a museum say “that is art???” or “why is that art?” or, “I just don’t get it.” Courbet relished this response, cultivated it— and cherished it.

The article discusses Courbet’s use of this practice— in seeking public attention in this manner— as a shrewd business plan that calculated the subsequent return on each investment of shock value.

Personally, I like Courbet for his genuine approach to painting— the subject matters and flatness he rendered were as much an advancement of “modern” painting as his approach was, to my mind.

My favorite Courbet quote in the article was easily:

“I will be so outrageous that I’ll give everyone the power to tell me the cruelest truths.”

There is just something wonderful, and possibly true about that type of dynamic.

Above, see the painting The Meeting: Bonjour Monsieur Courbet (as found on http://www.penwith.co.uk/artofeurope/courbet.htm). Another one of my Courbet favorites that I always think of when I have my sketchbook in hand, cargo shorts on and sandals when I see some young executives creep by in a brand new Beemer.

One last note on the article: There is a reproduction of the piece “Desperate Man,” a Courbet self-portrait, that to my eye looks a lot like Johnny Depp. Check it out.

* * * * *

So, I had my own flirtation with public outcry in response to my art today when I went to pick up “Precious Gems” from the juried show PAINT at LynnArts.

On my way out, as I was carrying the piece, someone spit on me.

Unfortunately, this wasn’t a statement about my work, or a strong response to it— there was a drunk guy standing outside a bar there in Central Square in Lynn and he was smoking a cigarette and weaving a bit as he tried to stand up straight. He didn’t see me, and a little spit landed on my jeans.

He was very apologetic— and I mean how mad can you get at a guy who is bombed at 2:30 on a Tuesday afternoon in Lynn?

I said, “no problem, but can you yell disparaging remarks about my painting and the nature of art now?”

“What?”

“You know, make a political statement about what is art/what isn’t art and rain down moral judgments on my collage painting like a Southern Baptist preacher with the conviction of God in his eyes?”

He just stubbed out his cigarette and went back in the bar.

OK, so that last part didn’t happen. But it would have been nice if I had to get spit on that it at least came with an excited furor over my paintings and not just a typical response to too much Johnny Walker Red.

So, the public outcry will have to wait for another day. For now, enjoy the birth of Modernism and Gustave Courbet and thank your lucky stars that Precious Gems and I made it home safely.

Image for Sale Reflections, Debra Earling, Sam Walker, and TMBG at the Beachcomber

The opening reception for Image for Sale last Friday was a good opportunity for me to see my work in a different way. At least for me, things always look a little bit different out of the studio— and it also allowed me to think about the whole series again from scratch. Kind of interesting to have someone ask “where did the idea for using collage like this come from…” or, “what made you think to do this, or that…” and see where the answers come from.

Also, it occurred to me as I started writing this that I may start to repeat myself in this blog. This is unintentional, but probably should be expected, as I am sure that in my art I am reconsidering things over and over again and trying to see them in different ways. Anyhow, if I do repeat myself, feel free to skip ahead.

All that said, there were two overriding ideas I had on Friday when discussing the “Image for Sale” pieces— one having to do with my experiences with Debra Earling and the other, Sam Walker. Debra came up in my gallery discussions, but Sam kind of just occurred to me out of nowhere.

At the University of Montana I was fortunate enough to take a class with Debra Earling (who goes by Debra Magpie Earling in her literary career) and two subsequent independent studies while I was there. I was also lucky enough to have her on my thesis committee, and got to know her and her work quite a bit while I was there.

One of the major ideas that came across was the idea of different landscapes in life. That is, what landscapes are we attracted to, do we call home, do we own inside us? At the time, it led me to thinking about emotional landscapes and internal landscapes— and to thinking about Jackson Pollock and Mark Rothko maybe painting these “internal” landscapes.

At the start of this recent series, I took this literally. Although I don’t remember thinking heavily on Debra and my work under her guidance, this idea of landscape and place and what we internalize has been very influential in my work regardless. As a poet, I have spent a great deal of time writing on “places” (South Boston, Flathead Lake, Key West, the sky, the ocean, etc.) and as a visual artist this idea of place, and internal place, has come up again and again in my painting.

The first painting I did in this series of collages (although it is hard to say where the series really began… “Miracle B”? “100 Airplane Rides”? “Ketchum, Idaho”? but for sake of argument…) is the one titled “Coast to Coast.” Coast to Coast takes this idea of landscape and internal landscape very deliberately and uses maps as the collage elements behind the skin of the women. The idea being something about our own emotional landscapes, and internal landscapes, and personal physical landscapes (the curve of our wrist, length of an eyelash)…

Above, see a detail from Coast to Coast showing a road map under the surface of the paint.

This idea evolved quickly into what in our internal landscapes/memory banks/personal image dictionaries do we impress upon what we see? And what if what we are seeing is ourselves? How is that impacted by our memory, our internal imagery, etc.

But, all that said, the gallery talk on Friday had me thinking of Debra and this early idea of what our internal landscapes are made from. I am sure this idea is present throughout these paintings and am not sure I saw that so clearly until people started asking me questions about the works at the opening.

The image above is from the cover of her book as found on Amazon.com

The other ideas I had on my work that hadn’t occurred to me were based around my work with Sam Walker.

I think I have already mentioned Sam in my blog— but he was an instructor of mine at UMASS/Boston who I also spent some considerable class time with as well as time in independent study. My first experiences with series paintings came under Sam’s direction— he exposed me to Arshile Gorky and I began doing watercolors that were based in figurative gestures and loosened enough into abstraction. I also did an extensive collage series using photographs, acrylic paints, and found objects around the death of my father under Sam’s guidance— this series I titled “Losing Montana” and at least one from the series has been published in reproduction (in the journal “Cutbank”).

I will never forget Sam saying, as a term of encouragement, “You’re really cooking with oil now.” He was tremendously supportive of me, and of my work, and I considered him a friend. He passed away very young, in 1999, but his influence continues to show up in my work.

One aspect I hadn’t thought of was in the use of mirrors— and bright colors. In a course I had on drawing with Sam in maybe 1998 or 1997 he gave the assignment of doing a small series of paintings using two mirrors. That is— parts of our body that we couldn’t necessarily see using only one mirror.

I thought it was about the stupidest thing I ever heard, and set out to show Sam what I thought. I painted 5 different paintings, all in heavy contrast colors— greens and yellow, purples and blues, etc., that featured items like the back of my ear, bottom of my foot, and my favorite, my ass.

Of course, being blinded by my own drive for proving a point, I forgot that we would have to hang all of these up in front of class for critiques, and I had to pushpin my ass, along with other items, up for the whole class to see. Nice rebellion.

But what occurred to me in the gallery on Friday is that the use of mirrors is a big link to this exercise, and that here I am using a very, very similar color palette. So, I smiled to myself thinking of Sam Walker, a huge influence on my work, who I grew to like immensely— but who I was out to show a thing or two when I started in his class.

The summer before he passed away I was due to do some house-sitting and use his studio, but the plans fell through. But not only did Sam introduce me to a number of techniques and practices in the approach of art— he introduced me to the idea of being a Fort Point artist. He is very responsible for beginning my thoughts and desires of finding a place in Fort Point and pursuing my art here.

So, the Friday reception was a good moment for reflection— and how interesting to see what comes up when people start asking questions on my work.

Finally, yes, TMBG was awesome at the Wellfleet Beachcomber on Friday. What better way to celebrate a fabulous opening reception than some They Might Be Giants? Yes, the pic is a little fuzzy— but the ‘Giants kicked ass.

Music Video: Buffalo Tom - September Shirt (on Letterman)

I know I mentioned the Buffalo Tom show at the Paradise a few blog entries ago- and the heavy rotation of their new album "Three Easy Pieces" in 617 Midway, but I had to post this video showing the band performing on Letterman last Friday. New stuff, performed live, and Bill Janovitz showing his A game... awesome.

Great stuff... thanks to the kind soul who posted it on YouTube.

Image for Sale: Pictures from Opening Reception

As you can tell from the pictures above, the Image for Sale opening reception at the FPAC Gallery on Friday was a great hit and a truly enjoyable evening. People seemed to be very interested in all of the work, and they were certainly engaged in discussions about individual pieces and how the whole show worked together.

It was great fun for me to watch people discussing my pieces- explaining what they saw in the buried images and why they thought they might be there/why they were important to the pieces. With the music playing in the Channel Cafe and the great food, the entire atmosphere was very exciting to be a part of.

Overall there were so many positive comments for Kristen Mills and Jessica Hyatt and what an outstanding job they did curating the show; so many people said to me that it was interesting how different Jeffrey, Silvia and my work was from each other, but how great to see it play off of each other in terms of color, form, content and composition.

Many thanks to all my friends who made it a point to be there. It was such a great show of support. I am truly blessed to have such great people in my life.

Looks like I may have secured an opportunity to show in early 2008 out of the evening's festivities. More on that when the dates and details are a bit more firmed up.

For more information on the "Image for Sale" show, please visit the FPAC Gallery website at www.fortpointarts.org

Thanks again to everyone who made Friday possible- it was a lot of fun and an honor to be a part of.

Happy Monday.

Fort Point Channel Theatre, "On The Road," and On "The Murph"

The Fort Point Theatre Channel’s event last night, “Exclamation Point!” was a great success. The Studio Soto space was an especially great venue for a steamy July evening and the writing— poetry, plays, and fiction— was excellent.

The turn out was much bigger than I expected and the place was packed— I think everyone was pleasantly surprised at the overall quality of all the work presented.

Kudos to Silvia Graziano for her great production of the event— it was really an honor to be included.

Being an attention hog, I squeezed in all the time I could and read three poems— “Counting,” “This Guernica,” and the longer work, “Another Train.”

I read “Another Train” one other time (an earlier version)— at the Cantab Lounge’s Slam and Open Mic in Cambridge. It was my first time there and I didn’t know about the strict time limit on the open mic. The emcee, Michael Brown almost gave me the hook as “Another Train” runs more than twice that.

So, if nothing else, it seemed like a warm reception to not almost get thrown off stage.

The videos posted below are of me reading “Counting” and “This Guernica” last night. I will try and get "Another Train" up here shortly.

For more information on the Fort Point Theatre Channel see their website at www.fortpointtheatrechannel.org

I like the connection between me bringing up Rosenquist in the blog recently, and his influence on how I see Picasso and Guernica, and my poem “This Guernica” being read last night. Also, the images from “This Guernica” are from a collage of mine titled “100 Airplane Rides.”

Truly, the entire event was a great success and a lot of fun.

Over the past few days I have been working on some poetry revisions. Wanted to put together a submission for an upcoming anthology being put out by the Cultural Organization of Lowell titled “Where the Road Begins” to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Jack Kerouac’s “One the Road.” I sent them in 2 poems— “Parking Lot Destinations,” and “The Things Maps Can’t Measure.” We will see.

Also spent some time working on prepping for the “Exclamation Point!” reading— reading the poems out loud, finding their music and rhythms again, etc.

In addition, over the past few days I have been working on some initial sketches and compositional layouts of works for the upcoming Model Consumer series. In fact, I have even been doing some color layouts on some 18” x 24” paper with acrylic scrap booking paint watered down like a mix between watercolors and acrylic. I envision doing a few of these on paper and having them ready for either the show at the Gulu-Gulu café in October or Open Studios here in Fort Point. I have also spent some time with the sketchbook just sharpening up some of my rendering skills— all this influence of Hopper on Boston, and his diligence with his sketchbook, has me inspired.

I got an email from my friend Brian today, he said:

“I'm not sure if you saw the show, but reading your blog about the photo contest reminded me of the Seinfeld episode where Elaine gets mad because she buys a dress that looked great on her in the dressing room mirror, but when she gets home it looks awful. It's decided that the store has 'skinny' mirrors to trick people. The next dress she buys she tries wearing out of the store to look at herself in a different mirror to confirm if it looks good or not. When she comes back to the store they can tell the dress had been worn outside and make her buy it. Hilarity ensues.”

Thought this was pretty amazing for a few reasons. The first is Brian using the old “Hilarity ensues.” As I said above, “Another Train” is one that I haven’t had a chance to read publicly very often due to its length— but I did last night and it also uses the tried and true “hilarity ensues” (although I used ‘ensued’ as the past tense).

The other bizarre connection is that every time my friend Murph comes into 617 Midway he again offers his modeling services, likening his abilities to the of Cosmo Kramer from Seinfeld and “The Kramer" fame (pic above from http://www.tvacres.com/art_paintings_kramer.htm).

He always says I could title it “The Murph.”

Maybe it’s true, maybe everything does relate back to an episode of Seinfeld. Or, maybe some of my friends watch too much TV— you decide. Either way, it is really interesting how many connections people are finding between this mirror idea and all kinds of things. The response to the project is inspiring.

Looking forward to seeing everyone at the opening of “Image for Sale” tomorrow (Friday) night… see you there.

Boston Globe and Boston.com July 23rd, 2007

If you get a chance, check out the Boston Globe today or Boston.com. Both feature a write-up on the FPAC Show "Image fo Sale" and a picture of my painting "Target / Target."

The story is titled "They've Got The Look" in both places.

The Boston.com one can be found at:

www.boston.com/ae/sidekick/insidekick/daily_events_monday/index.html

And as of tonight, the header with the image of Target / Target is at:

www.boston.com/ae

They did a great job reproducing the image (and one of Jeffrey Heyne's as well) in the print edition- front page of the Sidekick section. Some good coverage of the show. Nice build up for the reception on Friday.

Buffalo Tom. Seagulls, James Rosenquist, and More Mirrors

I’ve been a bad, bad, blogger. Have been meaning to post these camera phone pictures from the Buffalo Tom show at the Paradise in Boston last weekend for about a week now. Forgive me, but here they are.

The show was superb. Bill Janovitz will go down in my mind as one of the greatest and underrated rock and roll performers of my generation. As with every time I have ever seen him, he completely wrung himself out on the electric guitar and into the microphone— coaxing reverb from the amp and swinging his arm in windmill circles a la The Who. The band’s biggest downfall besides some bad timing and contract issues is that it has been virtually impossible to recreate the energy of their live performances on any recording. There is a jazz aspect to their performances— especially anything Janovitz gets near— that is melodic and rich with variety and playfulness. A great, great show.

For you diehard BT fans— their rendition of “Tangerine” this time was the best I have ever experienced live.

At the start of my journalism career one of my first assignments was a treatment on Bill Janovitz’s solo project “Crown Victoria” that I wrote for the now defunct website “SpinRecords.com” (the website seems to be maintained by Spin magazine now, but at the time it was an indie-music site for the promotion and marketing of smaller regional bands). I say all this as if I have a booming journalism career now… but it was fun to wax poetic on Janovitz and his amazing musical abilities. I am certainly biased being a fan of the “alternative music” family tree that is more Boston-based (ish) than Seattle. Think Dinosaur Jr., Buffalo Tom, Lemonheads, They Might Be Giants, Replacements (I know, MN but cut me some slack)…

Anyhow, long story short— these guys are on heavy rotation in 617 Midway right now. I am experimenting between listening to Three Easy Pieces (their new CD) on straight-up repeat and random repeat over and over again.

And another aside— Bill Janovitz and Crown Victoria at TT the Bear’s circa 1999 remains on my top-ten list of best live shows ever.

Someone posted some clips of the show at the Paradise on YouTube that are pretty good, check them out. Also, BT will be on Letterman this Friday night which should be kind of wonderful.

Moving on.

Last night I was working away on editing some photos on the computer when I heard a VERY loud knocking. Midway is home to all kinds of artists— wood sculptors, carpenters of sorts, people who make huge-scale frames for photos and paintings— so I didn’t think much of it. And then it continued.

My front door is metal, and this definitely sounded like fist— or hammer— on wood, but it was so persistent… BANG BANG BANG, that I finally got up from my chair to see if someone was at my door.

No dice.

It wasn’t until the walk back that I found the culprit. Pictured above, this enormous seagull was auditioning for STOMP on my skylight.

I bet when I mentioned “Seagulls” in the title of this post you thought I was talking about the affinity my hair has to imitate that of the 80’s band, “Flock of Seagulls.” While true, this was more a reference to the bird than a cultural reference.

I took a walk over the FPAC Gallery today and saw the “Image for Sale” show hung and ready to go. Even bumped into some people who were milling around the gallery and checking it out. Which was pretty fun to watch. I am more and more excited for the Opening Reception on Friday which is shaping up to be a great event.

I also found a reference to James Rosenquist today on my yahoo homepage and thought it was important to give him some additional airtime here on the studio blog.

The image above is from the show 'Art in America: Three Hundred Years of Innovation' which opened at the Pushkin Fine Arts Museum in Moscow today, and shows a piece of Rosenquist’s “The Swimmer in the Econo-mist” (from http://news.yahoo.com/photo/070723/482/62d05797bfd54ab4bb98b6c57ff102ae).

The painting is one of my favorites of all-time. And much of my references to Picasso’s Guernica in poetry or in art are actually references to this work which depicts a section of the Picasso piece (not pictured) in a way that fascinates me— seeing the history and prophecy of art over and over again through a contemporary filter.

I was lucky enough to see it in person twice at the MASS MOCA and it has had an enormous impact on me and my work. As discussed in earlier posts, Rosenquist’s approach and influence— in color selection, in handling of paint, and in themes— is somewhat always there in my work. I can remember being so moved by seeing his brushstrokes up close and noticing how loose and varied they were in comparison to the vivid imagery of the paintings as a whole.

Take a look on AP and you will likely find a photo of Dennis Hopper in attendance at the new Moscow exhibition. Of course, I always think of “grass” Hopper when I see him— but have seen interviews with him and him discussing his personal collection which is amazing.

The whole timing of the picture even had me looking through my old notes and poems for the actual quote by Rosenquist on using black in a painting. See it below in a poem written during a series of mine titled “100 Airplane Rides.” As most of you know, I think flying it crazy-time so this series deals a lot with different spatial relationships— the most important being that of the airplane and the ground.

Last but not least, I found this final photo and caption on Reuters news service today. Seemed so strange how well it fit into the Model Consumer project and my Mirror/Image series.

The caption is as follows:

“Table-dancer Emma models lingerie in a changing room, where women can check their outfits under different lighting conditions, in a new Beate Uhse shop in Munich's city center, July 19, 2007 (Michaela Rehle/Reuters).”

Is this life imitating art? Art imitating life? Whatever it is— the timing couldn’t be more interesting on the verge of the Image for Sale opening and the new Model Consumer series. Keep those contest entries coming in— the series is going to be great.

And here is the poem as promised:

SELF-PORTRAIT WITH HYDROGEN BOMB

Delta Airlines Flight 565 from Boston to Salt Lake City

“What’s more powerful? A hydrogen bomb explosion or the label of a soap box…”
—James Rosenquist, Art in America, February, 2004


I’m reading February’s Art in America— an article on Rosenquist—
when I realize that working horizontally suggests a narrative; vertically
and every picture becomes a self-portrait, or a mirror. The airplane

is taxiing, weaving a story with the sunrise and the asphalt. The airplane
is painting a portrait with the sky. Everyone is terrified of hanging
from some monarch’s bedroom wall— and I’m looking for Picasso’s

big, black eyes in the sunburst rips on Rosenquist’s canvas;
I’m looking for him, as the city stories shrink
between the leaving, and the cold sky turning black.

“You never use pure black paint— you add a lot of white to it,
because of the light,” Rosenquist’s words against paper. And this creaky
airplane spinning without the ground is like standing on a staircase—

kissing with your eyes. Martin always told me, after the first
five minutes or so of a flight, you’re safe, until the landing;
but I’m terrible at counting with my legs tensed up against the floor.

Rosenquist quit painting billboards in 1959 “because two guys
got killed,” he said. “Abbie Marcus fell off Klein’s department store,
and another guy fell off a Budweiser sign in New Jersey.”

They started painting billboards, and finished
painting portraits. The story of the ground is always closer
than we think. I love the stairs, but know that lying down,

I could start to translate the sky— and with the light exploding
into morning, we’d all be safer on the ground.

Image for Sale Preview Pic and Gallery Announcement

Above, see a pic of the FPAC Gallery that features a section of the Image for Sale show. Along with some of Jeffrey P. Heyne's work and Silvie Agudelo's you can see "Photo ID Required" peering from the wall.

Here is the gallery announcement for the show:

The Fort Point Arts Community Gallery presents:

IMAGE FOR SALE

Sylvie Agudelo

Kurt Cole Eidsvig

Jeffrey P. Heyne

July 20-August 17, 2007

Opening Reception Friday July 27 from 5-8pm

In this media saturated culture, our identity is linked with images of celebrities representing an ideal that is unobtainable. Our desire to conform to this ideal is the fuel that enables our consumer driven economy to move forward. Image For Sale, curated by Jessica Hyatt and Kristen Mills, is the work of three artists who deal with how media images form our sense of self.

Jeffrey P. Heyne uses Polaroid photographs of a Barbie doll to create digitally altered images that are covered in resin. O-rings are used to create molded circles or lenses in the surface, a utilitarian reference to the mechanical processes that form commodities as well as a contradiction of the polished, idealized Barbie image. Jeffrey's "deliberate distortions of the perfect run-way model proportion" subvert and highlight consumerism's control over humanities "need for conformance and acceptance".

Sylvie Agudelo's large photographs of nudes in a natural landscape are not retouched or digitally manipulated. The figures are captured experiencing an escape or freedom from image consciousness, which in turn (ironically) becomes a commodity image of the body. The series was made as a "rebellion against the media and manipulated images of the human body" and the photographs capture a world where commodity items don't exist.

Kurt Cole Eidsvig works with collage and layering to build up images of women regarding their reflection in the mirror. Drawing from the deep history of female portraiture, Kurt's figures seem to pose for an audience but their seductive gaze is revealed to us as a mirrored image. We are no longer the object of seduction, the object no longer exists. This reflexive view of the female figure along with the media images that create the background on which they regard themselves ask us "What are you looking at?"

The FPAC Gallery

300 Summer Street, mezzanine

Boston MA 02210

617 423-4299

http://www.fortpointarts.org/

hours: Monday-Friday 9-3:30, Thursdays until 6pm

Steel Heart Completed and Load-in for Image for Sale

Above, see the final pic for “Steel Heart.” Just took this last night and as it turns out I did get it finished in time for the FPAC Gallery show— Image for Sale.

And, since it was raining tonight here in Beantown it must mean that the load-in for the show was tonight as well. The other picture above is all the kids getting ready to head out for school. At least that’s how it felt. I had to wrap them all in plastic so they wouldn’t get harmed in transit.

The “Image for Sale” show will include my pieces “Target / Target,” “Summer School,” “Steel Heart,” "Photo ID Required,” and “Sources.”

Further, I was able to see some of the actual hanging of the show tonight and it looks pretty amazing. Both Sylvie Agudelo and Jeffrey Heyne’s work is stellar. Definitely humbling to have been chosen to participate in a group show and have my paintings up among their work. I was a bit like a little kid— I kept wandering around the gallery and staring at their pieces. Truly great stuff.

And it all works very well together. Image for Sale is shaping up to be a great, great show. Hope to see you all there next Friday for the opening

Exclamation Point: Readings Presented By Fort Point Channel Theater - Wednesday July, 25th at 7 pm

Busy week next week- have the opening for the "Image for Sale" show on Friday the 27th and on Wednesday the 25th am participating in the reading "Exclamation Point" at Studio Soto in Boston.

Above, please see the poster for "Exclamation Point." I hope you will all be able to attend.

I will be reading a few selections from the chapbook "Love is Give an Take" (available for purchase on my website, if you will pardon a brief commercial break). Most likely, the poems "Counting," "This Guernica," and the long poem "Another Train."

Show starts at 7pm. See previous posts for more information on Studio Soto.

Clyfford Still and Steel Heart in Progress (3)

One of my favorite parts of working on these mirror series pieces (a series I’m now calling “Mirror/Image” mostly so it can have a name and a differentiation from “Model Consumer”) is laying down the black. You can see from the picture above that the past bit of time I have spent on a number of things in the painting, but trying to get the large expanses of black right is a huge chunk of how my time has been spent.

This part of these paintings— this getting the positive and negative space right, and super-emphasized, is at the heart of what I first set out to do when I began work on this series about 6 (?) months ago. Drawing attention to the relationship of people to their own reflection (or image) is one thing, (and to also draw attention to the things we look at over and over again in everyday life that informs our ideas of ourselves), but to actually present the relationship of the colors and the shapes is a lot more physically moving versus intellectual. It is also the part that holds the most risk. Obviously every piece of the painting is essential, but the wrong curve or wrong amount of black can so overpower the piece as to make it fall apart. You can tell from all these works that black is a major character— and there is a major aspect of the layering and depth of seeing how much I can get away with in the picture plane and still have the image work.

This whole dynamic was especially true with Steel Heart. I was working in entirely warm colors with the pinks and the reds, and while I tried out the color combinations and compositional shapes in smaller scales beforehand, the realized size always looks a bit different— luckily in this case it is very dynamic and effective as realized on this canvas.

I think I also like the black parts as they are my real fallback to non-representational painting. I do spend a lot of time trying to balance the transparency of the brushstrokes, the brilliance of the color, and the “painterly” aspects of the line in order to create a tension and energy between the still image and the application of paint. In this way there is a tension between linear and painterly effects— but in the black expanses I am free to let the paint clump a lot more and pay different attention to the nuances of the color. As the layers of meaning and experience are so important to these works, the black is always a portion that allows for greater depth and interpretation.

I thought of Clyfford Still a lot while I was painting these sections this time. Almost as if I was doing mini-Still interpretations inside the greater whole of the painting in these black sections. I can’t be sure, but I believe the first time I experienced some large-scale Clyfford Still’s was at the Art Institute of Chicago. Regardless of where it was, this presentation of a huge-scale abstract impressionist work, dominated by this uneven, lumpy black had a major impact on me. There was something so dark and foreboding about the heavy color with the jagged edge, but also tranquil and calming at the same time. It created in me a kind of stillness (no pun intended) and an energy simultaneously (maybe something likened to Kierkegaard’s “Fear and Trembling” with some faith or peace embedded in this dynamic). Anyhow, the ability to create such an vast expanse of depth in the painting by laying down a lot of black went counter to what I had experienced before (in Still the black is neither only flat nor deep— it shifts between the two— surface and expanse) and it has obviously influenced my thinking about art and how to approach painting.

Above image of Clyfford Still in front of a canvas is from the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery (http://www.npg.si.edu/exh/rebels/paintim.htm).

I continue to experiment with exactly how I want to achieve this. I play with different combinations of colors (every time I set to mixing my black I hear this James Rosenquist quote in my head “you never use straight black, you always mix it” which I am sure is a misquote now, as I can’t find its source, but is close enough for my head). This most recent “black” is a combination of black, white, some silver acrylic and some navy blue. Of course, this dynamic is also made different as Still used oil paints for his large canvases, and the se acrylics lack some of the same properties. But, in order to achieve the same transparency and collage I have for the rest of the work, these acrylics do an amazing job.

Funny, because what used to be a hierarchy of subject matter (religious, portrait, landscape, etc.) on importance of artwork has turned into a hierarchy of materials (oils still being seen as most pertinent). This has been shifted a but over the past 20 years (into sculpture for one thing) with the focus on drawings and sketchbooks as a way to get a more intimate view of artists. All that said, the acrylics made today definitely don’t do all the same things oils do, but in laying down these blacks they are able to achieve that balance between flat and depth.

Maybe the other reason I love the black sections is I don’t have to worry about how much I show/how much I don’t show from beneath. As with Steel Heart I often use vinyl lettering behind the paint, along with various devices to lift the paint from the surface with some texture— but I don’t need to think about what aspects of collage are showing. In all of these the black sections are that alone— sections of black that operate against the colors and the white and the collage work.

As I write this I can see a future work with the black on top of the collage. That is some of how art goes— finding your rules and tricks and challenging them over and over.

The other thing that has been on my mind quite a bit now is this Hopper show. I have been reading through the catalog and there is an inference in the first essay that he didn’t talk much about his forefathers— that his style was uniquely Hopper. I am not sure if I agree or disagree with this yet, but it is in direct contrast to how I work for sure. In both my art and my poetry feeling a part of a greater conversation is essential— maybe because art from the past has helped me form my self- and world-view. For sure you don’t want to repeat what has already been said in the conversation (unless you can say it with a different spin or voice), but part of being involved is the listening and understanding what has been said before. So, I imagine Hopper in his studio giving birth to some unique and personal style in an intimate vacuum— while I lay down layers of black with Rosenquist and Still murmuring around in my head.

Then again, the next essay in the catalog might say the exact opposite.

But for now, Steel Heart progresses. I am loving the black and am working on the finishing touches of detail and second applications where need be.

One last note— as I searched for a good image of Clyfford Still, I found this portrait by Tina Mion shown above on the Smithsonian’s website. The large oil painting is featured in the Smithsonian show “Portraiture Now: Framing Memory” and the painting is titled: “Stop-Action Reaction: Jacqueline Kennedy, King of Hearts,” from 1997.

What a wonderful painting (you can see more at her website http://www.tinamion.com/ where this image is taken from as well) and how strange to catch this when I am writing about Steel Heart (which obviously uses playing cards but in a different way).

Only reinforces that fact to me that there is no vacuum in art— only a larger discussion we are all participating in.

Edward Hopper in Beantown

Edward Hopper has never lived on my list of the top artists of the 20th Century. Even with his iconic imagery and stylized romance of urban New York City, as well as rural Cape Cod, it has always been hard for me to get over his focus towards representational painting.

As strange as it might sound, and while they were contemporaries of sorts (Hopper was 30 years older but would outlive “Jack the Dripper” by 11 years), Jackson Pollock’s paint drips always seemed like they were liquid Jimi Hendrix reinventing an electric guitar in contrast to the Ella Fitzgerald that could almost be heard crooning in the backroom of some of Hopper’s interiors.

In short, although they were nostalgic and romantic and charming— the Hopper’s were my parent’s paintings, while the Abstract Expressionists and after were mine.

That said, the Edward Hopper exhibition at the Museum of Fine Arts is the big thing to see for us artsy types (or even somewhat artsy types) this summer in Boston, and today I ventured over to check it out.

As a side note, I have to admit it is interesting how open-minded I have become now that my own work has moved from the more “abstract” to representational:

hyp·o·crite / Pronunciation Key - [hip-uh-krit]

a person who pretends to have virtues, moral or religious beliefs, principles, etc., that he or she does not actually possess, esp. a person whose actions belie stated beliefs.
(from Dictionary.com)

One of my ex-girlfriends always said I was a hypocrite. Maybe she was right after all.

Moving on...

So, what did I find at this big-deal exhibition of an American art icon?

To sum it up in three words: green, green, green.

The paintings— at least the best ones to my eye— are so very rich and stylized in their color and light they are incredibly visually moving. They are much different, and more complex and nuanced, than I had expected after seeing so many glossy reprints of his work over the years. Hopper’s deft use of oil paints allows for reds that are brick-colored and brown; scarlet and muted all at once. Certainly his watercolors and etchings are an amazing treat— his attention to line and compositional layout and detail are highlighted by the inclusion of these works— but his most moving pieces are those oil paintings that set a modern green against an urban, brick, red— and the result is incredible.

I’ve talked before about the pitfalls of using green for us painters— and how overpowering it can be. Truly, how awful it can be (see blog post “Orange and Green from May 10th http://617midway.blogspot.com/2007/05/orange-and-green.html). Beyond my appreciation as a whole for Hopper’s evocative style, rich, rich colors, and expert handling of light, I thought:

This guy handles green, and to greater effect, than any other artist I can think of.

I’m not talking about John Constable’s green trees of a British landscape, or the deep greens of Monet’s water lilies— rather, Hopper’s greens are the man made greens of modern America; the green of my Grandmother’s salad bowls, the greens of the motel walls that Hilton never took over and the original owners haven’t covered up yet. In Hopper’s able hands, this color— when matched against that urban, brick red, of New York in expansion, create a style and color palette that is deep and moving and wonderful.

On of my favorites was Room in New York from 1932, pictured above (borrowed from the Artblog site http://www.artblog.net/) which shows that when I refer to the reds I don’t always literally mean the brick— the woman’s dress and the armchair play against the green paint of the wall. In person this paintings is magnificent.

Interestingly enough, many of the reproductions I found of it online have color-corrected the green of the wall to a yellow— only in person can you appreciate the subtle contrast of color and mood Hopper achieves in many of these works.

And the greens can be found in the color of the blinds in one image (for instance, Room in Brooklyn from 1932) or a woman’s sweater (as with Chop Suey from 1929), or the ceiling and walls of a movie theater (as with New York Movie from 1939).

Yes, there are others— the lighthouses and sailboats, the watercolors of Cape Cod and Gloucester houses, but the powerhouse paintings are those that play these colors against one another along with the poses of houses, figures, sky, etc.

And there is something wonderful about the statement in so many of these paintings of the interplay between urban and rural— the man made and the natural, In one painting a lighthouse towers over the sky and in the next a well-lit apartment building gives way to a pathway leading into the dark woods. Many of his canvases are framed in this way— a fence sealing off the natural world from a beach house, or the sky set imposing over a brick building. It is a theme that however subconsciously repeats and is fitting for an artist who was one of the last gasps of truly “modern” painting.

One of the bigger treats in the exhibition was Hopper’s actual sketchbook. There was something magical about seeing sketches of his own paintings and then the recording of the sale prices, etc. In fact, this is probably one of the better aspects of the Museum of Fine Arts website offering that accompanies the show. Online, web-surfers can flip through Hopper’s sketchbook and zoom in on different pages. While there is something powerful in seeing his real sketchbook encased center stage in the gallery, the online piece is great in its own right. Definitely one of the better features I have seen accompanying a show in our age of internet options and extras (http://www.mfa.org/).

There was also a section in the actual galleries that featured a selection of Hopper paintings on a monitor coupled with a photograph of the actual place now (for instance the Cape Cod houses he captured in paint). This part wasn’t as interesting to me, as by the time I reached it I was immersed in Hopper’s stylized world awash with his modern light and colors— and didn’t want to be yanked back to bland reality.

Overall, the paintings evoked an emotion of melancholy and romance as with a Raymond Chandler book featuring gumshoe Philip Marlowe. Even in Nighthawks, my mind wanders to a blonde who is capital “T” trouble alongside Chandler’s famous anti-hero asking the soda jerk what happened there 3 nights ago before some unlucky stiff got murdered.

Or another one of my favorites Western Motel from 1957 (borrowed here from the Yale Art Gallery http://artgallery.yale.edu/) seems to play out a scene from Robert B. Parker’s treatment of Marlowe’s character in the novel “Poodle Springs.”

Again, the red and green are spectacular— as is the mirroring of the form of the armchair with the roll of the hills in the background. The palette gives these paintings their own distinct light that seems like we are seeing the world through the eyes of a detective from a piece of detective pulp fiction.

In the museum shop I noted that this wasn’t only me who caught this— amidst every type of marketable sailboat book, coaster, magnet, etc. there was a book on film noir (The Art of Noir by Eddie Muller) for sale that I already count in my collection.

An aside: Raymond Chandler is likely one of the finest prose writers of the 20th Century. Go pick up “The Long Goodbye.”

My favorite curatorial placement in the Hopper show was also one of my favorite paintings, Sun in an Empty Room from 1963 (shown here from http://www.erratamag.com/images/hopper/sunemptyroom.jpg).

Stripped down to the squares of light and the empty room, the painting is just as much about the relationship between things (characters as Rothko’s squares were actors in a drama), or people, or the tension between urban and rural, and is just as moving and visually interesting. Plus, to be presented with this as the last piece in the show— everything removed from the room, with us wondering if the unseen boxes packed off camera will be moved in or moved away. There is certainly a theme of mortality and of that which does or does not endure, in this amazing painting.

Plus, it makes a great bridge for me personally between the abstract and the representational and somehow marries the two perfectly.

Maybe that ex-girlfriend wasn’t so right after all.

Edward Hopper runs until August 19th, 2007 at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston.

FPAC Summer Show: Image for Sale

Above, see the postcards for the upcoming show, “Image for Sale,” at the FPAC Gallery at 300 Summer Street in Boston.

They did (the FPAC Gallery folks and Kristen Mills and Jessica Hyatt who are curating) a great job on the show; postcard and additional material as well. Looks great. Love seeing "Target / Target" staring right back at you.

Per the posting, the opening reception is Friday, July 27th from 5 to 8 pm. Hope you will come by and see how all these works fit together. It should be great fun.

I am off to paint.

Kurt

Work in Progress: Steel Heart (2)

Above, see 2 photographs of the in-progress piece, tentatively titled “Steel Heart.” Looks like I may have enough time to get this one finished up before the FPAC show as well.

The pictures are over 2 days— thought I would have done an update yesterday that didn’t happen. I am interested in how using the 2 warm colors (the pink and red) works together and will create even greater contrast when I lay the black down. Think this composition and color choice will be visually striking once the colors are all laid down, and it also calls out to the idea of the “Queen of Hearts” which is one of the elements— if not Valentine’s Day, in a completely different way (that is, contrasted against phone sex ads and gambling forms).

Music Video: Raekwon - Incarcerated Scarfaces

Yesterday was a picture-perfect painting day in 617 Midway. I was hard at work on this new work in progress, had the windows open, could smell the sweet stench of acrylic being smeared on canvas and had my latest “painting” playlist blaring out of the radio.

It occurred to me that I have been falling off with the glimpses into the music that is being played at Midway on any given day. While I have been feeding myself a steady diet of Buffalo Tom and Bill Janovitz in honor of their brand-spanking album, "Three Easy Pieces," I was most inspired yesterday by Raekwon’s “Incarcerated Scarfaces.”

From the “Only Built 4 Cuban Linx” album, which is certainly on any list of the top-50 hip-hop albums of all time, the song, and album, are nothing less than awesome.

Probably one of the most highly-anticipated albums in the last 5 years is “Cuban Linx 2” which having its date pushed back. But for now, I am content to listen to Raekwon at his finest.

A little known fact is that this album is one of my favorite albums to paint to. Enjoy.

Rabid Blog Fans, Matt Damon, Speeding Tickets and New Work in Progress

Had my first rabid blog complaint today. Ok, it wasn’t rabid, and it wasn’t too complain-y— it just was a one work email. Subject line “Blog.”

The message in the email simply said “update?”

I love it! Nice to know that people are reading, and that they are looking forward to reading more. That said, my last update was 2 days ago— I do try and spend some time painting sometimes.

But, on with the update.

One thing I find fascinating about living and working at Midway is my view of the world. From my desk, I can see the access road between the southeast expressway and the entrance to the Ted Williams tunnel. OK, not so interesting. But, the apparent concern over Homeland Security, as well as it being an easy place for State Troopers to nab people for speeding, lends itself to me seeing a bunch of people getting tickets. I will look up from my computer and see the lights flashing. Reminds me of my days as a semi-professional import/export specialist in a former life.

It is a weird thing to witness over and over again— who wants to see people getting speeding tickets over and over again. Of course, I can’t tell what the result is, but I always hope they get out of it. And yes, every once in a while when they pull over a huge tractor trailer and there are like 3 cop cars there, my imagination runs toward plutonium and mushroom clouds. None yet, thank you— just tickets apparently.

On a different note, the first time I ever was in court for anything, I watched a guy go before the judge. The prosecutor explained that the man was pulled over for speeding— going 100 miles and hour in a 35 mile and hour zone. When the police got to him, they found at least 5 pound of weed that had seemingly exploded all over his car (maybe he had opened the bad and tried to hide it? eat it all? I mean, that’s a lot of weed). The defense and prosecution settled on a court date. That’s when I knew I was going home that day.

So, see the pictures of Massachusetts’ finest writing out tickets from the bird’s eye view of 617 Midway.

Of course, it makes me think of Matt Damon (what doesn’t) and the movie The Departed, especially when he says:

“You got a suit at home or do you like coming to work everyday dressed like you’re going to invade Poland?”

The image above is from http://www.rottentomatoes.com/

As for today’s work. I have been hard at work over the past few days on a new painting. This one is 24” by 48” and uses collage elements from playing cards, horse racing forms, play money, 900-number advertisements and betting forms for the Massachusetts State Lottery.

From this collage element I found out that not only do they have 900-number services, but they also have text messaging services now (“Hot Text,” I believe was the name of one). Which also explains my delay in blogging. It is hard to receive “hot texts” and blog at the same time.

Kidding folks. I know irony doesn’t always come through so hot on the blog. But do keep that hot text thing in mind for your next lonely Saturday. Ahhh, technology.

Moving on… the pic above is of the initial layout with the collage elements down on canvas. I will begin laying down the paint today. The past few days have been spent organizing the composition, getting the collage elements right, and getting them on the canvas.

Not sure about a working title yet— might be “Steel Heart,” but we will see. I’m hoping to work overtime at getting this one done. Think the size and dimensions might lend themselves to the upcoming FPAC show pretty well. We will see.

Midway Sunrise and Final for "Summer School"

As many of you know, I work quite often late into the night/early morning. While I tend to work on the business end of things during the day, I find that nothing compares to the undivided attention a painting can get at 3 in the morning.

Generally, it turns out, I do most of my painting from about 11pm to 5 or 6 am. Basically, this is the time when everyone else is asleep and I can focus completely on painting.

And, as with all things, I feel justified because de Kooning was similar.

Doesn't do great for being able to participate in conversations about what was shown on "Good Morning America" the other day- but I get some pretty spectacular sunrises being so close to the ocean. The above is from this morning.

On a slightly related note, if you want a treat today check out the page of artist Bruce McClain's Interior paintings (http://homepages.gac.edu/~bmcclain/Interiors.html). The "Monet and Pollock" and "De Kooning and Lautrec" are pretty wonderful.

I came across the de Kooning "Newsweek" cover above via google.

And, with the dawn this morning came the finishing touches on "Summer School" which looks like it will be included in the FPAC Gallery show starting July 20th. The above is a quick pic to tide you over until then.

Work in Progress: Summer School (3)

Have been working away on this new painting Summer School- and it is really coming together. looks like I may be able to have it finished in time for the show "Image for Sale" that I am participating in at the FPAC Gallery at 300 Summer Street in Boston starting July 20th.

The colors in the pic might be a little off- as I used a flash- but you should get the basic idea.

Even for these smaller ones, lots and lots of work. But as they start to come together and be their own work, it gets really exciting.

Monet is more and more on my mind as I work on these and also as I talk to people about Model Consumer. Those water lilies where he paints the sky, surface, and through the water simultaneously- this idea of layers on the surface of the painting, and then layers beneath in the case of these collage pictures, keeps coming up as I paint.

He is also always on my mind when I am in a fury of painting. It is lots and lots of work- but if Monet could paint 25-30 paintings a year in his 80's (and I mean paintings larger than "Summer School"), then I guess I can keep working.

Happy Saturday everyone.

More Frequently Asked Questions; Model Consumer

Had a couple more great questions, a few times, for the Model Consumer Photo Contest. Here goes the answers:

Does it have to be me holding the camera or can it be someone else behind me so that the flash being so close to the mirror doesn't ruin the image?


The photographer and the model has to be the same person. But, you might play with no flash or timer settings. There are no stipulations that you have to be actually holding the camera for the picture.


Will you be accepting digitally manipulated photographs for this contest?


The answer is yes, keeping in mind that the contest seeks each entrant's image of themselves within the confines of a dressing room of a store.


I really hesitated on the second question, just because I didn't want people to get the wrong idea. As the contest calls for "Image Quality" as one of the judging points, I can see people getting confused with adding and removing elements, etc.

The idea of getting people's individual images of themselves within the context of consumerism- specifically in a store's dressing room- is the central aim. While digital manipulation is allowed, and certainly may provide some interesting results, the goals can probably be just as powerfully conveyed with a simple, unaltered, photo.

But, please do whatever you can to make your ideal entry.

And all this interest and these questions are incredible exciting. It is very powerful to have so many people engaged in the same creative process simultaneously.

Happy picture taking!

Work in Progress: Summer School (2)

Above, see the latest pic of the work in progress, tentatively titled “Summer School.”

Had an interesting experience as I listened to one of my “painting” play lists tonight while I worked on this piece.

One of my favorite CD’s is called “Voice of the Poet” from a series by Random House of poets reading their work. Right after I heard O’Hara read “To the Film Industry In Crisis” (which is a great reading and even has some music accompaniment and a guest spot from painter Jane Freilicher) the play list went, on random, to Tupac Shakur’s “I Ain’t Mad At Cha.”

I am not certain, but it struck me that this might be the first time the universe has ever been presented with O’Hara and Tupac back-to-back. And I got to witness it.

Discussing "Sources"

As promised, I will continue to post some clips from my appearance on "Citizen's Corner" from time to time.

In this one, I am discussing the painting "Sources."

Work in Progress: “Summer School”

The two images above are from a current work in progress, tentatively titled “Summer School.”

This will be another in the series of mirror paintings— this one is small— 22” x 28”.

So far, the collage elements are from 2 children’s books of mazes— “My First Mazes” and “Seas-side Mazes” both published by Buki Toys (www.poof-slinky.com). In addition there are images from some Archie Comics titles that I found in various places on the internet (Veronica, Betty, and Cherry Blossom were the titles of the comics these come from). And finally, there are images of the box covers of some adult videos, also found on the internet.

Planning this one was a little difficult, as I am enjoying these mirror paintings while at the same time so excited about the Model Consumer images, and also hoping to get some work finished for possible inclusion in the FPAC Gallery’s “Image for Sale” show starting July 20th. Basically, there is a lot going on at 617 Midway and it puts some pressure on my painting time. All that said, the time spent thinking and finding collage elements and centering around a loose theme have paid off.

So far “Summer School” has been great. I have broken a few of the rules I have previously in the series (that is, what collage elements can go where, etc.) and think that it is truly headed in the right direction.

As I have been wrapped up with Model Consumer when at the computer I am posting these two images together— but you can clearly see the progress made between the two. Compositionally, I love this large line of an arm that cuts the piece in two. Think it is working really well.

Work in Progress: Postcard Poems

I have been remiss in posting new work in progress as I have been putting quite a bit of effort into the Model Consumer photo contest (www.KurtColeEidsvig.com/contest). This is turning out to be extremely exciting and will provide lots of great fuel for my next series.

I have also had lots of questions lately on my poetry— what is going on with it? Am I writing? Etc.

It is going. Yes I am writing. I have no idea how to answer the question “etc.”

From time to time I write postcard poems to my friend and the amazing poet, Martin Cockroft. This is a knock-off of the New York School poets who used to do this sort of thing quite a bit, and as Martin and I have collaborated on poems, etc., he tends to be the target of my experiments.

The postcards are a good way to control poem size and form as they only give you so much space. Left to my own devices my poems get pretty long and wordy so constraining them is a great exercise for me.

The pictures above are of the first 2 sections of a series of postcard poems. I am playing with rhyme and narrative-ish style. The form is 18 lines— kind of a sonnet plus 4. There is a set rhyme pattern and form. Each ends with a couplet.

I’d bought this box of postcards a while back— the 20th Century Art Box— with just this in mind. As you can tell, I like using postcards for my work— as with the painting “Precious Gems” as well.

This type of poetry (narrative, rhyme, formal) is so alien to my typical style it forces me to come up with some different stuff. Not sure what I think of these or the series but at the very least it is a good effort.

I’d thought I would write quite a few of these in Westport last week and I was completely wrong. But wanted to share some of my work here. I have hopes that the series will go on for a while, and I also have some other poems and revisions I am working on.

I plan on revising 2 manuscripts for submission for September as well and have just started thinking about that a bit more seriously again— which poems to use, revise, write into, how to order things, etc.

Model Consumer Photo Contest F.A.Q.

So, have lots of good response on the Model Consumer Photo Contest and some good questions too.

Here is my crack at answering the questions and keep those great entries coming in:

1. I’d love to be in the contest, when is it taking place?

The Model Consumer Photo Contest is accepting entries now through August 24, 2007.

Entries must be received via email to KurtColeEidsvig@yahoo.com by midnight on the 24th.

For full submission guidelines visit:

www.KurtColeEidsvig.com/contest


2. What kind of pictures are you looking for?

This is the hardest question to answer. The contest seeks creative images that will be judged on quality as well as creativity. Beyond that, the decisions are solely those of the model/photographer


3. Can I have someone in the dressing room (and the picture) with me?

If you want to, and can figure it out with the dressing room clerk, go for it. The only disclaimers are:

a) I am not bailing anyone out for getting arrested taking a picture (translation: Kurt Cole Eidsvig and KurtColeEidsvig.com are not responsible for any harm done in any way in the process of attempting to create an entry for the contest).

b) The person who takes the picture must be in the photo as well.

c) It is the entrant’s responsibility to secure the model release and rights and permissions of anyone who is included in the entry photo.


4. Are you looking for nudity?

Sometimes in my personal life, yes. For instance when I take a shower, I disrobe.

For the entry into the contest there are no rules for or against nudity. They are called “dressing rooms” though, not “naked rooms” so don’t feel obliged to do anything besides take a great picture.


5. Will you post the entries as they come in?

Since the contest is concerned with getting each person’s own creative version of themselves in a dressing room mirror I don’t want seeing other people’s entries to impact that. So, there will be no posting of any pictures until the end of the contest.

After that, full credit will be given wherever possible to the entries and the photos.


6. I am interested in entering— tell me more.

The only thing more to know is that each submission must be accompanied by the date taken, name of entrant, store, and location, as well as the following posted into the entry email:

This email and entry signify that I have read and agree to all of the contest rules and regulations for the Model Consumer Photo Contest. I herby grant Kurt Cole Eidsvig and KurtColeEidsvig.com full permissions and rights for the use of the attached photograph.

After that, just go take a picture and send me your best one.


7. I don’t understand the contest— taking a picture of myself in the dressing room mirror? Won’t the camera be in the picture? Are you just trying to see people naked because there are easier ways.

This is a multi-part one—

I took some pictures of Old Navy mannequins a few months back. And I have been doing these paintings with layering— mostly line drawings to make up people (i.e. maps under the surface, design-build drawings of planes, etc)...

On top of that I have done a lot of work with mirrors lately. Which I love. It recalls the idea of threes in nature and in art— the father/son/holy ghost; person/mirror's surface/reflection; water/surface/sky; past/present/future, Monet's water lilies-- reflection, lilies, beneath water, etc., etc.

Also, a lot of my work lately is on how people inform their ideas of themselves— images of women in comic books, the National Enquirer saying Lindsay Lohan is too fat/too skinny, etc.

And, over the past few months I talked to 2 different people about dressing room mirrors. One said:

"I know— how do they do it so things look so good in the dressing room and when you get them home they look awful?"

The other said:

"Could those dressing rooms make you feel any worse about yourself? I mean the light is awful… and those mirrors!"

Obviously, people were seeing different things in dressing rooms.

To go back to the mannequins, I thought it would be interesting to flip the idea I have been working on in art. That is, rather than take some pictures to make up what people are (the maps, drawings, etc.) why not use people to make up another object— that is mannequins in this case.

So, I needed pictures of people to then turn into line drawings and put beneath the surface of paint in a huge line painting of mannequins. Which I also love, because who draws mannequins?

The contest seemed like a good way to promote my art, get some help creating art, promote some other people’s photography and modeling, and create some great art wit a lot of combined energy and creativity.

I also love the idea of people's various images of themselves within the confines of consumer America, and what that looks like to different people. So, I am working on this project that is both an individual work of art and a happening of sorts— it captures people's vision of themselves, ideas of consumerism, uses mirrors, and is great fuel for other paintings.

No longer is the project limited to this mannequin painting but I have also planned individual paintings for some of the pictures I have received— watercolors, (like the fire and ice paintings) enlarged pieces, etc. This will be the start of my next series.

As for the camera needing to be in it? Maybe. I guess if you can hold it to the side maybe not. But it isn’t important to me either way, as long as the image is cool. You may want to turn off your flash too. Maybe not.

As for wanting to see people naked. That is the strangest question to me— the contest rules say nothing about it. Maybe take the picture before you have tried something on, or after, or in-between. Or be buck naked— whatever.

But do I like to see naked people? I guess it depends on who is asking.

And as for easier ways to see naked people…

I feel like I may know a few of them but I am always eager to find new ones. Do tell.


8. As always, for more information see:

www.KurtColeEidsvig.com/contest

www.617Midway.Blogspot.com

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You Know You’re Nearly Famous When They Spell Your Name Wrong

OK, that probably isn’t true— but it sounds good (might make a good opening line for a poem). But if it were true, I would have been nearly famous my whole life.

Lots of people have asked how the interview went last week on Dan McCole and Denise Harrington’s TV show, Citizen’s Corner, on Boston’s BNN Channel 9. As you can tell from the pics, we had great fun— it was an honor to be asked to be included. The only unfortunate part was that they spelled my name wrong. With a last name like Eidsvig, this is not uncommon. Although in this case, they spelled Kurt with a C instead.

I think it was a newspaper article on my High School’s Freshman Hoops team (which was supposed to be the next powerhouse team in the state, until we went 3-13) where they spelled my name Eldsvig. This one stuck wonderfully. I still see people from High School who call me Eldsvig when they see me. I grin like I am amused and have never heard it before.

And then there was the unfortunate incident with the jacket with my name embroidered in cursive on the sleeve in 8th Grade. The jackets were the rage. The only problem was the R in my first name looked like an N. Thank goodness that one never turned into a nickname.

But I have had Edsvig, Idsvig, Eldsvig, Erdsvig, etc. etc. So, my nearly famous status is cemented once again.

Back to the show. Dan and Denise had me bring in a few pieces and discuss them and also asked me to read a couple of poems. The time flew by and they were great. But it is weird to see yourself on camera afterwards. There is probably a reason I am not pursuing a TV career instead of art and writing.

I am going to post some clips from the show here, and will follow up with some more when I get them uploaded. The first ones are of me discussing the painting “Queens,” and me reading the poem “St. Augustine’s.”

Hope you enjoy,

Curt