Art and Architecture Archives

Some may accuse ArtsWom of having a bit of a US-centric slant to our recent posts. If this has somehow offended you, we apologise with all the sincerity of a certain New York governor caught in a particularly messy situation. The similarities end there, however, as ArtsWom would never pay $500 dollars an hour for sex, we’d rather save our money, buy a fleet of Vespas and cruise around the countryside.

Interesting related fact: In America, it is illegal to transport a prostitute across state lines. Is it weird that I find that funny?

Anyway, back to the point.

Shielding our eyes, covering our ears, and ensuring no contact with any bodily fluids, ArtsWom are shifting our attention away from the US to see great art elsewhere. Somehow, we’ve ended up down under, considering the work of Ken Done, who persists in painting with a typically Aussie optimism and vibrancy – read more.

While that title could suggest a brilliant new initiative to visit the world’s most popular art galleries sitting on the back of a donkey, I’m forced to disappoint. Regardless, this excellent series provides a virtual journey through galleries such as The Guggenheim in Las Vegas, New York’s Storm King, Le Louvre, and L’institut du Monde Arabe. Places you may never get to see in a lifetime, delivered to your telly – read more.

Well, it definitely wasn’t ArtsWom. We’ve long celebrated the creativity and imagination of our rotund cousins from across the pond. Maybe it’s the vast openness of the beautiful landscape that allows the mind to wander, or maybe it’s the American ‘can do’ spirit, that makes them think that if it can be done, it’s worth being done - even if some of us cynical Europeans may disagree…

Nevertheless, it’s time to celebrate that particular aspect of the American dream of doing weird things with cars and calling it art. Here are a few samples -

And if that’s not enough for you there’s more to see here - read more.

Finally, these knitted trees are the work of a Geordie ex-pat living in Ohio. What more can we say? Absolutely brilliant. Why knit jumpers onto trees? As Jafabrit says: “Because we can, because it’s fun, because it makes people smile.” Whoop!

As the nation is currently mired in the spectacle of the presidential race, it’s easy to forget that some aspects of America are worth taking an interest in. If you look behind the flashy sets, empty promises and outrageous spending, there are real people creating real art – read more.

Surely all of us have considered a career in art theft at some point in our lives. I toyed with the idea in my teens, but after much deliberation chose to become a blogger instead. Fewer infra-red beams to bypass, y’see.

If you’re still hoping to live the glamorous, roguish life of an international art thief, you’d do well to pick up some pointers first – read more.

Do we all have an obsession with death? That’s the claim made by the makers of the documentary How Art Made the World, which suggests that death is a major theme of our visual world and that we are all compulsively drawn to morbid images. Is this completely missing the point? – read more

“A £35 million gold sculpture is stolen in Vienna. Who could have pulled the heist: a Balkan warlord or a handsome Austrian pin-up? Narrated by Kenneth Cranham.”

I don’t know who Kenneth Cranham is, but I’m hoping he has a deep and boomingly ominous voice to match the show’s premise – read more.

I remember reading a study somewhere saying something along the lines that 99.9% of teenagers believe that Michelangelo Buonarroti is the full name of a ninja turtle, rather than the famed renaissance painter of the Sistine chapel. Do the country a favour – grab a nearby child and force them to learn something by watching this… read more.

While we Brits complacently mock the Yanks for their ignorant disregard of the rest of the world – we, as a nation, are just as bad. Perhaps worse, as our capital holds some of the finest artwork from cultures, past and present, from across the globe. An Introduction to Islamic Art will start you on the path to worldly enlightenment – read more.

Do you want to get behind the mind of the man who painted The Scream? No, of course you don’t. While it may be one of the most recognisable and coveted paintings of our time, it’s also as disturbing as a pre-school reproduction of a Sarah Kane play. But did you know that The Scream was based on a vision actually experienced by Edvard Munch? - read more.

Architecture is one of those art forms that everyone has an opinion on. Unfortunately, as with most opinions, it’s usually the more negative ones that rise above the rest, which is why you never see a headline on the front page of your local newspaper declaring that neighbours are taking to the streets in support of the proposed Brutalist design for the new town hall. Take a moment to ignore the industrial eyesores of the world and appreciate some of architecture’s finest achievements – read more.

Hypocritical housemates on Channel 4’s Big Brother frequently complain of how much they hate fakes. Fortunately, we love them. That being so, John Myatt is our hero after managing to fool experts and flog his copies of various paintings for 7 years to collectors before being caught and banged up. Such was the old crook’s charm, however, that he now presents a popular TV programme teaching others how to commit fraud. Isn’t that sweet. If you fancy knocking up a few dozen copies of Sunflowers, read on.

Marvel at the ingenuity of civilizations long passed! Did you know that many of the visual techniques employed by modern filmmakers were apparently first developed by artists of the ancient world? No? You ignorant cretins… – read more

We do it every day; buy things we haven’t seen, touched or tested by clicking that enticing Buy Now button on a million different websites. But this is usually for simple purchases like CDs, books, minor gifts, holidays and the like (one day last week, the all-consuming USA spent $733 million online). Well now it seems that the heady world of art collectors have ventured into the realms of online acquisitions, buying paintings without even seeing them in a gallery.

You’d think that the convenience of buying your art online is far outweighed by the experience of seeing the piece in situ, examining it in fine detail (under infra red light in some cases) and get a feel for the presence of whatever it is you’re looking to add to your collection. But sitting in the comfort of your leather chair, with your leather-bound laptop and your leather-bound cheque book, seems to have become the preferred way to buy your Old Master, without the tedium of mixing with other people.

So are auction sites the way forward for the lazy collector, where we buy the name rather than the piece, building up bulk collections as opposed to well-chosen art, deciding what goes with what because we have seen it in real life? Maybe for lounge art, something to hang over the mantelpiece, but for classics? Do me a favour.

Image courtesy of JezebelGreywater at DeviantArt

Sun 18 Nov 2007 11:35AM - 12:00PM Artwork from the DeviantART portfolio of ~captainslug

The first episode of this triptych is entitled Judgment and takes a look at the moment just after death when the unfortunate one meets Death and faces the music. Subsequent programmes focus on Heaven and Hell, and all three concentrate on the relationship between art and death.Stemming from early Egyptian artists who produced the Book of Death, the subject has fascinated artists for millennia. An earlier ArtsWom article has explored the obsession that artists have with the skull and images of the skull, but these shows follow the journey that death takes via art throughout the ages. Many, many artists have depicted death in their art, and there are discussions of the subject on sites like this and this.

The programme contends that the depiction of death in art has been an instrument to maintain the status quo in society – that the threat of death forces the people to toe the line for fear of incurring the wrath of the hooded one. The show takes in the entire spectrum of art from the earliest days, right through Michelangelo up to modern times with the work of Mark Wallinger (who is said to be influenced by the macabre thoughts of William Blake). If you have any thoughts on the depiction of death in art, feel free to discuss them with others on the SkyArts site.

No, we’re not just trying to win a Bloggies award for the longest post title (although such a category should definitely exist). This is the title of a thesis written by Robin Wright, the Chairman of Arts & Business 1997-2005, exploring the biological purpose of art. Wright draws upon a variety of studies, including psychology, anthropology and cognitive psychology, to make his case that art funding and art sponsorship has value – hopefully unburdening art lovers of the need to prove this.

This is a fascinating read for any art aficionado and you can download it in full by clicking here. With a foreword by writer of the God Delusion, Richard Dawkins, and afterwords by such luminaries as Stephen Fry - Wright’s analysis is a serious analysis of why funding for the arts is not simply based on a whim, but built upon an ingrained need in the human genetic make-up.

The questions raised by this thesis should resonate in future debates about the necessity of art funding and sponsorship in the future. To lend your thoughts to the argument, Sky Arts are inviting people to engage in a discussion with the writer on their website. This is an opportunity that should not to be missed.