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Art is life, for the artist anyway.
By Guy Mclaren
Today I want to talk about art, artists and creativity. Now before you go get all excited I am talking real art, not shite on sheets, or blood streaks on canvas. Art is very subjective, Some people like to think that spreading excrement on a sheet is avante garde expression and some absolutely know that it's poo on a blanket. I started painting at the beginning of the year. OK my first bit of art was created about 7 years ago with a house painting brush, some PVA and some fabric paint. I needed to cover a hole in a wall, had some stuff in the garage and just painted a scene. What surprised me is that people actually recognised the scene and complimented me on the work. It's now lying gathering dust in my Mothers garage, but what the heck it's not real art. Over the years I have attempted to paint some more, I got some acrylics and a few brushes, but the medium was not mine and nothing came of it. In January I found oils, or should I say they found me. I started painting a few paintings and even finished some. Two of them are hanging in other peoples houses so they can't be too bad. It's the symbolism of the paintings and gaining an insight to my being that has been the oddest part of the journey. I was chatting to a fellow artist, well a real artist and he showed me some work he had done back in the 90's and then proceded to explain what he saw in the painting in retrospect. While this conversation was happening I had a revelation. My first painting was dark, a forest scene and no paths. I had three odd objects that could be termed lost in the wood. In January I was stressing about various things and my mood could have been considered lost in the woods. My next painting was a road leading into the distance but stopped by a huge tree with a very forbidding mountain in the distance. At the time I was looking for answers but wasn't seeing any solutions. The Painting thereafter was a country road turning a corner before disappearing. Could this have any meaning? The next painting I did shows a road going into the sunset, The trees on the side of the road dark shadows. No destination in sight. The next one, once again a rod with no destination, the trees have disappeared, It's night time and no destination, just the very lonely road. I started a painting on the weekend. It started with a dark road, and a dark sky, Strangely the painting has become lighter than anything I have painted before. I had already added twinkling lights in the distance, and a farmhouse in the middle distance. The sunset has turned into a sunrise. All of these paintings happened before my conversation with Lourens. Lourens pointed out the psycology of the works. The gradual improvement in the outlook. The gradual move away from being lost in the woods to a road with light and a destination. Strangely all of this makes total sense. I have been unhappy or rather discontent with my business, Decisions are being made that are moving me away from what I have been doing for the last 7 years. The shadows are being moved and the light is on in the distance. What do you think?
Guy McLaren has been married for ever(OK, only 19 years) He is a photographer and web developer based in Nelspruit, Mpumalanga and Pretoria, Gauteng South Africa
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Desert road at night
Light Trails
Forest
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Real art is the creation of something that did not exist before but which enriches the lives of those who can appreciate it. The vast majority of art has nothing to do with paintings or pictures, it is to do with anything that is done by anybody with zeal and care. A topiarist creates living art, a good cook creates edible art, children produce primitive art - the list goes on. Just to live your life to the best effect that you can is the same as creating a work of art. Many people fail to appreciate the artistic merits of the works of others but this does not mean they are not art - just not art for many people. Once you decide that you know what art is, you destroy the whole concept and denigrate the efforts of those whose work you fail to understand.
CONTRIBUTOR'S REPLY
beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Shite on a sheet is not art, It may be self expression, bad self expression. I agree art finds many forms. Much culinary art has been enjoyed by me, Not just children create primitive art, I do to.
Being a self-taught artist myself, I appreciate your road to enjoyment.
I feel that whatever I create,painting,topiery,woodcarving,snow sculpture or photo collage is art if it gives me a chance to express my creative desires and take me away from day to day struggles.
Best wishes.
Frederick
CONTRIBUTOR'S REPLY
Strange that, I may be producing total pap, but while I am it's as if though everything else is forgotten. The daily struggle of life becomes unimportant, It's just the brushes, the oils and the creative urge. As a therapeutic endeavour, just slapping paint on something seems to be one of the best things I have done.
I think your photography is excellent. Your painting efforts are really evolving in philosophical directions. Personally, I find that I want to spread happiness and light in my art. I want to call peoples attention to what is good. There is enough expression of darkness and depression already. Just expressing sadness is of limited appeal to me.
CONTRIBUTOR'S REPLY
Thanks for the photography thing. Photography as an art form has appeal to me as I can get out there and do something creative, Sadly I cannot find a personal expression nor originality with the camera. Good images are abundant but the really great ones escape me. I agree my artistic renderings on canvas are not great. The light trails was incomplete at the time of the photo.
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