Being an artist clown I was excited to find and buy the book: {The Great Parade: Portrait of the Artist as Clown edited by Jean Clair sold in connection with an Exhibition organized by Pierre Theberge} Yale University Press, New Haven and London in association with the National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa 2004. The selected clown art was researched from this book. Footnotes to access more information on these paintings are posted below this article. Front Cover of Book copies of the book may be hard to find; search on Google or Amazon.
Crispin and Scapin by Honore Daumier
1863-1865 Daumier produced his social
caricatures for Le Charivari,
in which he held bourgeois society up to ridicule
Clown Making Up by John Sloan 1910
Showing the clown as an artist painting his face.
Pierrot Grimacing by Gustave Dore
1832-1883 Possibly a self protrait by Dore
Watercolor
and white gouache over pencil lines
The Clowns by Gutierres Salona 1920
Erie and grotesque images place his art in a Spanish Baroque style
The Intrigue by James Ensor 1911
inspired by masks of the Mardi Gras
Ensor is an expressionist painter, oil on canvas
Pip and Flip by Reginold Marsh 1930 Social Realist Painter of New York's colorful characters, this image from Coney Island was a favorite haunt of the artist
Soir Bleu by Edward Hopper 1914 Hopper is an American original. The Whitney Museum in has an extensive collection of his work.
Excellent
image of the painting, A Clown” by Luks from the Boston Museum of
Fine Art with commentary by Janet Comey. This
image is the image which was chosen for the cover of “The Great
Parade: Portrait of the Artist as Clown,” exhibition catalog.
The Lightening Bolt is the Symbol of the Mating of Heaven and Earth
The is Mother Nature, she is the embodiment of all women. She is to be loved, respected and revered.
The Emissary is a Symbolist Painting created in regards to worry and prediction of Global Warming and Earth Changes. Symbolism was a movement in the 19thcentury with a gothic philosophy dominated by predominantly Catholic artists embodying biblical and mythological themes in a new way.
This quote also influenced the painting:
“Vox clamantis in deserto” A Voice Crying in the Wilderness
Aaron prays over the Scapegoat to take the sins ot the people into the desert. Also known as The Emissary Goat
And Aaron (Levite priest) shall bring the goat upon which the
LORD's lot fell,
and offer him for a sin offering. But the goat, on
which the lot fell to be the
SCAPEGOAT, shall be presented alive
before the LORD, to make atonement, and to let him go to cry for forgivness until he dies in the wilderness.
There will be people who will be left behind, too late; for their sins are too heavy.
This goat is also called the Emissary Goat or the Voice Crying in
the Wilderness for he has taken on the sins of the people and now
cries to the Lord for their forgiveness.
The Emissary Goat will die in the Desert
The Phoenix Rises from the ashes of destruction and brings Hope & Renewal
The Women's Movement was strong in the 1970's and The
University of Akron brought in some influential women in the arts
to meet and inspire us; especially the women students.
I remember telling some other students at this that I was taking
a taking a course called,
“why there are no women artists in
history”.A young man, also a student, got real close in my face
and yelled, "that’s
because women are no good as artists!" Oh well,
this wasn’t the first time I
would encounter this reaction by a man
threatened by a woman and it was not the
last; stories for another
time, please stay tuned. So study Women's Art History I did. Here are the books we used: {Women Artists 1550 - 1950} by Ann Southerland and Linda Nochlin and {Women Artists and Recognition and Reappraisal From
the Early Middle Ages to the Twentieth Century} by Karen Petersen and J.J.
Wilson.
Artemisia
Gentileschi Italian, 1593- 1653
Artemisa Gentileschi's Self Portrait
What is amazing is this woman's strength that she became an artist at all considering the limits placed on what was known as the weaker sex. Gentileschi was blessed with the opportunity to learn art because her father who was a well know artist accepted her as a student, women at this time could not study in an art academy. Gentileschi's father hired another artist he had worked with to teach her perspective; Agostino Tassi.
Susanna and the Elders
Unfortunatly Tassi raped Gentileschi. This man was disreputable and had been convicted of arranging the murder of his own wife; I guess her father
did not know this before he let his young daughter of 17 years study with him.
Judith Slaying Holofernes
After
Tassi raped Artemisia Gentileschi her father took Tassi to court where he was found
guilty and sentenced to 8 months in prison but he was later acquitted. During
the trial Artieimsia Gentileschi was subjected to torture with thumbscrews which was then a
form of lie detection. After the trial her reputation was ruined and she was
considered a sexually licentious woman, this often overshadowed her ability as
an artist. Artismisa Gentileschi is according to Harris and Nochlin, "the first woman in the history of Western Art to make a significant and undeniably important contribution to the art of her time."
Judith and her Maidservant
Artismisa Gentileschi painted mainly women from mythological and biblical stories and these subjects probably resonatedwith her as a woman. Also because she was a woman she would not be allowed to study the nude figure but she had access to her own body to study the female nude.
I mention Gentileschi's rape because one in 3 women is reported to have been raped so this is a serious issue and it undoutably affected Gentileschi's choices of subject matter. When I go out to paint en plein air I always go with either my husband or a buddy. I do not want to be a statistic. Rape is is a reality in many women's lives, perhaps we could say in all women's lives because of the specter of possibility. Artismisa Gentileschi's paintings have a theme of power and anger, perhaps because of the rape and trial ordeal she went through at an early age which changed her world and the way the world looked at her.
In Scottsdale Arizona in October 2015 I had the honor of attending A Symposium on Women and Art in the 21st century.
>
These Women's Groups are still important and valid to women artists everywhere.
Above are some quick sketches I did while at the seminar using various pens and technique, some pens are water soluble so I used a water wash for some sketches.
I Am Woman - Helen Reddy
(with lyrics)
As an artist I suppose I am not unique in that I fell a kinship with others artists, especially musicians because their music influences my art so much.
Azaima Anderson; A sensitive righteous musician and song writer with a big dash of humor Performed at Yankie Creek Coffeehouse in Silver City NM
Guitar Player with Azaima Anderson Yankie Creek Coffeehouse in Silver City NM
Missy Andersen a Truly Great Blues Singer and Very Personable Performed at Little Toad Creek Silver City NM
A Patron A Little Toad Creek Brewery in Silver City NM
The above sketches were painted from life using Winsor and Newton Paynes Gray and
Winsor and Newton Designers Gouache White.
Patrons at Silver City NM Blues and Bike Festival Watercolor Sketches from life
Patrons at Silver City NM Blues and Bike Festival Watercolor Sketches from life
Patrons at Silver City NM Blues and Bike Festival Watercolor Sketches from life
For more information on Artemisia Gentileschi visit wikipedia
The Gentileschi paintings I published came from this site:
Recently my husband
and I had the opportunity to visit our daughter in Orlando Florida where she works
as an artist in the entertainment industry.
Our Daughter at City Walk
I have often used water
soluble pens to draw with so I was excited to get a hold of the Sketch and Wash
pencil by General for this vacation. My sketch pad for all these drawings was a Strathmore Series 400 3.5in x 5in; because this paper accepts a wash very well.
Lowes Portofino Bay Hotel at Universal Orlando
Just a quick sketch while I waited for family to catch up to me
I
first read about the water soluble pencil in Plein Air Magazine, January
2015 Issue; an advertisement from General Pencil about their water soluble pencils. The full page add featured a large picture of a Drawing by Tom Lynch. It was then that I knew this pencil was “a must have” for me.
Two Views of City Walk near Moe's
The Sketch and Wash Pencils do not have the problem of drying like the ink pens because they are already dry and because of this you can take more time developing the drawing before it touches the water. I still bring along some pens and other pencils; just in case I want to add to another dimension to the image. I use a water brush for the wash effect because this is so much easier than carrying a water container and brush.
Another View of City Walk
I was very taken by
Universal's City Walk. It is within walking distance of my daughters place so we went
there almost every day for lunch or dinner and to look around. We also spent two days at the Universal Studios. We went there especially to see the two Wizarding Worlds of Harry Potter because my family
and I are huge fans. I did not have time to draw while at Hogsmeade or Diagon
Alley but I did do a small drawing while waiting for Islands of Adventure, Tales of Sindbad and some drawings at a restaurant diner in the evening while
waiting for the nights fireworks and the water show to begin.
Island's of Adventure
Ceiling with pipes at Diner
Young Man Reading At Diner
We also visited Orlando's Disney Springs where I did a drawing while waiting for lunch at Earl of Sandwich and dinner at Wolfgang Puck Grand Cafe and one drawing outside watching the people walk by while waiting for the most recent Star Wars Movie, "The Force Awakens to start at the Disney Springs 24 Theater.
Giant Tinker Toy Sculpture at Disney Springs
Olive Oil Jars Hung On Walls at Wolfgang Puck's
Walk at Disney Springs
I keep my drawings
lose and carefree as a quick sketch should be. I almost always carry sketching
supplies and a small watercolor cake paint box where ever I go and I have done this for many
years. You just never know when you will have a few minutes to create a small
work of art.
Hard Rock Cafe Across the Water at Universal's City Walk
It was great fun
the be in such a large city to have the opportunity to render images of unusual
architecture and crowds of people; especially because I live in the country where I
paint trees, mountains and animals more often than not, which is what I prefer; but this city life was nice for a change.
Although I immersed
myself in sketching on this vacation and I did not have much time to oil paint; I did spend a day at Cape Canaveral National Seashore where I painted this view before the sun set.
"Mist and Sand Glow at End of Beach" Cape Canaveral National Seashore Oil on Birch Board 11in x 14 in
