when someone leaves

It’s always a bit sad when someone you know leaves and as they go a void appears.

it’s all about the money…

As Britain raises money to buy Titian’s “Diana and Actaeon”it begs the question in my little head, why and how does art warrant such worth? how  can such value be associated with a painting?

Is it all about wealth and identity? being able to afford great art, displayed in a personal collection to be viewed all the time.  that’s pretty special, its nice to be able to own art and surround ourselves with things which inspire us but how does THAT much money get assigned to a work of art? How does an auction house price art at such an amount that millions and millions are required in order to save them and place them in the National galleries?

Last year Mr.Hirst held his personal auction, that was incredible, £70 million was made from the sales, and the work was predominantly reproduced, marginally altered to create editions of work.  A printmaker or photographer usually works in editions, they have to state how many editions are going to be made, they have to sign off the edition.  Mr.Hirst seems to have endless amounts of editions, shouldn’t that decrease the value of the object? it doesn’t seem to be the case.  it questions authenticity and it also questions greed.

Branding is a powerful thing, fakes and forgeries offer people the chance to experience a ’style’ or ‘look’ offer an identity, there are plenty of fakes walking the streets on the shoulders of shoppers, even the V and A do it.  Can we obtain the same experience by not having the real thing, but experience the imagery by other means? is it the same? that must be why we pay so much for the honour, the pride of owning such a piece – but is it just showing off?

the purchase of the Titian will allow it to be seen by the public, rather than held in a private collection – that is a great thing, but it seems a lot to raise for the privilege, and im sure that’s how we should feel, priviledged.

Returning from another E learning Fair.

It is becoming a habit to report back on the E learning Fairs/conferences i attend and so i shall continue as i have begun in blog land and fill you in.

It is a quite unremarkable thing, none the less, extremely enlightening, inspirational (at times) and bewildering.  usually i come away with the feeling of, “i don’t quite know how to disseminate that information to my colleagues for the greater good” mostly because it is very difficult to relay a presentation with the same passion and enthusiasm as the original presenter because of the difference and confidence in knowledge, however, i do like to give them the gist.

This fair was not exceptional by any means, the most inspiring event was the keynote speaker, robin Christopherson from AbilityNet, who highlighted some major points to be aware of when creating material for the web.  Other key players would have been Mr Redbeck, from Thanet College, talking about personalization of learning and the e-portfolio.  see that doesn’t sound like anything to report back, but it was worthwhile, if only for the promise of development from a member of senior management, and a suggestion  of support and further funding – always good to hear.

The thing i find most important at these things is that we embrace what could be done, what the possibilities are for our learners and colleagues, what the advantages are to using these promoted materials, and how exciting my role could become if only we were able to pursue.  Because that’s the disappointing thing about e learning fairs, you see so much you would like to take on board, you feel inspired and motivated to seek out new adventures, but fall at the third hurdle when it comes to inspiring others to support the project.  that’s a little bit negative, because many projects have been supported within the establishment i work in and it would be unfair to say they were a closed book when it came to embracing e learning, but there are (and always will be) barriers.  Barriers which can be approached and leant over, but not straddled, not yet at least.  Only that is the problem – not yet at least, by the time things are taken on board the next thing is coming along and we need to get on that, and i am afraid that it might be the case for some time possibly until a generation of fearful educators die out.  and though that may seem harsh, colleges need vision, and vision in many places, not just one or two.  We are a good college, we have a great deal going for us, but we are in need of a kick up the bum, followed by a great helping of support from above.  i suspect most resource enthusiasts find themselves in similar positions nationwide, so i mustn’t grumble – and am not.

La Machine (part 2)

After waiting for the mystery of the Theatre company La Machine to reveal itself, i was, unfortunately, rather disappointed.  The event looked amazing, i was wowed by the mechanical beast and i am sure the dwellers of the city found it an event that was well worth witnessing.  However, it lacked the narrative i fell in love with in the Sultans Elephant.  The spider (La Princessa) had her own story and her own adventure, but hardly on the scale the Elephant managed in London.

It did inspire some thoughts though, and having just viewed the great Robert Hughes on Channel 4 i believe i have answered some of the questions going through my head.  One being, are we impressed by scale and grand gestures more than we are about narrative or meaning? RH talked about Andy Warhol producing art which was commercial – in a factory (which he did and i always thought was kind of his point about art) but then RH talked about Damien Hirst and the money in Art and which holds more value, meaning or worth?

i have often sat on the fence with Damien Hirst – not literally, though i did peek over his garden wall once – is his work meaningful anymore? has it become a production line, increasing market value of art without content, luxury items for the wealthy.  Contemporary showcase pieces to have in the background as the TV camera passes by.  Or is it something of the tongue in cheek, showing wealth and richness in art is the content of the work – for instance in his work For the Love of God, 2007, is it about the absurdity of rich items which go on sale, or is it a competition to prove it can be done? either way i think Hirst is playing with the notion of value,in life and death and representation, but when this piece received all the publicity it did, it was about the sale figure.

Hirst has also been in the news recently as he auctioned his own work independently, great – we all thought, bully for him, quite right, but then once again the Hirst factory shone through as galleries upon galleries of his work showed repetition and greed? or boredom.

As i sit on this fence i wonder if he is a great artist, or just another celebrity who everyone finds fascinating in the perverse way reality TV took over the land all those years ago. i am reassured by the fact there are a great many artists in the world who do explore meaning in their work, and can evoke engagement with its audience.  I am not overcome with bitter jealousy of Artists like Hirst, i wouldn’t want to be them anymore than they would want to be me. i am slightly angered by the fascination in reproducing ideas, and wish that more people would think originally.  its all about the wow factor – isn’t it?

La Machine

La Machine. matthewandrews(c)

We are patiently awaiting the grand arrival of the spectacular event La Machine in association with Artichoke are about to launch on Liverpool. going on the results of the Sultans Elephant, shown in London in 2006, by the theatre company Royal de Luxe, it should be something quite special.

Of course my expectations are high, i was certainly moved by the Sultans Elephant and suspect i might find myself disappointed. None the less, i can not wait to see what they have been working on and how the narrative is going to be played out. i have seen sneaky photos of one of the creatures as they have been rehearsing in the city, but the magic lies in the unfolding of the tale as much as the greatness of the models created.

keep tabs on their activity at www.lamachine.co.uk/

Cy Twombly

Cy Twombly
Poems to the Sea 1959

Wittgenstein said that “philosophy is not a theory but an activity” (1918) Giacometti claimed “If there’s no picture that’s too bad. So long as I’ve learned something about why” (1957) Cy Twombly is categorised as a doer – his paintings are activities, actions on the canvas – not in the same fashion as Pollock, but as a puzzle broken down to decipher it, understand it and communicate its message.
so many of the abstract expressionist painters gain a representation for producing nonesense that spectators can not make anything of. the translation is too hard, but by all accounts, Twomblys work is created cautiously and through calculated moves, “Twombly is endowed with the gifts that mark true painters of automatically sustaining flatness over the whole extent of the canvas and of imparting a certain stillness to the canvas regardless of how mouvemente the composition is.” (David Sylvester, 1997, About Modern Art, p374)

Twombly’s work reaches out to the viewer as many abstract, expressive pieces do. through trying to search for the meaning you come across frantic scrawl passionately inscribed into the thick surface of paint which blocks out the canvas or writing beneath, they are descriptions of a place, a response, a calculation. they are hidden away in doubt yet bold in their energy. the spectator can not dismiss his gatherings of information, they require a personal translation and understanding – that moment in front of the painting, which holds you in adoration.
there is a stillness in twombly’s paintings, even in his most crowded, heavily worked canvas’, there is space – of quiet contemplation.

WAR HORSE

Topthorn (Puppet)Photo by Simon Annand

I am very much looking forward to going to see Warhorse at the National Theatre, though the puppets scare me a little bit.

WOW

wow, this is part of the Street Art show currently on at the TATE Modern, where there has been some critisim over how the work has been displayed, i.e not really in keeping with the ethos of creating street art, however – its pretty good. this is JR Partizan’s wall covering on the corner of Lexington Street, London. pretty impressive me thinks.

http://www.tate.org.uk/modern/exhibitions/streetart/default.shtm

The Turner Experience.

The Turner Prize nominees were announced recently, and of the four, i only recognised one – and that was only because she used to teach at DOJCA (she may still). The work of the four is not the most interesting i have come across in the Turner prize, which i will not join others in saying has gone downhill – but i did lose interest slightly when it went to Liverpool TATE. However, this year it will be exhibited at the TATE Britain – will this make a difference to my following it? possibly, because i am more likely to go to London and have a relationship with the work, rather than just reading about it through skeptical reviews. It does go to show the impact the work can have as expressed through the media and experienced first hand.
i do regret having not seen Tracey Emin’s “My Bed” for myself.
i wish all the contenders insightful thoughts in producing the work and present an interesting, engaging and challenging show in September.
- i will report back.