Creating a Working Language in The Arts

Artists Live Within Their Own Universes

I often find myself in a place where the working language of the art world is not quite enough for me. As an experimental artist I run up against a wall quite often where what I am creating is far enough out on the fringe that I am forced to create my own working language and terminology for what I am doing.

This is most often due to my own ignorance I suspect. Never having had the benefits of a degree in arts, I've largely had to piece together my own knowledge of how the art world works. I think a lot of other artists run into this often.

Image of the Day - "Clawing at the Fabric of the Universe"

Was particularly pleased with this piece. The color on the hands is a hi-lite Lumier Blue to achieve the glow.

Image of the Day - "The Souls First Steps"

Third Vision of the Revenant Cycle

This one took some doing. The model was body painted first then photographed and then merged with an original piece done at night in one of New Orleans cities of the dead. To bring it all together took some work. Do not be deceived this piece is far more than digital art.

You can view the working notes for this series at the following: Revenant #3

Artists on Twitter - Designing Direct Message Introductions (#Twitter Science 101)

One of the things on Twitter that irritates a great many of us is the constant stream of "HI I AM" messages and "LIKE MY FACEBOOK" messages that we get in an abundance via private messages most of them trying to sell us something or some concept.

I have to be honest, most I don't even bother to open. I can see at a glance to the Direct Message box that its not worth my time in the very first few words. But every once in awhile there will be one that catches my attention because of its sincerity or its attempt to be honest and open about why they are saying hello.

The Occasional Daily Art Log for 09-09-15

Its been a totally amazing night in the studio. Revenant #3 began at 10PM and ended right around 2:30AM. This one went so smoothly. The model was great and my artist intern was in perfect sync with me throughout.

All three of these body sculptures have gone remarkably well so far and gone off without a hitch but for this one I was in a particularly great creativity zone throughout. I knew where I wanted to go with the piece and executed it perfectly.

Image of the Day - To Gaze Upon an Alien Sky

Today's image is part of the Dark Shadows Forest series. The original image was shot just before dawn in Audubon Park. The digital art took about 3 hours to create the final image seen above.

Changing the Art World - Focus to the Arts not the Politics of Art

As Burning Man came to an end it had been my irritation to see dozens of articles written on everything from bug infestations to earthquake hazards that could take place with so many people dancing in the desert. In one case there was a report about a van that was driving to Black Rock City that said "Free Candy" on the side in bloody letters. The owners were participating in the crazy vehicles that are known to populate Burning Man, but stopped briefly in a California town on the way to visit friends. The outrage of frightened parents who took this "obvious parody" as real and called the police to protect their children was to say the least, IDIOTIC! The press coverage it got was even more so. In another case there was a series of articles written about the hazards to the ecosystem with so much smoke in the air.

The Time Sculpture - Art, Artists and History Mix

I've always had a fascination with time. If you are a regular reader to my blog you know that I believe we are the first generation to become virtually immortal. With that thought has come my need to explore the immortality of art itself and what becomes of art after the artist is gone.

With this in mind I am creating (or have created depending on when you read this) the first in a series of "Time Sculptures".

Image of the Day

Aurora was created from a predawn photo shoot in the Audubon nature center this morning. It is one of several images that will result from this shoot. For more information on the technique used, see the following:

The Sweet Zone

What is the Photography Sweet Zone?

The Sweet Zone is the period of time when the sky begins to light up before dawn or the light fails at dusk when the flash on your camera still functions at the same time. Your camera uses both the flash and the natural light to create a unique image that cannot be caught at any other time of the day. The Sweet Zone only lasts about 10 minutes. Before that time there is usually not enough light for your camera to pick anything up or for your flash to function. After it the flash stops functioning completely and natural light takes over in the shots. You can force the flash to remain on, but it is only in that brief zone that you can pick up some very intriguing outdoor images.

Image of the Day

The Hurst Tomb

This is the 23rd sculpture in the New Orleans tomb series. I've left the last few open so that the desiccated corpse still shows within. This is the first tomb that also incorporates Mississippi River driftwood into the design, something I plan to do more often in future pieces.

For more info on this sculpture click here: Hurst Tomb

Every Work of Art creates a Preconception

Every Work of art creates a preconception of the artist. What do I mean by that? I mean that no matter how good or how bad the work of art is, the viewer is looking at it through a subjective lens. Lets take a beach scene for example. 

On the wall of a museum is a beautiful tranquil beach scene with the sky full of the last shades of a setting sun. Pretty huh? Now lets look at it through the eyes of several viewers.

Viewer #1 is an elderly man, who when he see's the painting is taken back in time to childhood days with friends. A campfire may be being lit just out of the frame of the painting for a cool autumn night ahead. Elderly mans preconceptions of life have just created an instant affinity with the painting. 

Fine Art Photography - By Darren Bailey LRPS

It is time for the Art world to accept that the photographic process can be used for art in the hands of the right artist.

As a photographic based artist it is sometimes a little difficult to get taken seriously, because I am using a camera instead of a brush or a pencil, as soon as anyone from the art world hears the word "Photography" they instantly switch off and label you simply a "Photographer" and conversely those that consider themselves a "Real photographer" do not take you seriously unless you are producing images of little birdies, landscapes and weddings so I find myself in a little bit of a predicament.

Image of the Day

I believe this is the final image chosen for the Revenant II. There are approximately 100 hours into Revenant II with a total of ten final pieces of art. My thanks to model Christopher Ryan (http://christopherryan.com) for participating in this one. We move on to Revenant III tonight with model Topher.

The Occasional Daily Art Log for 08-31-15

I've been doing a lot of soul searching the past few days. In fact I wasn't even going to do this log tonight because in a way I feel like a fraud for having some of the thoughts I've been having recently. But then I got to thinking that this is what this is meant to be. In simpler words its about the challenges, tribulations and soul searching that artists go through. If I don't express it in the written form, then it remains nothing but a series of thoughts in my own mind. So here it goes.