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Tuesday, March 29. 2016

An interesting American: Jacob Collins

The New Old Masters - 
New Yorker Jacob Collins and his devoted students seek a radical reclamation of artistic tradition.


Readers know that I am a fan of all sorts of art, from cave paintings through Renaissance to Cezanne to Thomas Cole and including Picasso whose taste, touch, experimentation, and vitality impresses me more with each passing year.


Does excellent technique equal excellent art? Is there a difference between fine art, design, decoration, and illustration? Does "art" evolve? Does the camera matter?


I tire of those questions.


Is there such a thing as talent? You betcha. I know for certain, because I have none. I envy talent - to a sinful degree.


Is the Art World full of hype and hooey? Of course. There is $ in the art biz.


I hate going to museums. Problem is, you have to, to stare at the good stuff up close.


Is "new" better? Nope.


Image is a Collins self-portrait. I would let him do a picture of me anytime he wants to.

Posted by Bird Dog in The Culture, "Culture," Pop Culture and Recreation at 18:32 | Comments (10) | Trackbacks (0)

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When asked "what is art" Andy Warhol replied "art is whatever you can get away with."

That philosophy now rules art, music, medicine, academia, food, you name it. Indeed, the movers and shakers in virtually every field throughout what remains of our civilisation have been getting away with something.

Endeavors by men such as Collins shine the light on this.
#1 fodderwing on 2016-03-29 19:28 (Reply)
The same thing happened in photography.

Most of what passes for "endorsed" photography has become insulting to anyone with eyes and a sense of real taste.

I once curated a show in a Connecticut gallery trying to restore the ideal of beauty to modern photographers using alternative processes.
#2 Whitehall on 2016-03-29 20:11 (Reply)
My brother-in-law, John Traynor, upholds the traditions of the Old Masters from his Keene, NH studio... (shameless plug!)
http://www.johnctraynor.com/
Golf fans - check out his work as Featured Artist at last year's U.S. Open... http://www.johnctraynor.com/usga/
#3 Pajak (Link) on 2016-03-29 20:31 (Reply)
Somebody said that modern art was born when artists quit painting women and decided they had a better idea.

His work looks beautiful.
#4 James the lesser (Link) on 2016-03-29 21:56 (Reply)
Thanks BD for posting. I've been reading about the Pre Raphaelites and many other 19th century painters. So glad to see that tradition may be coming back.
#5 grant1863 on 2016-03-29 22:44 (Reply)
The difference between talent and skill is discipline. This artist and his students seem to understand. Wouldn't it be something if his school is the art that is remembered centuries from now?

I love the comments from his critics in the article . They don't get it. Great art isn't always about the subject. It's the truth and beauty that stand out in great art. It's why a painting of a bowl of fruit can have more truth in it than a modern piece of pure self expression. Much of the great works of art were commissioned by a rich person that told the artist what he wanted. Parameters on the artist are what force him to reveal the truth in a subject.
#6 Jack Walter on 2016-03-30 07:07 (Reply)
Hm....I can't draw a straight line with a ruler....but even I can see that portrait is art.
Steve
#7 Steve on 2016-03-30 11:41 (Reply)
I'm glad artrenewalcenter.org got mentioned.

They've been at this for some time, and their on-line museum is magnificent.
#8 DrTorch on 2016-03-30 13:39 (Reply)
I hear the word "art" and I reach for my Browning
#9 Donny "The Bear Jew" Donowitz on 2016-03-31 01:12 (Reply)
Seeing who wrote this I presume Donnie meant his "Brownie"....

If it was Browning, he might hurt himself.
#9.1 Edelweiss on 2016-03-31 16:35 (Reply)

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