Classical Art History

Posted by Suzanne Hill

The outrageous thing about the attack – posted on the Internet – was how art teacher Berry said her principal responded to the incident. She said her principal told her she'd provoked the attack by telling the student she would defend herself [thus using a so-called “trigger” word] instead of defusing the situation and calming the student. Say what?



Marietta English, president of the Baltimore union's teacher chapter, stated that her office typically receives two or three complaints a day of assaults on teachers. When I first heard this statement, I thought I heard it wrong. Two to three attacks a day??



Evidently many of the attacks aren’t reported to the school system or the police. I’ve heard teachers say in interviews that they believed the school would take care of the situation by transferring them or punishing or expelling the student. But the administrators aren't reporting these violent incidents or doing anything to punish the violent children for fear their schools will be doomed to a "persistently dangerous" label under the federal No Child Left Behind Act.



The use of a cell phone to videotape the attack and post it on myspace will no doubt egg on other students to tape violent acts and post them as well. But ironically the recording allowed us to see how bad the situation in the schools really is.



Why wasn’t the student who beat down the art teacher arrested? Are we powerless to take possession of our city schools and demand that students behave?

Posted by Suzanne Hill

The romantic green drink – absinthe – is back after a 100-year ban.

Absinthe is often captured in artwork because of the seduction of its rumored psychoactive properties and its connection to a bohemian lifestyle. Famous artists who imbibed the spirit known as “The Green Fairy” include Toulouse-Lautrec, Manet, Gauguin, and Degas. The most famous of all absinthe drinkers has to be Van Gogh, although he suffers from a misconception that it caused him to go mad and cut off his ear. But notice how he frequently uses ochres and pale greens (the colors of absinthe) and how many of his paintings feature the bar where he drank the spirit.

The elixir was favored by artists and writers seduced by its “secondary effects” whereby the imbibers become intoxicated and are subject to hallucinations that they felt enhanced their art or suited their eccentricism. But in truth these qualities are no more marked than a buzz one gets from drinking tequila. Generally, it can be described as a heightened clarity of mind and vision warmed by the effect of the alcohol; some users insist the drink also produces unusually vivid dreams.

Absinthe tastes refreshingly like anise and is flavored by fennel and wormwood. It’s very strong – 70% alcohol – and is served diluted in a ritual involving a sugar cube placed on a flat decorative slotted spoon resting on the rim of the glass. Iced water is slowly dripped through the sugar cube, dissolving it and causing the green liquor to louche into white opalescence.

In Baltimore, absinthe can be enjoyed in this traditional ritual at The Brewer’s Art on Charles Street and can be purchased by the bottle at the Chesapeake Wine Company in the Can Building in historic Canton. Enjoy! I intend to!

Posted by Suzanne Hill

On Sunday I visited the Maps exhibit at the Walters Museum. What a spectacle! This was the most engaging and interesting show I’ve seen in months. The maps on display cover a wide variety of subject matter from celestial and make believe terrains to terrestrial locations in all corners of the world to charts showing literacy rates in the U.K. and language distribution in the Balkans before the area was carved up after World War II. The maps are made of materials ranging from typical ones of parchment or cloth to more unusual surfaces like a glass globe, an African memory board, and a map of London on a glove.

One map of chalk and pigment on paper [by Leonard da Vinci c. 1502] is a topographical study of central Italy. It was the first map to indicate elevation with color – in a technique known as hypsometric tinting – rather than small cone-shaped ink lines typically used by his contemporaries to depict terrain. The higher the elevation the darker the brown pigment. The map was conceived as an engineering tool for negotiating the Arno River as part of the war invention services he offered the Duke. In creating the map, Leonardo developed a cartographic technique 300 years before its time.

The exhibit Maps: Finding our Place in the World remains at the Walters through June 8, 2008. Though admission to the Walters is currently free, the exhibit costs $12 admission.

Posted by Suzanne Hill

Delacroix’s March 28 entry from his famous “Journal” reads:

“…When I am at my easel I forget all the worries and cares that beset mankind. In this world the chief thing is to defeat boredom and sorrow, and I am sure that the man who chooses an occupation like painting out of all the forms of recreation will find attractions that the ordinary run of pleasure does not afford. One of its greatest charms is to remember the time spent in painting after the work is done…Work all you can; therein lies the whole of philosophy and the best way of organizing one’s life.”

* * * * * * * * * *

Perhaps in Delacroix’s world the chief elements of life to forget were boredom and sorrow.

Today the creative soul may wish to escape the miseries of ever-growing government expansion and control, rising inflation, the shrinking dollar, and lowered property values.

Today’s lifestyles are stressful. Though Delacroix lived 150 years ago, his message has credibility even today; I agree with him that a valuable way to enhance the quality of life is to involve yourself – no, lose yourself – in art. Those who can make a decent living at it too are fortunate indeed.

Posted by Suzanne Hill

I continue to ponder why so many contemporary artists pour their creative energies and cleverness into art that’s trivial and shocking. Modern art died around 1970, but certainly the modernist effects linger. The merits of beautiful old paintings do not generate as much sensation as the ridiculous work of Damien Hirst who dissects cows and soaks them in formaldehyde or of lewd performance artist Karen Finley who, at the end of her shows, often takes off her clothes and smears herself with chocolate.

Although it seems to generate little public interest, there is a lot of superb art being made these days. Check out these three artists featured in the April, 2008, issue of Fine Art Connoisseur.

Kamille Corry (b. 1966) specializes in the human figure against lovely backdrops. Her classical training shows in her beautiful renditions of the human body in unusual poses. In a contemporary twist, her paintings feature highly-realistic figures against flattened backgrounds of Japanese or Art Nouveau design. Her work is handled by Ann Long Fine Art in Charleston.

In her art, Annamarie Trombetta (b. 1963) depicts her fascination with geometrical shapes and perspective. She gained this interest from her background of observing stained glass windows in church and her classical art training. Her paintings feature brilliant colors and unusual points of view. Trombetta has a studio in Manhattan and enjoys painting scenery and architecture of New York.

Tony Pro (b. 1973) focuses on portraits. He has a background in graphic design and illustration; he taught himself to draw and paint the human figure using Richard Schmid as a consultant and John Singer Sargent as inspiration. His work is carried at Circle T Fine Art in Tempe, Arizona.

Posted by Suzanne Hill

I’ve finally ordered my own copy of A Story of Art; even though I find it incredibly difficult to find time to read for pleasure I can’t wait to sit down with and devour this classic, described by a former director of the National Gallery as “an ideal introductory volume for art history."

Published in 1950, the book remains a comprehensive and eloquent overview of the history of art. According to publisher Phaidon, the book “starts with the cave paintings at Lascaux, then discusses the art of Egypt, Greece, Rome and Byzantium, Islam and China, covers the Medieval and Renaissance periods, and details the roots and flowering of Modernism.” I’m intrigued with the scope of this compact book.

The text was compiled by master art historian E.H. Gombrich, who writes his insights about the visual arts in a simple and direct manner. Though criticized by some for his focus on the evolution of Western painting and only a cursory glance at Chinese and Islamic art, the book remains the best-selling art history guide ever published.

Posted by Suzanne Hill

A new semester has just begun and I’m back to teaching. No spare time now for making altered books or organizing a mail art swap.

I have a new group of college students eager to embark on improving their writing. One of my courses is an online class; the delivery of this class is quite different from that of my traditional face-to-face class. This online class involves pre-planning: all lecture material and assignments were set up before the semester began. The class has a totally different feel from my face-to-face class where I know I have the power of personal interaction to convey my meaning.

I have set up a discussion forum for them to introduce themselves to one another. They are very eager to mention their hometown, describe their pets, discuss their siblings and best friends, rave about favorite restaurants and beaches, brag about their jobs, and explain their future goals. Without fail they mention they are soooo excited to be in an online class and can’t wait to get started on all their assignments. Doubtless they picture themselves working on their laptops in their pajamas and at their leisure, not yet conceiving of the amount of work they are in for. I can only hope they are just as fresh and enthusiastic several weeks from now!

One thing I will keep fresh is my desire for them to think for themselves. I encourage “critical reading” and discourage them from accepting conventional wisdom, imploring them to always look beneath the surface of any story for the author’s hidden agendas. This is also my philosophy about enjoying art. Trust your instincts about what you like and don’t let experts sway you from what feels right.

Posted by Suzanne Hill

We just had a taste of spring in Baltimore, Maryland. It got up to 70 degrees mid-week. The pleasant weather made me want to spend time outdoors and I’m thinking ahead about something fun to do for the weekend. I’ll be heading to the Walters Art Museum.

If you, too, will be in the Baltimore area, here’s what’s happening at the Walters. The “Mapping the Cosmos” exhibition is taking place – coordinating with “Maps: Finding Our Place in the World” – to display images taken by the Hubble Space Telescope. The Walters describes the images as “aesthetic objects of striking power and beauty.” A press release states that this event is the first time that the Walters has coordinated with the Johns Hopkins University’s Program in Museums and Society. The exhibition can be seen Wednesday-Sunday from 11:00am-5:00pm through July, 2008. In addition, Baltimore is holding its version of Chicago’s Festival of Maps at the Walters beginning March 16.

Another first at the Walters is a partnership with the famed Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA). On Saturdays during February, 2008, the Walters is offering workshops on Ancient Greek pottery and clay-making classes at MICA. See the Walters’ website for detailed information about hours and prices.

The intriguing events may seem out of place at a world-class museum with priceless first-rate works of art, but the Walters must try to thrive in this contemporary world that views museums as elitist and exclusionary. And so the museum continues to appeal to a diverse and casual crowd with its free admission and fun activities.

Posted by Suzanne Hill

Joseph Bail [also known as Joseph-Claude Bail] was born January 22, 1862, during a period of intense disagreement in the late 19th-century French art world. Traditional styles were being challenged and interest in expressing nuances of daily life was becoming more and more rare.

Not all artists, however, participated in expressing the newer styles. Bail, for example, studied the interests of the public and concentrated on reflecting traditional styles in his work. Bail found renown with the Salons and with the public with his artwork that continued the tradition of Realism (falling out of favor with many of his contemporaries) in scenes of French daily life from earlier times. While other painters of his day were moving toward modernist sensibilities, he showed a passion for the past and the values of former times.

Still lifes dominate Bail’s early work, but he expanded his themes to include animals, interior scenes including playful images of cooks and their assistants playing cards and cleaning utensils, and country scenes influenced by his summer stays in the French countryside. He handles color and composition skillfully. In all of his work, Joseph Bail portrays a lively brightness found in the radiance of a specific brilliant lamp or daylight flooding into a room.

Posted by Suzanne Hill

"Heyoka Magazine" reports: “Through the 19th century, art was a vehicle of sensuousness, meaning, and passion. Its goals were beauty and originality.” But the art world of the twentieth-century adopted the ugly and the offensive. Why have artists poured their creative energies and cleverness into art that’s trivial?

Admission to the Walters Art Museum is now free in a breezy attempt to appeal to a more casual, diverse crowd and offer fun activities. Perhaps taxpayers are not much interested in old paintings of religious events and Greek mythology. These pictures do not generate sensation like Damien Hirst’s dissected cows and Karen Finley’s lewd shows.

Although it generates little acclaim, superb art is being created today. Check out these five artists featured in the February, 2008, issue of “Fine Art Connoisseur” magazine.

Christine Lafuente (b. 1968) paints cityscapes, landscapes, still lifes – each finished in just one session. Her work is done in a suggestive style that straddles abstraction and realism. Her work is handled by Gross McLeaf Gallery.

Nat Meade (b. 1975) creates meticulously detailed paintings, always defending his traditional representational methods – “decades after their purported eclipse” – against criticism. His work is on view at Froelick Gallery.

Lucong (b. 1978) does stunning portraits of women, focusing on their eyes. See his artwork at Gallery 1261, Denver.

Julia Loken (b. 1939) is a professional watercolorist specializing in landscapes. Her work is represented by Gerald Peters Gallery, Santa Fe.

Karol Mack (b. 1949) paints rugged scenery of the Western U.S. Her goal is to capture elements of the “sublime” in nature, subject matter admittedly downplayed among mainstream artists but admired by environmentalists. Her paintings are available at Elk Horn Gallery, Colorado.