When you think of Christmas Eve, someone comes to mind. Vincent van Gogh cut off his ear on Christmas Eve 1888. Van Gogh's such a tragic story is as famous as his paintings. It is often cited to describe a crazy obsession and passion for the arts. It is also a long-standing story that he had a mental illness. Strangely He cut off his ear and bandaged it, leaving the self-portrait of himself. Not many people know the motive and story behind why Gogh took such an extreme action on Christmas Eve. The most likely theory is that it may have been the result of anxiety and worries over the reducing a financial support that came from his younger brother, Theo. Around that the, Theo got a first baby and then probably had to focus on his baby. Another reason is that it may have been because of feelings of sadness and betrayal towards Gauguin, a friend who has cultivated friendship and the world of art while living together as an artist. But neither is a clear answer. I think that perhaps because of these mysterious actions, his bright yellow color, which represents his art world, is imprinted more intensely. Christmas Eve and Vincent van Gogh. Once I encountered his paintings at the Kunsthaus in Switzerland. Among his works that can be easily found in each famous art museum, "The wheat field with cypress" at the Kunsthaus in Zurich shocked me. I knew then that a painting could look like a sculpture. The dried grains of paint sparkled three-dimensionally and looked moist as if they were drenched in water. Cyprus and the fluttering brushstrokes of the wheat field perfectly match the angles of these sparkling paints, making the painting glitter like a jewel from any angle. I was astonished that I could paint such a shiny and bright picture only with the dry angle of the paint. And the shimmering brush strokes and colors made the iridescent feel as if they were alive, not just text. Why would a person who could draw such a shiny and bright picture make such a gloomy decision? Why was he so obsessed with art and painting abnormally? I was taught in art class that he was poor extremely and lived his life unfortunately. But in other point, it was somehow exaggerated. His brother and supporter, Theo was an art dealer, so if Gogh gave him proper painting to fit trendy art, he could have made a living by painting in a way. But standing his side and thinking to Theo, his brother, Gogh must have been a trouble maker. It would be the most heartbreaking thing for Gogh to cut off his ear and take his own life despite receiving support from Theo. That he was a good and kind man is also covered in several anecdotes. When I look at his paintings, there is always something that moves warmly. I love the socially underprivileged, and there are many paintings I drew for them. They usually sit in a dark room with a light on, eating bread, working in the field, or smoking a cigarette. His paintings are so friendly and cozy. It's hard to believe that it was a decision made by a person with such a warm heart. What was he hoping to gain by losing his ear? And why did he paint it that way? Why was he so lonely and miserable at Christmas eve when everyone was in a warm room exchanging cards and spending time in front of the fireplace in a beautifully decorated house? But looking at his works, I think he must have been very happy at the moment he was painting them. Because his paintings show his heart as it is. Even if the things he sees are shaken because of his painful heart, the warm energy contained in them may mean that he always tried to see the world with a heart full of warmth. If his life with art was only miserable and despairing, the emotions we feel in his works should always be dark and twisted. We feel, hope, and affirm the bright energy through Van Gogh's intense sun, sunflowers and moving clouds. Perhaps this was the message Van Gogh was trying to convey at the time.
0 Comments
Memories related to fish, pictures When I was young, my family always had fish tank. White, orange, yellow, and redfish roamed in the always clean tank. I loved looking at the fish tank blankly. Even as an adult, I always raise fish. I am currently raising blue bettas in a small fish tank. When looking at the fish tank, the movement of the fish and the flow of water between the fins deliver good energy. The sound of water coming out of the oxygen generator is also one of the white noises that calm the mind. When I was in Germany, a friend gave me his meditation secret to look at a washing machine running endlessly. She explained to me why the boring habit helped to reduce some stress. Whenever she looked at tumbling movements, she could get away from the things she was worried about for a while. After relief, when she looked back again, realized that those worries and stress were not a big deal. That's why I remind of her life tip when I discovered the same situation as a déjà vu in front of a washing machine. In this way, another of my meditation techniques is to look at the fish without thinking. You can observe the movement of the fish and the line of the flow, you will focus on the activity of the beautiful fish. And then you gradually move away from the problem. I have loved to draw fish since I was a child. Because I wanted to capture the fish's happy and dynamic energy. However it was more difficult than any other croquis because it moved quickly. I was aiming for it and drawing it again and again. So there was always a lot of eraser powder around me. Still, I couldn't draw perfectly, but I liked my life mission. It was fascinating to capture the invisible energy and movement. As an artist, I'm still drawing fish. I wanted to express and describe it properly, so I drew a piece of a tiny two fish in my first exhibition. My husband was amazed to see it. Because he was born after his mother had dreamed of two fish in the pond at night. Probably It seems that I have captured some energy without realizing it. This painting was sold at the first exhibition, and I drew the same two fish and gave it to my husband as a gift. Since then, the fish in my paintings have grown and moved more vividly. Actually, I like drawing fish more than ever because it is the fastest and easiest. If I draw fish, it is sold out, and I don't have it in my hands right now. So I have to draw again. Then it will be sold again. But strangely, it is not drawn often. It takes a lot of energy to complete the kind of quick painting in less than 30 minutes. In particular, I can't draw a picture of a fish when I'm exhausted and depressed. This time, I wondered if there would be a way to draw a large number of fish using less energy. So, I completed the fish artwork digitally. When it's all done, I feel a sense of accomplishment. Today, I thought prehistoric primitive people must have supposed this way when they painted graving murals painting long ago. There is a feeling of primordial yet energizing energy that fills the mind, bright vitality. Among the traditional patterns in Korea, the representative symbol of the fish pattern is in Temple. It means to expect good things to happen and to reject bad energy. I hope that this blessed energy will surround everyone. Also, fish are often depicted in Buddhism because of the character that not only do they not close their eyes when they are awake or asleep (actually, they have no eyelids - they just appear to not sleep), but they do not close their eyes even when they die. It is said that this symbolizes that the buddhist practitioner should continually diligently cultivate the way like a fish. In Christianity, the fish symbol was used as a password to secretly confess the uniqueness and faith of Jesus Christ by the saints of the early church, who Rome was persecuting. These symbolic meanings and pictures of fish are often seen around us. I hope that I will be able to see fish in the pond of my dreams today because of these fish. The future production process will be posted on the info menu on my website. The Christmas is just a few days away. Most of all, I hope everyone is as prosperous, vibrant, and healthy as the fish in the pond. The Cloud Collector's handbook by Gavin Pretor-Pinney.
As a child, the most precious habit in my daily routine was to look up at the sky. I lived in a house between buildings. I could see the clouds passing through the buildings when I came out. I was so happy to see the clouds passing swiftly through the desolate concrete structures as if they were drawn together, as if they were unraveling each white thread as if they were painting a picture. And when I became a painter and painted, I remember the joy and wonder of that time. I often do not want to miss such a beautiful sky, so I take it on camera.
Recently, when I saw a rainbow that was turned upside down, I wanted to know the name of the rainbow, so I read a book. The book was a gift from a friend of my son. the title is "The cloud collector's handbook".
The book's author, Gavin Pretor-Pinney, is the founder of the Cloud Appreciation Society, which has more than 47,000 members in 120 countries, and was founded to fight the banality of the 'blue sky thinking'.
"To fight the banality of the 'blue sky thinking' ", I like his idea and motivation. Because this kind of thinking is directly connected to art.
I have seen the same unusual rainbow 3 times this year. It was an upside-down rainbow, a rainbow I had never seen before.
My child saw this rainbow and said, "Mom! Rainbow is smiling" and gave it the name Smile Rainbow.
Through this book, I learned that the name of the rainbow is Circumzenithal Arc and it's phenomenon.
The circumzenithal arc is a holo phenomenon that appears like a multicolored smile in the sky. It look as if some fool's got a rainbow snap upside down, but this bow of colors actually appears in a totally different part of the sky from rainbows. On the 25 or so times a year that it appears, it forms high up in the sky, like the fragment closest to the sun of a circle around the zenith. (excerpt by the book)
This fun and useful book features gorgeous full-color photographs that showcase a new type of cloud on every spread, from fluffy cumulus to the super rare horseshoe vortex to the wispy noctilucent clouds that hang at the fringes of space.
If there are people who have lost interest in looking at and observing the sky because of the stereotypical prejudice of blue sky, this book will give them a lot of interest in knowing how many different sky and clouds exist and how they are made. Also, it would be good to visit the Cloud Appreciation Society founded by Gavin Pretor-Pinney, who compiled this book against prejudice against the banal blue sky. Fish and Aquarium Today, I received an email from the Rockland Arts Festival that I recently applied for, saying that one of my works has been accepted. The above e-mail is usually received when the work is not selected. It is an general e-mail that is polite and considers the painter's position. Sometimes I get an unpleasant reply saying no show. "No show" is the dry word that does not consider the others. By the way, I get used to experience about the cycles of congratulations and rejections. If I go through these things often, there comes a moment when I don't cling to words itself and always feel at ease. Because I know that I will go down this path whether I succeed or fail. The artwork I submitted this time at the Rockland Arts Festival is titled " Fish and Aquarium" The fish in the aquarium constantly bump into each other in a square space. As time goes by in the constant pain, it will naturally hover around the square without hitting the fishbowl. And later, it becomes its own world. So are those who have been tamed with gaslighting. Life is completely yours. So we have to discover and decide how to live on our own in place. You don't have to go down a path you don't want or have no interest in in order to meet the expectations of others. However, many people live consciously of the gaze of others, and eventually lose what they want and wander with wasting a short life. There is not much to gain from this life. If you want to experience with abundant satisfaction, you must listen to your inner voice, not the voice of others. The process of breaking one's own frame is that it seems like the fish in the above picture constantly bump into each other, hurt. Therefore, if possible, we think that it would be better to endure and make a decision for swimming with satisfaction within that frame. But then it's not just a fish. It's another massive aquarium in the shape of a fish. The digital art above is made with the motif of seven fish drawn in 2015 below. The seven fish, I drew with ease were sold out in the first exhibition. At that time, the gallery owner asked me to draw much fish. But I wanted to experiment with a shimmering curiosity before finalizing my own style. It is still the same mind. If I had to paint in one style for the rest of my life, I don't think there's anything more unfortunate than that. Personally, I have mentors such as Czech painter Alphonse Mucha, German painter, environmental activist, architect Hundertwasser, and installation and performance artist Joseph Beuys, who broke the common-sense framework and made various attempts. I saw beauty through nature, and I think that art, like nature shown in our daily lives without any reward, should protrude from the limited space of the gallery and communicate more closely with people. To do this, I have to break some molds. There are a lot of frameworks out there. And my painting is probably in the process of breaking out of this frame. And as a work to break another frame this year, I aimed to write and draw every day. In short, one picture, one post per day. To be honest, I admit that it is more harder than breaking many of the prejudices and molds about my painting. It's been almost half a year and I'm still posting consistently. After a year, I hope to be able to talk about how it broke the mold and what the result was. Alfons Maria Mucha Alfons Maria Mucha (Czech: [ˈalfons ˈmuxa] (About this sound listen); 24 July 1860 – 14 July 1939), known internationally as Alphonse Mucha, was a Czech painter, illustrator, and graphic artist, living in Paris during the Art Nouveau period, best known for his distinctly stylized and decorative theatrical posters, particularly those of Sarah Bernhardt. Mucha, who was born in the small town of Ivančice in southern Moravia,then a province of the Austrian Empire (currently a region of the Czech Republic),and was greatly influenced by Baroque art by spending his childhood in a cathedral, developed his own style by drawing decorative paintings for buildings or designs for the theatrical stage rather than orthodox paintings. He had worked as a corresponding proofer at the publishing house, he made his debut by making a poster that was ordered in a hurry while an employee who was working on a promotional poster for a theater was on vacation for two weeks. At that time, it was the Christmas season in December, and there was only one person, Mucha, who had to work on this day because of poverty as everyone went on a Christmas vacation. However, the goddess of opportunity came to the prepared painter. Like a Christmas miracle, Sarah Bernhardt, the poster's protagonist, entrusted him with a poster for the play 'Gismonda", in which she starred. The Gismonda poster was a vertical poster that gave a completely different impression from the horizontal poster at the time, and the women's clothes and decorations in the poster seemed to be a combination of Renaissance classical relief and Arabesque style, and the majesty of the union And the beauty was enough to make the Parisians who faced the poster feel a sense of wonder. The success of the Bernhardt posters brought Mucha commissions for advertising posters. The fame of his successful career led to give him great popularity in the art world. During the middle of his stage, he was invited by Deschamps to show his work in the Salon des Cent exhibition in 1896, and then, in 1897, to have a major retrospective in the same gallery showing 448 works. The magazine La Plume made a special edition devoted to his work, and his exhibition traveled to Vienna, Prague, Munich, Brussels, London, and New York, giving him an international reputation. Looking at his biography, where he made a good income through commissions through commercial paintings, performed artistic activities without financial difficulties, and also presented many artistically excellent works, he seems to have a very ideal life as a painter. However, Mucha was rejected from the Academy of Fine Arts because of her lack of talent for drawing. It didn't always go well from the start. He does not give in to this and is confident in his talent. He was confident in himself, not succumbing to the opinions of others. Looking at his actions like this, it seems to be the biggest reason why he built his own art world. Mucha created many commercial and promotional paintings, but the underlying concept was that he wanted to comfort those who were weary of the human alienation caused by industrialization. Maybe that's why, when I look at his surprisingly beautiful paintings, I feel naturally healed. At that time, the 'Muha style' was difficult to find where it was not used. In addition to the theater posters, I produced promotional posters for various companies, and the types were diverse enough to make 'Mucha's Day'. Railroads, bicycles, beer, cigarettes, perfume, as well as Nestlé and MOËT&CHANDON, which we are familiar with now, all sent love calls to Mucha. As a result, many of his works are for advertisements that anyone can see. Tobacco, beer, theater posters, chocolates, etc. posters and wrapping papers are too small for an artist's work. In fact, there was a feeling that there was something different between an artist and ‘altruism’, but looking at his efforts to lower the entry barrier for art, I thought the title of ‘altruistic’ artist would suit him. But despite his success as an artist, Moha feft an indescribable longing and nostalgia for his homeland. He wanted to return to his old country, he had a passion to complete the epic slav he has envisioned about his country. He made several trips to the United States between 1904 and 1909 to find sponsors to support this ambitious project. Personally, I think Mucha is a painter deeply related to Christmas. Because in 1909 he secured the patronage of Charles Richard Crane, a wealthy Chicago businessman and philanthropist on Christmas Day. He was fortunate enough to be a Slav too, so he had a deep interest in Eastern Europe and promises to support him for a whopping 20 years. Mucha returns to the Czechoslovakia with such strong support. Instead of splendor and decorative beauty, he captured the history and tragedy of the Slavs in simple and powerful works. Mucha hoped that Czech people would regain their national identity and actively participate in society through his work. He constantly conveyed the voice of the nation through posters promoting social movements, or through paintings depicting the people and history of his hometown. Mucha's work contains an endless tribute to the beauty of nature and human beings. Personally, I like Moha's works below. Shortly before the 1900 Exposition, he wrote in his memoirs, “I had not found any real satisfaction in my old kind of work. I saw that my way was to be found elsewhere, little bit higher. I sought a way to spread the light which reached further into even the darkest corners. I didn’t have to look for very long." He probably realized the existence of light and spirituality that illuminates the darkness and tried to explore it. In this painting, I pay tribute to his passion and the life he has worked to make that dream come true. |
Myungja Anna KohArtist Categories
All
Archives
February 2025
|
Proudly powered by Weebly