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An artist in New York... Rochester that is.

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26 years after I had begun in business I was rereading the Fountainhead and thought about Roarks reply to the college folk about why he wouldn't compromise and work for the big elite architects firm. He had but 40 or so good years to do his work and couldn't waste them to half measures and false starts. Well maybe I paraphrased what was meant a little but...

I looked at the calendar on the wall behind me, a big calendar. The wall was maybe 100 feet long and I sat in the middle. I was born at the corner and had spend the last 18 years in that very room building corporate office furniture (my business) and glancing the other way thought, I may not make it to yonder corner. I have so many other interests to pursue. I'm going to run out of time, life. So 18 months later the business is SOLD, the income gone (I'll be alright folks) and now I am a painter. Watch me paint the town.

Intent: hone skills while building audience, then paint my souls delight with passion!

Example of ideas from Blood City

bloodcity3.0.jpg

Blood City, by Gordon van Vliet

coyright November 2005 all rights reserved

This piece was displayed in an art show during the spring of 2006. It is signed, dated and titled at the bottom. The work measures 5"w x 14"H inches oil on 1/4" hardboard.

Blood is a metaphor of life flowing through our veins. Likewise, the life blood of the city are the individuals who inhabit it and are the city's motive force. First works are for survival, when secured, time and energy are spent on larger , more complex ideas. These ideas are represented as buildings and towers, finally a pinnacle soaring upward. As the towers are illuminated in the sun so too may an Individual reach great heights. All people are benefited from the such success.

Also represent here is the idea of the city as the center or natural result of separate individuals need of fellowship, society. This is a mix from those just surviving to those able to achieve further goals. I have always viewed the tower as an inspiration of what can be accomplished through productive thought and work.

More on this theme in future posts.

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Yes, very crude. My self portrait has been likened to van Gogh quite a bit. There are strengths and weaknesses, but I like it. "Blood City" was created with paint going to the trash and palette knife in about 15 minutes. I like the description and I like the tower illuminated against the sky.

Unfortunately I must have done something wrong in uploading it so here is the link for those who wish to cut and paste.

http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/759/219...0/bloodcity.jpg

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Jenni, thank you for the reply. Any comments on my writing style or ways to improve it are most welcome. This appears to be one of your strong points.

This says a lot.

Does it? What may that be? Perhaps you could state more clearly and I might comprehend.

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The way you treat your approach to your art says a lot about your attitude towards it and as a corrolary, your attitude toward life. The fact that it took you 15 minutes to make suggest a certain level of automazation, or lack of thought. Your description afterward sounds like rationalization, like you trying to interpret what was mostly the product of non-cognition (this is very common in art school, where students are even taught to "just create" and think later, this seems to be your approach)

As to the piece, the buildings look weak, like they could fall over. One of the great things about buildings is the structural precision involved in their construction (they have to be precise or else they would collapse) This is what is greta about them, the fact that a man's mind went into their creation, his deliberate attention to detail and to physics. Your buildings look like they were created by a man using materials destined for the trash heap, who had only fifteen minutes to throw them together.

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The way you treat your approach to your art says a lot about your attitude towards it and as a corrolary, your attitude toward life. The fact that it took you 15 minutes to make suggest a certain level of automazation, or lack of thought. Your description afterward sounds like rationalization, like you trying to interpret what was mostly the product of non-cognition (this is very common in art school, where students are even taught to "just create" and think later, this seems to be your approach)

As to the piece, the buildings look weak, like they could fall over. One of the great things about buildings is the structural precision involved in their construction (they have to be precise or else they would collapse) This is what is greta about them, the fact that a man's mind went into their creation, his deliberate attention to detail and to physics. Your buildings look like they were created by a man using materials destined for the trash heap, who had only fifteen minutes to throw them together.

I thank you for your current reply. In some respects I agree with you.

Regarding my work, it is in development and improving all the time. After retiring from business from age 20-46 I decided to paint full time, along with maintaining other interests. My goal at this time is to hone my painting skills through a variety of assignments and learn what works well for me. Through critique as you and others have given, I see what is weak and what is done well. If I am thoughtful, I can address these issues and improve. Most critique is encouragingly given, some is not. Nevertheless, all can be instructive if approached by me with intent to improve.

I did do this painting as an after thought. While cleaning up from another painting I decided not to "waste" the left over paint, but rather try a new technique, applying paint with a palette knife. So I looked at the colors available and "decided" to see if I could paint this little cityscape. While painting it thinking about what it could represent and have thought more about the metaphor it suggested since then. To me this is natural in the thought process. We develop our thoughts over time. If I painted this today it would be different and if it were a serious work and not "trying a new technique" it would be more "finished".

I do not believe all construction is as precise as you claim. Certainly at the lowest level it is not as well planned and executed as when accomplished by the masters of architecture and the trades. That is what I am trying to convey here. The lower portion of the painting is a jumbled, confusing mass, very red with the surge of humanity. The towers (built by men of distinction) are more refined and catch the sun. They are an improvement and a greater triumph compared with the average that they rise above. By implication will improve further with new, perhaps higher and better towers.

I hope my art work will do the same. Perhaps one day I will paint with distinction. Perhaps one day some men will admire the results of my attempts. Perhaps on that day you will look again. In the mean time I will pursue my goal.

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I thank you for your current reply. In some respects I agree with you.

The lower portion of the painting is a jumbled, confusing mass, very red with the surge of humanity. The towers (built by men of distinction) are more refined and catch the sun. They are an improvement and a greater triumph compared with the average that they rise above. By implication will improve further with new, perhaps higher and better towers.

I certainly don't hope to discourage you from your work, and I am glad that you tokk my critique the right way, a way to improve.

I like what you said above about the skyscrapers being better in comparison to the other buildings, that is a great concept. I just don't think you pulled it off in this piece. The lower portion looks like the base of the skyscrapers not like other buildings, maybe when you have more time to work the resulting piece would be better.

I look forward to seeing your more worked-through pieces.

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I certainly don't hope to discourage you from your work, and I am glad that you tokk my critique the right way, a way to improve.

I like what you said above about the skyscrapers being better in comparison to the other buildings, that is a great concept. I just don't think you pulled it off in this piece. The lower portion looks like the base of the skyscrapers not like other buildings, maybe when you have more time to work the resulting piece would be better.

I look forward to seeing your more worked-through pieces.

Again thank you for your comment. With this I agree and it does spur me to improvement. While doing this assignment, I became intrigued with the concept and its further possibilities in my work.

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I can see all the pics just fine: this may be a browser-related problem (again). Strangely, it works fine with IE.

Jenni, thank you for the reply. Any comments on my writing style or ways to improve it are most welcome. This appears to be one of your strong points.

Heh, flattery. <_< I'm still working on my own style, but I'm usually available for criticism.

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None of the photos or links work anymore, including the one in vanVlietArt profile. What happened?

Edit: The profile pic has appeared, but nothing else

Well that is perplexing. The link doesn't work when I tried it either. I'll try posting a link to the larger article where the picture is included. Here it is:

http://vanvlietart.blogspot.com/2006_01_01...rt_archive.html

I that doesn't work, try clicking on the vanVlietArt link contained in my signature below. Or email me. :P

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