Installation Art February 11, 2012

Art for Art Sake.  My first attempt at installation art. Venice Beach 2011 

Left by the side of the  road, it's fate unknown...




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Superbowl Sunday Sunset February 6, 2012

While many were glued to the tube, a few caught a glimpse of the last light of day. For those who missed it, this is the one that got away...

Sunset, near Santa Barbara

Pearls of Wisdom from a Monkey's Uncle January 31, 2012:

As if the Second Thursday Art Event in Los Angeles wasn't edgy enough, I attended the L.A. Art Expo a few days later. 

At the Expo my first introduction to 21st Century Conceptual Art was this particular installation; designed to evoke some kind of  primal instinct in the viewer; it was about multi-dimension, time collapsing on itself, all roads lead to Rome in this moment of NOW, esoteric kinda thinking.


It reminded me of the Ape(s) coming across the big black bar in  Stanley Kubrick's "2001 A Space Odyssey", (root word ODD). However, in this case the primate comes face to face with the  conceptual Pearl of Wisdom axiom. Here, the monkey is frozen in time with a funny look on his face; are we to assume this died of fright? Or maybe it died at the instant revelation of ecstatic enlightenment, or maybe of after merely witnessing the enormous size of the pearl! (I might have died if I discovered a pearl this size). Maybe it's about witnessing a moment of transformation? Who knows. The artist wasn't there to answer any questions.

Whatever,   in any case, it's nice to know taxidermy is still available for stuffing family pets; or, to put it in a politically correct manner, "Preserving" them for art installations.




Alas, Shakespeare had it right:  there  is "nothing new under the sun", and at least from my perspective, at the 2012 L.A. Art Expo, this held true, and I don't care to doddle around this Monkey Business any longer.



In 10 Days My Blog will be moved to my website: www.thomasvanstein.net 

Chase Banksy on Fire January 27, 2012

Chase Bank in Flames by Alex Schaefer, seen on the cover of Artillery Magazine

During the L.A. Art Walk, I  got a chance to view a different  type of Street Art.

Stumbling into the Hive Gallery in Los Angeles turned out to be a surreal ordeal. Artists to the left, to the right, then to the left again...busy creating like bees. I bumped into this bearded bee wearing a hat. I took a look at his paintings; one depicting a Chase Bank of Fire. I remembered hearing about Alex last fall; that he was being investigated by the L.A.P.D. for projecting the Chase Bank on Fire. 

The Vincent Van Gogh look-a-like, plein air painter, Alex Schaefer,

Alex Schaefer Maulsticking it to the Bank

was a humble man with a sense of ironic humor and fiery personality...and this was the story he told:
 
His paintings depicting Banks on fire were, “was intended to be a visual metaphor for the havoc that banking practices have caused to the economy.”  The prompted a police investigation.  

He told me that somebody had called the police on him, and said they felt threatened by his painting. The police questioned him, and were curious as to find out his intention. They asked if he was a terrorist and if he was I going to follow through and do to the bank what was depicted in his painting(s). They even came to his house. Since this confrontation, his paintings have gone up in value.

I was interested in his process, and as he got going on his rant, he was more passionate about the social commentary depicted in his paintings, than the actual process of painting. His meek appearance disappeared and he became inflamed and wild eyed...spitting fire at the as he expressed his hatred for the capitalist system, hoping in some way his paintings would be instrumental in "bringing this whole system down!"


I was so inspired by his passion that I wanted to buy his painting right there on the spot. Alex was now a discovered street artist, like Guerilla Artists, Shepard Fairey, JR, and Marco.  However, being I was a stranger in a strange land I didn't have the cash on hand, and there was no ATM Machine nearby, I went on a search. When I eventually found one, it had been vandalized (ahem, Gratified)  so I  couldn't get MY MONEY OUT!! 


Inscribed on the ATM Screen was, "We are the 99%!"

So, I guess I wasn't meant to collect this street artist's work at this time.  Hopefully I will be able to do this soon before all banks are burned to the ground, and along with them all my money they keep inside. 

Night Fall, L.A. Art Walk January 26, 2012

Had a strange surreal dream regarding a moon goddess.

Nightfalls in L.A. and the quirky come out. It was edgy, abrasive,  outrageously outlandish. Most of the art was expressing the morbid, morose, horrific. It made me realize the artwork produced in the bubble of Santa Barbara, is relatively tame.

The  Artwalk was  near the downtown financial district. 

It was fun; looking up seven floors to see these glowing hearts in a window.

The night evolved... 

L.A. Art Walk, the Bradbury Building

Walking into the Bradbury Building was like strolling into a time warp. There are few atriums in the world which compare to this masterpiece. Completed in 1893, it has become an icon 19th Century Victorian Era Aesthetic with it's wrought-iron banisters and railings. It's perfect for Movie Making...

In fact, It recently appeared in the Sherlock Holmes movie, "A Game of Shadows". It's well worth the trip inside, even if the security won't let you past the first floor landing.

No matter though, there was more to see on the Art Walk. When leaving the building, I caught the image of Charlie Chaplin out of the corner of my eye.








In two weeks this blog will change to the location of my web site: www.thomasvanstein.net

L.A. Art Walk Jan. 23, 2012

In Los Angeles, Size Matters. When the weather is good, it seems in a way like everyone is dancing, like, Zorba the Greek!

Even the buildings put on their prettiest facades.

  

 

 

 

In two weeks you will be able to access my blog directly on my web site: www.thomasvanstein.net

Caddyshack Cadillac Orbs. L.A. Grit January 22,2012

Hermosa Point Park at night;

Neighborhood's dim, not bright. 

Tons of orbs taking flight;

Antique Caddy quite the sight!

Painting L.A. Grit January 20, 2012

Some of my thoughts are in the toilet...

Took a trip down to Los Angeles for their Second Thrusday Art Walk. Decided to paint the skyline at Dusk as the lights of the city started coming on, twinklin' in the distance.

I thought the neighborhood I was in was rough. Peering through the security gate of an old L.A. Mansion, I could surmise why...

First Knight, Martin Luther King Jr. Day January 16, 2011

Moonrise, Stanton Ranch  12x9  oil/board 1988  Collection of Eve Rappaport

On a day which honors Martin Luther King Jr, a man of courage and vision, I have decided to launch an image of a painting I created back in 1988 on Santa Cruz Island.  This was my First Night Painting done in Plein Air.  I wanted to acknowledge Arturo Tello, a fellow artist and OAK Group member, for suggesting we place flash lights on our heads, and attempt the genre of painting called "NOCTURNES".

Twenty-four years ago I began my trek; and delving deep into the darkness I've since attempted to get to the configuration of the unknown; the mysteries of the night.  I guess one can say that as a result, Plein Air Nocturne Painting has led me to a solo show in  New York,  and to my first Museum Exhibition at the Carnegie, in Oxnard California.  I now have a trek record. 


Even though this painting is not a very strong statement;  it shows the moon rising eastward down the central valley of the island on a cold misty night.  Technically, there are many flaws in the painting,  especially with the values, but I had to start somewhere in my Nocturne Painting Career, and then stay the course. 

In the foreground is the building utilized as the washroom for the Stanton Ranch, and one cubist like manicured  Cyprus tree.  Carey Stanton (1923-1987) maintained the former cattle ranch, but since his passing in 1987, it is now under the stewardship of the Nature Conservancy.

Richard Diebenkorn  Ranch House  oil/board 1958

His friend, the great American Artist Richard Diebenkorn (1922-1993) use to come out to the island on occasion, and create paintings of his island experience. A few were given to Carey Stanton, and are now in the collection of the Santa Cruz Island Foundation.