OK, so I gotta weigh in on the economy and what it means for us creative types. First let me say that I am very fortunate as an artist. Painting has always been a passionate hobby, so there was never a sense of having to sell out or compromise my vision. I can do an abstract or a portrait or a Buddha or a turtle, and the sense of satisfaction from having something take form and shape is there . Yes, I have a website and like to sell, knowing that my work is gracing someones wall, however, that isn’t why I paint.
Last night I watched the movie “Modigliani” starring Andy Garcia, and, although not historically accurate in it’s details, it gave a glimpse into artists lives in Paris after WWI. Most of these famous people, including Diego Rivera and Pablo Picasso, were struggling to make a living in the face of a public that didn’t understand their art. Many of them lived at the fringes of society, half mad and freezing, in dingy apartments filled with paints and canvases. They were not strangers to adversity. However, they had the strength and passion to keep on working and their creations continue to move and inspire us today. Modigliani was an alcoholic and a hashish addict who lived on the edge of poverty and madness most of his brief adult life before he died of tuberculosis. His first solo exhibition was closed by the Parisian police because of its nude content. Yet, in spite of his struggles, he created timeless works of poignant beauty.
So, will a severe economic crisis really change the lives of artists? The answers to this question are complex. Some will have difficulty buying materials such as paints and canvas and paper. Some will find new, less costly avenues of expression. Some will give up. Some will emerge unscathed. Some will continue to prosper. Some will create works of art that will stand the test of time and be a testimonial to overcoming creative obstacles. Perhaps works will emerge that give future generations a sense of what it was like to live and paint in these times.
We will notstop creating. Perhaps millions of pieces of art are being born as I write this blog. I still believe that art is the lifeblood of human civilization and, short of total extinction, we will keep on drawing, dancing and making joyous music. Because we must. Hopefully something new and wondrous will emerge from the art world as a result of this adversity. Maybe we are in the crucible of change. We don’t really know. As the contemporary Zen Master, Seung Sahn, said, “Only don’t know.” Maybe that’s enough.
So I give you a glimpse of my latest project, based on my recent sighting of a green sea turtle off Utila Island in Honduras. The turtle has been around a long time. Before there were dinosaurs, there were sea turtles. So they have survived all sorts of adversity, and have a certain timeless quality. This is what I want to convey with this painting. The finished work will be photo real and will take months to finish, given that I enjoy painting fine detail. The head alone took seven hours to complete. This file is approx 30 mb, 14″ x 16″in size with a resolution of 248 pixels per inch. It will look stunning on large HD monitors and so I will make it available as a digital file. Keep checking the New Works gallery for details at www.artbyinglis.com
Sea Turtle Epiphany
So here is the basic layout of the body with a more or less finished head. I will probably add a lot of background details since the reefs in Utila are so varied and rich in shape and color. The finished painting will encompass more background and have a wider color palette.
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