Month: January 2016

Thomas Cole

Thomas Cole, “The Course of Empire: Destruction”, Oil on Canvas, 1836, New York Historical Society

The Course of Empire is a five-part series of paintings created by Thomas Cole in the years 1833–36. It is notable in part for reflecting popular American sentiments of the times, when many saw pastoralism as the ideal phase of human civilization, fearing that empire would lead to gluttony and inevitable decay. The theme of cycles is also one that Cole returned to frequently, such as in his The Voyage of Life series.

The series was acquired by The New-York Historical Society in 1858 as a gift of the New-York Gallery of Fine Arts, and comprises the following works: The Course of Empire – The Savage State; The Course of Empire – The Arcadian or Pastoral State; The Course of Empire – The Consummation of Empire; The Course of Empire – Destruction; and The Course of Empire – Desolation.

The series of paintings depicts the growth and fall of an imaginary city, situated on the lower end of a river valley, near its meeting with a bay of the sea. The valley is distinctly identifiable in each of the paintings, in part because of an unusual landmark: a large boulder is precariously situated atop a crag overlooking the valley. Some critics believe this is meant to contrast the immutability of the earth with the transience of man.

Alexandre Hogue

Alexandre Hogue, “Lava Capped Mesa”, 1976

Alexandre Hogue painted until the age of 96 but had only one major exhibition in his lifetime (Nature’s Forms/Nature’s Forces organized by the Philbrook Museum of Art, Tulsa). Hogue’s work is distinct, cutting-edge, and provocative. Characterized by texture, color, and carefully balanced spatial elements, his paintings highlight the natural elements of fire, water, earth, and air. Mankind’s misuse of the natural world is a frequent theme.  Hogue experimented with a variety of styles as he crafted landscapes and abstract designs, detailed sketches and whimsical representations of the earth and moon.

The Wakening

Photographer Unknown, (The Wakening)

“A strong man cannot help a weaker unless the weaker is willing to be helped, and even then the weak man must become strong of himself; he must, by his own efforts, develop the strength which he admires in another. None but himself can alter his condition.”
― James Allen, As a Man Thinketh

Thanks to http://tutoyerlesanges.tumblr.com

Jaehyo Lee

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Sculptures by Jaehyo Lee

Since graduating in 1992 with a BFA from the Hong-Ik University Jaehyo Lee (1965, Hapchen, Korea) has gained acclaim both in his native Korea and internationally for his distinct yet intimately crafted oeuvre. Combining distinct traces of Land Art, Arte Povera and Minimalism Lee´s works cast a questioning eye over the roots of form, its function and its role within the natural world.

Weavers

Artist Unknown, (Weavers), Computer Graphics, Animation Gifs

“The weaver-god, he weaves; and by that weaving is he deafened, that he hears no mortal voice; and by that humming, we, too, who look on the loom are deafened; and only when we escape it shall we hear the thousand voices that speak through it. For even so it is in all material factories. The spoken words that are inaudible among the flying spindles; those same words are plainly heard without the walls, bursting from the opened casements. Thereby have villainies been detected. Ah, mortal! then, be heedful; for so, in all this din of the great world’s loom, thy subtlest thinkings may be overheard afar.”

– Herman Melville, Moby Dick, Chapter 102 A Bower in the Arsacides

Thanks to http://beesandbombs.tumblr.com

Hu Tianbao

The Vision of the Concupiscence of Men: Seen by Tu’er Shen

According to “What the Master Would Not Discuss (Chinese: 子不語)”, a book written by Yuan Mei during the Qing dynasty, Tu’er Shen was a man called Hu Tianbao. Hu was originally a man who fell in love with a very handsome imperial inspector of Fujian Province. One day he was caught peeping on the inspector through a bathroom wall, at which point he confessed his reluctant affections for the other man.

The imperial inspector had Hu Tianbao sentenced to death by beating. One month after Hu Tianbao’s death, he is said to have appeared to a man from his hometown in a dream, claiming that since his crime was one of love, the underworld officials decided to right the injustice by appointing him the god and safeguarder of homosexual affections.

After his dream the man erected a shrine to Hu Tianbao, which became very popular in Fujian, so much so that in late Qing times, the cult of Hu Tianbao was targeted for extermination by the Qing government.

A R Penck (Ralf Winkler)

Paintings by A R Penck (Ralf Winkler)

A R Penck is a German painter, printmaker and sculptor. He was born in Dresden, Germany, and studied together with a group of other neo-expressionist painters in Dresden. He became one of the foremost exponents of the new figuration alongside Jörg Immendorff, Georg Baselitz and Markus Lüpertz.

Under the East German communist regime, they were watched by the secret police and were considered dissidents. In the late 1970s they were included in shows in West Berlin and were seen as exponents of free speech in the East. Their work was shown by major museums and galleries in the West throughout the 1980s. They were included in a number of important shows including the famous Zeitgeist exhibition in the well-known Martin Gropius Bau museum and the important New Art show at the Tate in 1983.

In the 1980s he became known worldwide for paintings with pictographic, neo-primitivist woodcut imagery of human figures and other totemic forms. The paintings are influenced by Paul Klee’s work and mix the flatness of Egyptian or Mayan writing with the crudity of the late black paintings by Jackson Pollock.

Mentaiko Itto

Mentaiko Itto, “Priapus” and “The Boy Who Cried Wolf”

Mentaiko Itto’s amusing gay mangas are a major part of the Japanese manga publications. Bruno Gmünder has published his works for the first time in English, introducing him to a broader audience. There are already two manga volumes released from Mentaiko Itto: “Priapus” and “The Boy Who Cried Wolf”. Following Itto’s success, publisher Bruno Gmünder introduced a poster book in a large-scale format.

Christian Howard

Christian Howard:  Photo Shoots

Christian Howard was born on May 4, 1984 in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, England. He is a British actor, model and martial artist who portrayed Ken Masters in Street Fighter: Legacy (2010) and also co-wrote the film with Joey Ansah, whom he previously collaborated with on many British martial arts films. He is also know for  his work on Street Fighter: Assassin’s Fist (2014) and The World’s End (2013).

Howard co-wrote the TV series Street Fighter: Assassin’s Fist with Ansah as well and also reprised his role as Ken. Christian Howard will return for Street Fighter: Resurrection and Street Fighter: World Warrior

David Guetta, “Titanium”

David Guetta, “Titanium” Featuring Sia

Pierre David Guetta is a French DJ, record producer and remixer. He co-founded Gum Productions with Lisa Dodgson and released his first album, Just a Little More Love, in 2002. Later, he released Guetta Blaster (2004) and Pop Life (2007) featuring 2 tracks with the UK’s Tara McDonald.

Guetta achieved mainstream success with his 2009 album One Love which included the hit singles “When Love Takes Over”, “Gettin’ Over You”, and “Sexy Bitch”, all three of which reached #1 in the United Kingdom, and “Memories”. The 2011 follow-up album, Nothing but the Beat, continued this success, containing the hit singles “Where Them Girls At”, “Little Bad Girl”, “Without You”, “Titanium” and “Turn Me On”.

Guetta has sold over nine million albums and 30 million singles worldwide. In 2011 Guetta was voted as the #1 DJ in the ‘DJ Mag Top 100 DJs’ fan poll.

(Source: https://www.youtube.com/)

Kendra Haste

Wire Animal Sculptures by Kendra Haste

Kendra is a contemporary animal sculptor working with the medium of galvanised wire. Since graduating from the Royal College of Art in 1998, Kendra has established a significant reputation in her field with work included in collections world-wide. She is a member of the Society of Wildlife Artsists (UK) and a signature member of the Sociey of Animal Artists (USA).

Public sculptures in the United Kingdom include an elephant at Waterloo Station, London and thirteen works at the Tower of London, commissioned by Historic Royal Palaces in 2010.

“What interests me most about studying animals is identifying the spirit and character of the individual creatures. I try to create a sense of the living, breathing subject in a static 3-D form, attempting to convey the emotional essence without indulging in the sentimental or anthropomorphic.” -Kendra Haste