UNDERSTANDING ABSTRACT ART #47

“Sandplay” – Donated to St.Hilda’s School, Southport.

(Acrylic)  

90x120cm 

ABOUT THE PAINTING AND MY BOOK:

On 27^th October this year, St.Hilda’s School, Southport, Australia (which is my old school) will be hosting a dinner to commemorate the school’s 100^th year.  I have donated a painting titled “Sandplay” for a raffle.

"Sandplay"

The money raised will go to the Supporters of Creative Arts (OCA) that encourages and supports students interested in the creative arts.

The painting “Sandplay” is featured on post #20 on this blog site where I describe the techniques used and the meaning behind the painting.

Tanmayo reading her book "The Power of Creating"

This painting "Sandplay" is also on Page 63 of my new book “The Power of Creating” This book can be downloaded free as an eBook or purchased at cost for $75.oo. Go to http://au.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/3457759 to view a sample of this book.    

This book talks about creating.  It takes you, the reader on a  

·        *      Journey through a life of creativity,

·        *      Find out how to understand abstract art, and how to

·        *      Stimulate your own creativity. 

It is for people who are creative and want to use this creativity and also for those who love art and want to understand it better.  It combines anecdotes from my life, my art and my art therapy career. The book is a 40 year retrospective of my painting.  In it I explain the difference between art and art therapy and give the reader an understanding and appreciation of abstract art.

 A lack of understanding of Abstract Art prompted me to write this book.  This lack of understanding has created a public bias that has affected the credibility of abstract art.  It is often seen by the general public as not being “good” art.  “Even a child could do better” has been heard directed at the world”s most celebrated abstract art.

When viewing Abstract Art ask yourself…

Does the artwork create a feeling – happy/sad/angry?

Does the colour/title/composition/media convey a feeling?

                      Does size matter?

            Does it make you think or question?

Do you have to interact with it in some way i.e. technology/ using lights/sound/touch?

            Does it tell a story or no story?

                        Does it convey an idea?

                        Is there more than one layer of meaning – complexity?

                        Is it ambiguous or contradictory?

                        Is it just a pretty picture empty of meaning?

                        Does having no title make a statement?

Does it deliberately break the technical rules of art?

Is it purely an exercise in art technique with no meaning?

Does the composition feel balanced/unbalanced?

Do the colours harmonize/jar?

Does your eye travel to one area or all over the painting?

            Does the price of the artwork influence your perception of it worth?

            What was your initial response?

                        Has your initial response changed after considering the above?

It’s about you too – it’s an interaction - a two way form of visual communication.

If there is one person who learns to appreciate abstract art more and enjoys it better, then I have achieved my aim.

Be creative in whatever you do.  Just be creative.

Enjoy.

Tanmayo.

http://www.buderimartstudio.com 

UNDERSTANDING ABSTRACT ART #20

                                          “Sandplay”  (Acrylic) -  90x120cm  

ABOUT THIS PAINTING:

”Sandplay” is a painting about the beach, surf, sun and fun.  It was created during a time that I was land bound and far away from the sea.  I have for most of my life lived by the sea having grown up in Surfers Paradise, I now reside on the Sunshine Coast.   But for 3 years I spent time in Louisville, Kentucky when I was studying for my Masters Degree in Expressive Art Therapies.  Louisville is situated in the mid-west of North America. It was there that I painted “Sandplay”

One of a number of therapeutic techniques used in psychotherapy is a therapy called Sandplay Therapy.  It utilizes a tray of sand and an array of symbolic objects.  During therapy the client creates a scenario within the sand tray and then discusses it with the therapist.  It is very successfully used with children but adult populations also benefit from this therapeutic technique.  Sandplay Therapy was included as part of my training as an Expressive Art Therapist.

Both of the above personal experiences have influenced this painting.  While representing the beach with all its light heartedness, the elements associated with Sandplay Therapy are also seen within the painting as obscure (symbolic) objects in the sand.

Artistic techniques used in the painting:

The painting has my characteristic flat planes of colour and deliberate lack of perspective.  However a sense of depth is achieved by the placement of the red/brown line upper centre just inside the bands of green.  The painting captures the feeling of being on a beach with the sea breaking and the top of the painting representing the horizon.  If you have spent time on the beach like I have, you will definitely relate to this sense of space and expansiveness which is characteristic of a beach scene.

The colours used are reminiscent of a beach (particularly in this region of Australia) where the sand is a golden yellow.  The brightness of the colours depict light and sunshine.  The objects scattered throughout the scene are up to you, the viewer, to imagine.  The clear sharp light of the Australian beach casts shadows that call for bright unapologetic colours.  Have you experienced this?   Can you relate to this? 

UNDERSTANDING ABSTRACT ART #15

Title “The Hierophant - Chiron - Master of the Spiritual Realms” 

 (Acrylic) 

 90x120cm 

ABOUT THIS PAINTING:

My academic training is in Psychology and Expressive Therapies. Expressive (Art) Therapy uses art as a counseling tool. I have also been a painter for most of my life. These two disciplines are therefore woven into my paintings.

The MMPI or Personality Inventory is a tool used in Psychology to assess different personality indices within the spectrum of an individual’s personality. It is a Personality Test and a useful tool to sort people into different classifications based on qualities which makeup each person’s personality.

 

The ancient Classical Greeks have a pantheon of Gods and Goddesses that represented similar qualities. Freud and Jung’s psychological theories drew heavily from the Greek myths and philosophy. When I painted the Goddess Series, I was examining aspects of my own personality. According to Jung, men and women each have both male and female qualities within their personality. A man will generally have those characteristics that are celebrated as male such as “strength” etc., but also will have to a lesser extent, qualities that are attributed to females such as “caring”. A woman also will have those qualities that are specifically female such as “gentleness” but can also have qualities attributed to males, such as “courage”.

The Goddess Series focused mainly on female Goddesses and those qualities within my own personality. Included in this exhibition however were some of the Greek Gods.

This painting "The Hierophant" was shown at the end of the video by Natalija Brunovs that was recently released called “Tanmayo – Abstract Artist” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FQ2MzRmoKBA . Figure 1 (above) shows how the painting evolved.

Artistic techniques used in the painting:

The finished painting has a strong diagonal emphasis in its composition. A diagonal often is unsettling to view and suggests discord. However the overall composition is balanced. The tonal value between the reds and the darks is relatively consistent contributing to the flat look - an example of a very high tonal value would be if the reds were changed to whites.

Acrylic paint lends itself well to abstract painting in that it provides coverage to a large canvas and the new acrylics offer a wide range of colours, the consistency and drying time being similar to that of oil paints. In this case I started with no specific idea in mind and just applied paint, but as the painting progressed I sort to bring order to the overall image using the artistic techniques discussed above.

Some artists have a number of paintings on the go at once, however I do not work like that. I usually work on a painting until I have reached a conclusion. I may however recycle an older painting over time.

Over the past three weeks I have reviewed some of the paintings shown in video. This post concludes with a few comments on what it was like for me to be videoed. I am an introvert by nature and am not eager to be “out there”. However being introverted does not mean that one does not have well thought out opinions, and it is with this in mind that I grasped the opportunity of this video. Due to Natalija’s sensitivity and skill, the video captures the essence of what I strive to achieve in my painting. I am not a natural performer and I think that Natalija has done a superb job in portraying what my painting is about.

The Goddess Series should be seen as a whole because it was painted as a celebration of my being and exhibited at an important turning point in my life. Has it helped you to better understand abstract art? Has your attitude to abstract art changed? If so, I would love to read some of your comments.