Artist View

IS OUR CULTURE DEAD OR NOT?

There is a mental confusion in this society regarding art culture. Australia has not yet harmonized, 100 years of immigration from most parts of the world has not had a proper impact yet. There should be a need in peoples lives to be more art conscious, but it is said it's just a luxury that can be put last on anyone's list of priorities.

US and Them Even in a modest culture society it's a necessity for the spiritual well being in life, to be in touch with the true devotion of creative minds that give their expression of the world around them. Art is mans divine instinct for creation, art lifts our innate sense of beauty to that final consciousness to which life aspires. The recognized function of art is to flee the spirit and to invigorate and enlarge our vision. Faithful representation is not art.

The objective aspect for many artists and their originating activity that can only slavishly follow the models provided by nature. He is not, so far as that aspect of art is concerned, a creator, but merely animator. Devoted artists are the voices of their own time and place - they give expression to, and help shape the ideas, understanding, and beliefs of the society in which they live. Although - primitive man were creatures who confronted the outer world helplessly and incoherently as dumbfound animals, creatures who only received shifting and unreliable perceptual images of the phenomenal world. They only, by slow stages of progressive and consolidated experience, remodel such perceptions into conceiving images. Finding their way step by step in the chaos of the phenomenal world. But in this intellectual so called modem world, so many creative people devote all and give us their art to embrace. In Australia for example it is clear we are conservation conscious, we are sports minded, and history aware.

But when it comes to being inspired by the creativeness of man, it is secondary to the greater percentage. Its sad we could not care less, unless its a major, heavily sponsored money spinner art exhibition. Even the local school art shows where most visitors and buyers are patriotic parents and close friends, it's only to a degree successful thanks to their involvement. Most if not all art galleries would have no success at all if it wasn't for mailing lists which of course take a long time to accumulate and of course having a distinct reputation helps those few who are serious. Seldom you see or hear about art casually, unless you deliberately buy art magazines or watch a small format on ABC TV once a week. Is that enough to inspire us to be art cultured? No..

THEREFORE I SAY WE ARE CULTURE DEAD

The last Van Gogh exhibition in Melbourne in 1994 was a true insight to this Australian culture we have. Waiting four abreast in queues a hundred meters long to see practically the worst twenty examples of this great artist. And I have seen the rest, would there have been through other sources including private collections, etc. Who knows?

Mother Love People just wanted to be close to the enigma, that does exist, and the spirit of this artist. Anything would do as I as it was from a legend and probably the most talked about artist in history. How many realize Van Gogh did over two thousand artworks and most are in Holland, and most are too fragile to be transported on loan around the world and there in his own housed museum in Amsterdam, there are no queues of people trampling over each other, in fact it is a very relaxed atmosphere and there are his most exhibited works are visited by the so-called cultured and informed, willing casual art seekers.

Van Gogh was a misunderstood man who was very deprived, he was abused, both himself and his paintings physically and was hardly shown any respect for his offering to beautify the world his way. His brother Theodorus was the exemption of the highest order to the last moment of Vincent's life, Theo himself died of grief a year after the final demise of his brother. Just before his own death he made his beloved wife promise, who in her self was never enthusiastic about Vincent's work, to pursue with vigilance to expose Vincent's work until there was definite exception. It took years. What I am saying is; Melbournian people were a more informed culture bred, thus art aware, then the dismal quality of art selected would have been obvious, and the minimal amount of paintings on show at that last exhibition would have deterred thousands of visitors.

May I say at this point, artists including myself have sinned in producing many low grade artworks during our lives. These works should never be seen together. If they had an exhibition of this standard in New York of this kind of it would of had a counter productive result financially and probably gallery doors would have closed, because overseas there is a higher level of consciousness in art and because they are constantly informed. It is all an important aspect of their well being, it is not a luxury to enjoy occasionally, and should not be taken for granted, like we seem to do here in Australia. It's just an outing experience. I'm sorry but it should be a part of our very existence, part of our lives. Are we aware anything that is made by man that we can see and hear and touch wouldn't even exist if it wasn't for the innovation of real creative minds.

There are many millions of artists around the world, who unfortunately many believe in their own versatility, they are led to believe by others that their so called master piece that looks like a viable product that should and could be more than a hobby according to them. And so their collection grows and grows, these artists spend huge amounts of money on framing, etc. All in vain, and hope to one day sell them and go on. There should be no thoughts of grandeur or expectations of their own reality and, in their mind. The viewer, the buyer at art shows with a sense of art insight should be aware of the hobby painter, the leisure artist. There are many who don't confess to it openly. Work by these artists are decoration paintings. Would any artist be willing to admit or is aware the greatest crime an artist can commit is producing UN-stimulating and boring would they even know they are producing it, and art conscious should be aware of it.

Art works by artists who live and breath their work all their lives are a different breed and there are only a few, their very importance can be felt, their Karma is present to art minded viewing public, which of course is sadly missing in Australia.

In National Galleries around Australia there hardly ever would be an exhibition by a now famous dead or living artist for fear the attendance would be very slack, its never been worthwhile economically. It is a shame we cant be educated by any means to attend galleries more, of course the exceptions are only the very controversial from the past and big money is spent promoting these events. Only then are we persuaded to take some culture in our heads. Although mediocre art is across the world, Australia is the worst effected with only a few exceptions from the past and present. We are all obsessed with landscapes and seascapes and a bit of abstract art, etc.

We have been conditioned to a particular format and so our mentality is stagnant. But when we travel overseas we are always culture shocked, WHY?

Much of that has to do with art in some form.

Do we ever ask ourselves do I appreciate that artist, he or she has devoted their only life, their well being, body and soul to expressing a pure artistic dedicated talent to be appreciated hopefully. But in this country it would be in vain in most cases, with the little the informed culture we are endowed with here. Only more immigration from various intellectual societies from various countries around the world would make an open minded impact and change our vision away from this blindness and stupidity. Remember new or different art or music should not be a threat to this lay-back and common society we seem to be happy with here.

We are not sheep, we are individuals but unfortunately in character and with little taste only. Most us are followers and creatures of habit, we can change now and explore new horizons, starting with our needs to be stimulated and go and see an exhibition of any kind hopefully with some individuality from the artist, and technical qualitiesincluded. Ask your self did he or she devote their whole life to this course, their cause? We should be constantly in pursuit of new The Nightmare experiences, especially in art in order to enhance our lives. Do we enjoy the manifestations of the creative impulse in man - have we ever considered that a layman is often obliged to devote a great deal of his life to work he has no real interest in doing. He will therefore stop and watch an artist because, for a layman, the artist is a symbol, a symbol of life based on personal choice not necessity.

The layman watches with a deep sense of humility. Artists on the other hand are usually lone wolves whether they care to admit it or not. They need an audience however to sustain them over their long bouts of isolated activity.

A devoted artists life is in vain if at the very least he can't convey he has at least sacrificed his or her entire life to the talent they profess to have, but has our society the imagination and initiative to take hold of it? Unfortunately history does repeat as in Vincent Van Gogh's life.

WHAT A SHAME!

Artist View - Artist Say >> - Artist Philosophy Of Life >>