Monica D. Murgia

Where art, creativity, and fashion meet

Archive for the ‘artists’ Category

June 13th, 2013 by Monica Murgia

Surrealist Legacy

Today’s post is another interview with a student.  Massiva has been writing her thesis on how the Surrealist movement impacted fashion design.  This is a topic I have been fascinated by, so I was really eager to see what she would ask me.  Her questions are really thought-provoking.
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  •  Do you think that the surrealist movement influences fashion even nowadays? 

Absolutely.  Surrealist elements have been incorporated into fashion since the movement started in the 1920s. I’d say it’s heyday for fashion designers and Surrealist collaborations was in the 1930s and 1940s, but it’s impact can be felt since.  The Postwar interest in Surrealism and fashion was definitely influenced by Wesley Simpson.  He was a New York textile converter that worked with French artists to create textile designs.  This was a way for painters to have an expanded market.  Not everyone can afford an oil painting by someone like Salvador Dali or Rene Magritte.  But a few yards of fabric designed by the artist was a brilliant way to incorporate art into everyday life, and at a price point that many people could afford.  I think recent interest in Surrealism and fashion has to do with the insight of curators like Dilys Blum (Philadelphia Museum of Art) as well as Andrew Bolton and Harold Koda (Metropolitan Museum of Art).  These curators really brought awareness of Surrealism and it’s impact on fashion with the exhibits Shocking! The Art & Fashion of Elsa Schiaparelli and Schiaparelli  & Prada: Impossible Conversations, respectively.  These exhibits allowed a new generation to become familiar with Surrealism.  After these exhibits opened, there was a clear correlation of Surrealist elements showing up in contemporary fashion design.  Prada, Philip Treacy, Diane Von Furstenburg – they were just some of the numerous designers that referenced Surrealism in the past 5 years.   I think that we will continue to see Surrealism impacting fashion because it gives a certain shock value.  People want to be remembered, and that’s certainly easy if you’re wearing a gigantic lobster on your head.

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 Rhinestone encrusted lobster hat by  Philip Treacy, 2010
 

  • Do you think that art will carry on influencing fashion in the future? 
 Yes.  I think the two disciplines are intertwined.  In my mind, they are really extensions of one another.  You can’t really have fashion without art – prints on textiles, sketching new designs, draping fabric, pattern drafting – they all require an artist’s sensitivity to color, silhouette, and the medium used. To be done well, there has to be a mastery and artistry to designing fashion.  So many designers are impacted by artists because they share a similar sensitivity to color, beauty, and representing intangible ideas.  On the flip side, I think it is impossible to have a progression in art without changes in fashion.  To illustrate what I mean, look at the images below: 
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You don’t have to be an art historian to see the progression.  Art changes – it reflects the change in what is considered beautiful, how people dress, as well as innovations in techniques and materials.  It’s easy to date the paintings and art movements by how they depict clothing and the ideal silhouette.  So I think it’s a natural progression.  Future artists and designers will definitely impact each others work.
  • Dali has an important influence on the 20th century, do you think Dali is a visionary?

Honestly, I think he was a little crazy :) He famously said things like: “I don’t do drugs. I  am drugs.” and “There is only one difference between a madman and me. The madman thinks he is sane. I know I am mad.”  But perhaps the chaos of his mind was what made him truly innovative.  He saw and experienced things that others didn’t.  I supposed that is what makes a visionary.

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  •  In your opinion, what would be Schiaparelli fashion house if it would not have been closed in 1954 ?
 I think Schiaparelli would have continued to push the envelope.  She liked being innovative and, well, shocking.  She was also extremely intelligent.  I remember reading that she once said: “Fashion is born by small facts, trends, or even politics, never by trying to make little pleats and furbelows, by trinkets, by clothes easy to copy, or by the shortening or lengthening of a skirt.” If her house remained open, I think that statement would have guided every design she made.  The house would have interpreted political sentiments and facts as they were – however beautiful or ugly they may have been.  Maybe she is like Vivienne Westwood in this way. I think she would have delivered small bits of truth via her designs.
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  • You surely heard about that, what do you think of the idea of Diego Della Valle to relaunch Schiaparelli house and give it a second breath?

I have heard this before.  When I hear about these kinds of things, I try to push it to the back of my mind.  I like to view collections and exhibitions without any expectations.  It may be magnificent, it might not.  I’m sure there will be elements of interest.  If I had any advice to Diego Della Valle, it would be to read Schiaparelli’s autobiography, Shocking Life.  If he is interested in relaunching her brand, I hope he takes the time to understand the way in which she perceived things.

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May 17th, 2013 by Monica Murgia

Textile Designs by Rockwell Kent

As promised, I wanted to write more about the textile designs I saw at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.  This was the original drawing that caught my eye.  The design, entitled Swaying Trees, is by American artist Rockwell Kent.

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This was a big surprise for me!  Kent (1882 – 1971) studied painting under William Merritt Chase and Robert Henri.  I’d learned a bit about his paintings while working at an art gallery.  Henri encouraged Kent to paint landscapes of Monhegan island in Maine on his own.  This experience of painting directly in nature greatly affected Kent.  Whatever medium he chose, Kent’s work always captures the amazing power of nature.

Kent gained a reputation of a neo-Transcendentalist because of this.  Transcendentalism was a philosophy that originated in the 1830s and asserted that spiritual experiences could be observed in nature.  Time spent in nature often created a mystical or transcendental experience to those that followed this philosophy.

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You can see that his textile designs capture natural themes.  The other accompanying design is called Running Deer.  Both of these were realized in 1950.  Kent made a similar design for Bloomcraft Inc called Deer Season, which you can see below:

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Kent also completed a few other designs for Bloomcraft Inc, including Harvest Time:
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Harvest Time by Rockwell Kent.  Image courtesy of Boston Museum of Fine Arts
And Pine Tree:
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Pine Tree by Rockwell Kent.  Image courtesy of Boston Museum of Fine Arts

 Unless otherwise states, images courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

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May 15th, 2013 by Monica Murgia

Textile sketches by Sonia Delaunay

The Metropolitan Museum of Art is one of my favorite places to pass some time.  Earlier this week, I took a group of students to a special event celebrating Punk: Chaos to Couture.  As I wandered around the second floor, making my way to the exhibition, several sketches caught my eye.  The main corridor that leads to the special exhibition gallery is generally lined with works on paper – prints, drawings, and so on.  I noticed a lot of patterns, and knew they were textile designs.  (I’ll be writing more about those later!)  In the middle of this large corridor was a small table encased in plexiglass with the most wonderful sketches by Sonia Delaunay (1885-1979).

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These drawings are from 1925, and just darling!  I stood there a long time looking at them.  (They were a bit difficult to photograph without casting a shadow, as you can see.)  These sketches are simply entitled Sonia Delaunay: her paintings, her objects, her simultaneous fabrics, her fashions.  I think these are really prime examples of her design sensibilities, which included the art theory her and her husband Robert developed.  (New to my site?  You should take a look at my previous posts on Sonia & Robert Delaunay)

Sonia, along with her husband, painter Robert Delaunay (1885-1941), developed a color theory called simultaneity – the sensation of movement when contrasting colors are placed side by side.

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I love the geometry and color patterns in each of these sketches.  They clearly show a harmony between the fine and decorative arts movements at the time.  The green and black dress on the left is a nod to Cubism.  The middle dress looks uncannily like the interior of  an Art Deco building.  Perhaps it was inspired by a tiled floor.

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The silhouette is still column-like, which is a hallmark of the 1920s.  There is no defined waist, and the garments seem to hang vertically from the shoulders and obscure the shape of the body.   However, you can see that most of the hemlines are quite long – a definite contrast to the American flapper.  A nice alternative silhouette  to all The Great Gatesby buzz that’s been going around.

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All images courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

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May 13th, 2013 by Monica Murgia

Moderne by Wesley Simpson

This post can be filed under “find of the week”.  It’s a silk scarf by Wesley Simpson.  Simpson was a textile converter based in New York.  (New to my site?  You should read these posts on Wesley Simpson) This scarf is called “Moderne”, and I’m curious to figure out when it was made.

 

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My time is a bit limited, as I’m currently very busy.  However, there are some clues to go on based just by looking at the design.  It has a curiously design motif based on Mayan sculpture.  In fact, the first clue I noticed was the human face.  It is a profile view.  The figure has large ears, and a sort breathing mask attached to his nose.

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There is a famous sculpture in the Mayan town known as Palenque.  Palenque flourishe during the Seventh Century, and has some of the finest architecture, sculpture, and art that the Mayans produced.  Pacal the Great was one of the most famous rulers of this town.  In his tomb, there is a sculpture that looks very much like the design on this scarf.

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Bas relief sculpture from the rule of Pacal the Great from Palenque.  Image courtesy of Exo Human
Here is a closer look.  Notice how they both seem to be breathing through some sort of tube.
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There are other design elements that look like Mayan sculpture.  Here are a few details:

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Dots within circles appear in lots of Mayan tablets  People and faces are exaggerated and stylized, composed of simple geometric shapes.

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It will be fun to do a bit more research on this when I have the time.  I’m curious to see if there was an exhibition on Mayan art in New York sometime in the 1940s or 1950s.  Hopefully in a few weeks I will have an answer.  If have any clues about this design, please leave it in a comment!

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April 23rd, 2013 by Monica Murgia

The Prints of Mary Cassatt

There is a great exhibition currently on view at the New York Public Library.  It highlights the prints of famed Impressionist painter Mary Cassatt (1844-1917).  Cassatt was renown for her contributions to the Impressionist school of painting in France, but I knew every little about her efforts of printmaking.

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The Fitting by Mary Cassatt, 1891.  Color print with drypoint and aquatint.

Cassatt was from Pennsylvania, and studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts as a teenager.  Art schools were much different then.  Females were not allowed to draw the nude models in classes.  They instead were instructed to draw from mannequins and plaster casts.  In 1866, Cassatt moves to Paris to further her studies.

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She starts showing her work at the official Paris Salon, but was rejected in 1875.  This is the same year that she accepts an invitation from Edgar Degas to join the Impressionist group.

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The Coiffure by Mary Cassatt, 1891.  Image courtesy of NYPL.

I immediately noticed how much Cassatt’s prints looked like Japanese woodblock prints from the era.  The show went on to talk about how many of Cassatt’s early prints were influenced by the influx of Japanese art  that flooded Paris in the late 19th Century.  Many of her compositions mimic traditional Japanese art: the placement of the subject, the use of space, and the idea of capturing moments of daily life.

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Takashima Ohisa Using Two Mirrors to Observe Her Coiffure by Kitagawa Utamaro, c. 1795.  Image courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.  

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Another observation that interested me was the representation of patterns on textiles and other decorative objects.  Patterns seemed to jump out at me: the  floral print on the carpet, the painted  pitcher, the stripes on the subject’s dress.

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I also enjoyed seeing several prints of with the same composition, but that had different layers of plates.  This was because Cassatt was experimenting with reworking her copper plates and perhaps which colors of acquatint  she would use.

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Afternoon Tea Party by Mary Cassatt, 1891.  Image courtesy of NYPL.

Seeing the various stages of Cassatt’s process is so interesting.  I love seeing work like this, because it allows you into the artist’s mind.  You can see how she dealt with challenges in depicting the image as it was in her mind.  Maybe she wanted more depth in the background, or the cups to be a darker blue.  It reminded me of the exhibition on Matisse – where you started to see how the artist revisited a composition again and again to perfect it.

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Again, you can see this evolution in The Letter.  One has a very plain background, while the other focuses on the pattern of the wallpaper.

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The Letter by Mary Cassatt, 1891.  Image courtesy of NYPL.

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If you can’t make it to the show, the exhibition catalog is available online.

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Mother’s Kiss by Mary Cassatt, 1891.  Image courtesy of NYPL.

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April 1st, 2013 by Monica Murgia

Joan Mitchell

Teaching doesn’t come with an instruction manual.  I’d never planned to be a teacher.  Yet almost four years ago, I found myself in front of a classroom.  To say that I was anxious would be an understatement.  Luckily, it got easier with practice.  The very first course I taught was called Fashion Seminar at FIDM.  Part theory, part portfolio development, I was responsible for teaching fashion theory along with art.  The portfolio consisted of a series of art assignments.  The learning outcome was to take an inspiration source and create new and meaningful artwork from it. Each week, we would have a new focus: collage, found object, textile design, and so forth.  There was one assignment that initially gave me any problems.  It was called multiple sensory.

 

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Untitled by Joan Mitchell, 1969.  Image courtesy of the Joan Mitchell Foundation, Cheim & Read Gallery, and Lehigh University.

I understood the concept.  Say your inspiration source is a tree.  How does it feel to touch its bark?  Try drawing that sensation.  Obviously, there is no “wrong” way to do this assignment.  Yet it caused so much confusion the first time I tried to explain this to the students.  For me, this was frustrating.  I didn’t seem to have the right words to explain the desired result.  But then, I remembered learning about synesthesia.  I decided to do a little research and present my findings to the class.

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Detail. Image courtesy of the Joan Mitchell Foundation, Cheim & Read Gallery, and Lehigh University.

Synesthesia is a neurologically-based condition in which stimulation of one sensory pathway leads to automatic, involuntary experiences in a second sensory pathway. Synesthetes, those that have synesthesia, will see colors when they hear sound or touch objects.  (I’ve written about this before!  Please read my post Synesthesia in Art & Fashion.  It’s one of my favorites!)  When I research, I go to libraries and book stores.  I build a sort of book fort around myself, and get lost in thought for hours.  I stumbled across several great books, but the best one was a small catalog called Synesthesia: Art & the Mind.  It’s fantastic, and I have a copy in my personal collection.

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Untitled by Joan Mitchell, 1978.  Image courtesy of the Joan Mitchell Foundation, Cheim & Read Gallery, and Lehigh University.

This catalog is how I became acquainted with Joan Mitchell.  And it was love at first sight!  There is a small essay by Patricia Albers in this catalog, and it explains all about Joan Mitchell and how her synesthesia influenced her paintings.  Albers explains:

Joan Mitchell had several forms of synesthesia, including personality-color synesthesia, in which other people induce colors . . .

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 Heel, Sit, Stay by Joan Mitchell, 1977.  Image courtesy of the Joan Mitchell Foundation, Cheim & Read Gallery, and Lehigh University.

It turns out that Mitchell also had “colored-hearing” synesthesia, or that she would see shapes and colors while listening to music.  She also has eidetic memory (aka photographic memory) which means that instead of remembering, she would quite literally relive the past.  Albers goes on to explain:

” ‘I carry my landscapes around with me’ she often said, in the form of images that ‘roosted inside’ her.   As involved as she was with trees, rivers, fields, clouds, weather, and so on, she did not work out-of-doors, but rather mentally ‘framed’ whatever spoke to her: ‘the motion is made still like a fish trapped in ice.  It is trapped in the painting.  My mind is like an album of photographs and paintings.’ “

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Tilleul by Joan Mitchell, 1978.  Image courtesy of the Joan Mitchell Foundation, Cheim & Read Gallery, and Lehigh University.

Lehigh University currently has a show on Joan Mitchell’s work.  It doesn’t touch on her synesthesia, but I sat in front of these large scale works and just marveled at them.  I really enjoyed the painting above. This canvas just looks like a tree to me.  I stared at it for a while, wondering if I was looking up at branches.  It was like going for a walk through Mitchell’s personal landscape.  This painting really made me happy.  And there was just so much to look at!  It’s even more magical up-close.  Look at the details:

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Details. Image courtesy of the Joan Mitchell Foundation, Cheim & Read Gallery, and Lehigh University.

 

When I explained synesthesia and showed Mitchell’s artwork to my students, I saw a drastic improvement on the work they produced.  There is a really freeing sense that developed in my classroom.  Everyone can experiencing a merging of the senses to some degree.  But the very idea stimulates creativity.  Sensations, emotions – they aren’t logical, nor do they possess a recognizable visual form.  So relating feelings and perceptions to colors and forms in art was almost liberating to the students.  Their creations didn’t have to look like anything, but there was always a recognizable correlation to their inspiration.

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Untitled by Joan Mitchell, c. 1952.  Image courtesy of the Joan Mitchell Foundation, Cheim & Read Gallery, and Lehigh University.

As I walked through the Mitchell exhibit, I had the real sense of experiencing nature.  A tree, a leaf, branches, flowers, rain, sunshine through a window – I had the sensations of experiencing it the way Mitchell must have.  This painting made me think of blossoming flowers.  At first, I saw one large flower.  But as I approached the canvas, it seemed there were small flowers scattered about.

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Detail. Image courtesy of the Joan Mitchell Foundation, Cheim & Read Gallery, and Lehigh University.

 

It reminded me of the critiques I had with my students in LA.  Somehow, it all makes sense.  If you are in the Bethlehem area, please drop in to see the show!  It is at the Zoellner Art Center until May 2013.

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Untitled by Joan Mitchell, 1992.  Image courtesy of the Joan Mitchell Foundation, Cheim & Read Gallery, and Lehigh University. 

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March 29th, 2013 by Monica Murgia

Calder Bicentennial Tapestries

 

 

 

 

Making discoveries in your own back yard are so fun.  Today, I was at the Zoellner Arts Center at Lehigh University.  I went to their gallery to see the Joan Mitchell show, which I will be writing a post about shortly!  However, I was really surprised to see these tapestries hanging up.  They are by none other than Alexander Calder  (1898-1976).

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The Bicentennial Tapestries: La Poire, le fromage, et le serpent (The Pear, the Cheese, and the Serpent) by Alexander Calder, 1975.  Wool.  Handwoven the Atelier of Pinton Freres.

Calder was a famous sculptor.  You’ve probably seen some of his mobiles, which he started producing in the 1930s.  Calder was born in Philadelphia.  His father was a sculpter and his mother was a painter.  After studying engineering, Calder studied at the Art Students’ League in New York

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Mobile by Alexander Calder. Image courtesy of the LA Times. 
Calder was not limited to sculpture.  He experimented with various media: jewlery, paiting, drawing, tapestries.  Calder tried it all.  He was also very close friends with Vera Neumann, a fantastic textile and scarf designer.  (I remember a particularly fantastic post on this topic by The Vintage Traveler!)

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The Bicentennial Tapestries: La Tache Bleue (The Blue Blob) by Alexander Calder, 1975.

In celebration of the bicentennial of the American Revolution, Calder designed a set of six tapestries.  His designs were then handwoven by the Pinton Freres atelier in Aubusson, France.  A limited edition of 200 were produced.

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The The Bicentennial Tapestries: Le Sphere et les spirales (The Sphere and the Spirals) by Alexander Calder, 1975.      

Each of the tapestries are signed and have a number.  I wasn’t able to closely examine each of the tapestries, because they were hanging quite high on the wall.  Two of the tapestries were hung above benches.  So I stepped up to take a closer look (and a few photos).   Here is the signature and a mark that I can’t quite make out.  I suppose it is the number of the tapestry.

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I really loved the graphic quality of the tapestries.  The swirls and stripes are so interesting.  The Palms is a great example of what I’m talking about.

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The Bicentennial Tapestries: Les Palmiers (The Palms) by Alexander Calder, 1975.      

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Calder actually died the same year in which the tapestries were realized by the Pinton Freres atelier.  These tapestries were a gift from Philip and Muriel Burman in 1999.  The local newspaper, The Morning Call wrote more about the weaving technique when the gift was announced to the public:

 The panels were made in Aubusson, France, using a centuries old technique that takes the weaver a month to create a single square yard of tapestry. The Bicentennial Tapestries were woven at Pinton Freres, the same studio that converted the art of Picasso, Chagall and Miro into Aubusson tapestry.

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The Bicentennial Tapestries: Trois spirales (Three Spirals) by Alexander Calder, 1975.

 The sixth tapestry was in the permanent gallery downstairs, which I missed.  More reason to go back and take another look!

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March 25th, 2013 by Monica Murgia

Monet & Etretat

Yesterday, I wrote a post about a vintage illustrated dictionary I found.  The little drawings pouring out from each page really captivated me.  I spent a few hours making my own drawings based on the illustrations in the book.  One, in particular, reminded me so much of paintings by Claude Monet (1840-1926).  The illustration of a bluff made me think of Monet’s series depicting the coastline of Etretat.
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Etretat is a small farming and fishing town near in the Normandy region of France.  It attracts tourist far and wide for the naturally formed bluffs and cliff formations.  According to the Musee d’Orsey, Monet first visited this area in the winter of 1868 and returned every year between 1883-1886.  Monet made countless paintings of this coastline, each showing a different time of day or weather pattern.
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Etretat in the Rain by Claude Monet, 1886.
I love this series of paintings.  When I find a really special place, I take endless photographs and make drawings and paintings of what I observe.  There is a small trail in the woods near my home that is really special to me.  This is what I base a lot of my own paintings off of, as well as a large portion of my Instagram feed.  Since this type of technology wasn’t available at the time, Monet had to paint rapidly to capture the ambient light and atmosphere.
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If you’ve ever painted or drawn landscapes outdoors, you know how tricky it is to capture the moment.  The wind blows, a cloud passes by – whatever may happen, the environment constantly changes.  The lighting may be different.  Leaves will scatter about.  People may enter the area.  The scene is in a constant state of flux.  If you sit outside and observe the same spot carefully for 15 minutes, you’ll see how rapidly that little spot will change.
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Etretat, La Porte d’Aval – Boats Leaving the Harbor by Claude Monet, 1885. Image courtesy of Musée des Beaux-Arts de Dijon via Wikimedia Commons.
If you observe the same place at different times of day over a period of time, you’ll start to notice so much more.  It’s a really extraordinary thing to see the environment change from afternoon to sunset.
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 Soleil Couchant à Etretat by Claude Monet,  1883.  Image courtesy of El Museo de Hipatia.
Each sunset is unique and different.  Look at the variation between these paintings.
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Etretat at the End of the Day, Claude Monet.  Image courtesy of Poul Webb.
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Cliffs at Eretat by Claude Monet, 1886. Image courtesy of The Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts, Moscow.
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Sunset at Etretat by Claude Monet, 1883.
Weather patterns change the lighting and colors the eye perceives.  Here is Eretat during a particularly bad storm.  Look at how dark and dreary it is.  You can almost feel harsh winds whipping around you.
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Rough Sea at Etretat by Claude Monet, 1868.  Image courtesy of Wikipaintings.
Monet painted another storm at Eretat, but this one seems less alarming.  The sea seems to be more frenetic and turbulent.  The brushstrokes are more pronounced, which gives the sea a really harsh feeling.
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Agitated Sea at Etretat by Claude Monet, 1883. Image courtesy of Musée des Beaux-Arts, Lyon, via Wikimedia Commons.
And then, you can always observe the same place from a different vantage point.  Here is another storm, from the other side of the bluff.  Can you see the lone seagull?
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Amont Cliff with Rough Weather by Claude Monet, c. 1886.

 

 Eretat is a really beautiful place, and I hope to make it there some day.  Until then, I’ll have to enjoy these lovely paintings by Monet.
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The Cliffs at Etretat by Claude Monet, 1885. Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

 

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March 24th, 2013 by Monica Murgia

Find of the Week: The Art Spirit by Robert Henri

 

 

My previous posts about the “Find of the Week” have always been about clothing.  But today’s post is all about a wonderful book I discovered.  The Art Spirit by Robert Henri is a collection of the artist’s beliefs, theories, and teachings on painting.  I can’t tell you how excited I was to accidentally discover this book!

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Robert Henri (1865-1929) was an American artist, primarily know for his portraits, and the leader of the Ashcan School.  Around 1900, this group of painters focused on depicting scenes as they were (Realism) instead of in the dreamy, staccato way of the American (and French) Impressionists.

Henri attracted droves of students to The Art Students League of New York, including George Bellows. (New to my site?  Please take a moment to read my previous post on George Bellows) Henri was an excellent communicator, mostly because of the passion which drove him to create art.  He saw no separation between art and life, constantly stating that art is a matter in which everyone is vitally concerned.  Why?  Henri opens the book with the following:

“Art, when really understood, is the province of every human being.  It is simply a question of doing things – anything – well.  It is not an outside, extra thing.  When the artist is alive in any person, whatever his kind of work may be, he becomes an inventive, searching , daring, self-expressing creature,  He becomes interesting to other people.“

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Current course catalog for The Art Students League

The Art Students League is still in operation.  After finding Henri’s book, I took a trip to the school.  There classes are extremely flexible and affordable.  You simply select the type of class you’d like to take, and pay for a month of enrollment.  Classes offered range in price from $80  to $240 for the month, and meet either once, twice, or five times a week.  The Art Students League also offers workshops, as well!  I’m hoping to enroll in a class or two this summer.

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Classroom storage at The Art Students League.

The book is so inspiring.  It is no wonder to me that Henri had so many students.  When I read his words now, so long after they were written in the 1920s, I can feel this dormant creativity in myself waking up.  A particular passage in the book really touched me:

“There are moments in our lives, there are moments in a day, when we seem to see beyond the usual.  Such are the moments of greatest happiness.  Such are the moments of our greatest wisdom.  If one could but recall his visions by some sort of sign.  It was in this hope that the arts were invented.  Signposts on the way to what might be. Signposts towards greater knowledge.”

1908 Jessica Penn in Black with White Plumes oil on canvas 196 x 97 cm

 

Jessica Penn in Black and White Plumes by Robert Henri, 1908.

That is what made Henri such a great artist.  He could observe daily life in such extraordinary detail.  Looking at his portrait of Jessica Penn, I imagine that he captured her likeness very well.  Penn seems very self-assured with her bold pose: shoulders back, hip thrust back and jutted out to the side, arms positioning the fabric of her skirt to show her silhouette more closely.  She has that s-shaped silhouette so typical of the time period. But look at her face: doesn’t she look a bit, well, bored?  Maybe she is just tired – those extreme corsets of the day certainly made daily activities, like walking and breathing, difficult.

Her outfit is really skillful depicted.  It really reminds me a lot of this dress by Jaques Doucet from 1903.

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Dress by Jacques Doucet, 1903.  Image courtesy of The Kyoto Costume Institute.  

 

 

 

 

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March 24th, 2013 by Monica Murgia

A to See

 

 

It’s been one of those weeks.  You know, the kind of week when your to-do list is a mile long and you’re running on fumes.  I’ve been juggling multiple projects, commuting, and grading for the end of the term.  After carefully finishing all my requirements, I needed some time for myself.  Having quiet time is really essential for me to stay balanced.  So what did I do?

Earlier in the week, I found this great vintage illustrated dictionary.  It was the first volume in a set of six, and covers A to Ch.  There was something so compelling about the illustrations that I had to buy it.  There were so many wonderful pictures that I knew would inspire me to draw.

 

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There is something about drawing that re-energizes me.  It is sort of a meditation.  I become really absorbed in the process of creating shapes and lines.  When I draw, I want to capture not only a likeness of the object, but it’s spirit – the way it makes me feel.  That is why making art changes my mood.  Instead of focusing on external things outside of my control, I look to a thing of beauty that makes me happy and try to create a record of it.  This little dictionary was filled with some of the happiest, beautiful illustrations.  Like this:

 

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The catalpa is a tree with heart-shaped leaves.  I’ve seen trees like this before, and marveled at them.  A tree full of hearts!  What a perfect plant for me.  But I’d never know the name.  Of course I was inspired and made this little drawing:

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The illustration that really made me purchase the book was of a bluff along the sea.  It has a little sailboat hugging the shoreline.  I thought it was really darling, and reminded me of Monet’s seascapes.  (Maybe I will post about those paintings tomorrow!)

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I changed the color of the sails to purple, but kept the passenger.

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Then, a chestnut tree caught my attention:

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I’m not sure if I liked how this one came out, but it was still fun to do!

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Every page I turned brought more inspiring images.  I sketched a few more things, but was most happy with this canyon.

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I could easily entertain myself this way for much longer.  I only wish I had the entire volume of this dictionary!  There must be so much more to see.

(Like my drawings?  I used a thin tip Sharpie marker and Crayola Twistable crayons.  I highly recommend these items!)

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February 28th, 2013 by Monica Murgia

Byzantine Express

Once in a great while, there is a collection that blows me away.  Dolce Gabbana’s Fall/Winter 2014 was one of those dreamy, art inspired collections that I can’t stop thinking about!  In my eyes, this label can do no wrong.  They always make beautiful garments, most of which reference Italian art and history.  This year, they looked to Byzantine art that is so prevalent in Italy.
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Look at how the dress above (image courtesy of Style.com) has a geometric printed textile that mimics the gold coated mosaic bits of stone and glass.  The crown on the figure looks to have hand-sewn embellishments.  Looks a lot like this this Byzantine mosaic, doesn’t it?  The way the head is gestured, the crown with three points, even the eyes and crook of the nose all looks the same . . .
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Image courtesy of Orthodox Northwest.

There were so many great looks!  I tried to pick a few that had a strong correlation to existing mosaics.  This dress certainly looks like it was inspired by the mosaic of Saint Michael, the Archangel.  Take a look:
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The red halo, the blue tunic with golden Maltese crosses, the geometric patterned stole.  It’s all the same!
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The general patterns are a really close match, too!  Take a look at this hemline . . .
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compared to this detail . .
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 The accessories are so amazing, too!  Look a this handbag.  It really resembles Justinian, don’t you think?
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It’s not an exact match, but pretty close.  The crown is a different color and shape, the jewelry is different – but the clothing is draped the same way and fastened with a similar brooch.
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The collection is pretty dreamy.  Be on the lookout for Byzantine inspired fashion.

 

 

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