Ars longa, vita brevis

You Should Own Art, Edition 24

“Art is long, life is short” is an aphorism attributed to Hippocrates (he of the Hippocratic oath) I’ve recently came across. I’m quite skeptical of a simple pat phrase presented as wisdom from a person dead a millennia or more. Inherent is a lazy set of assumptions layered onto a bunch of half-baked cultural associations that are supposed to somehow add up to insights relevant to our lives today. Think of how different the world was so long ago, and of the daisy chain of translations of the words themselves, passing from Ancient Greek to Latin to Medieval English to something that can be embroidered on a throw pillow. And yet, there it is. Regardless of their history, or their original meaning, the words resonate.

I came across this at roughly the same time that I learned Hilary Mantel had died. I had just started “Bring Up the Bodies”, the second of her three books about Henry the Eighth’s advisor Thomas Cromwell. It’s a work of art that places you almost bodily in the world of the narrative. It feels alive, even though the author is no longer. The art survives the author; art is long, life is short.

Closer to home, the father of a dear friend, himself a significant artist, very recently passed. He leaves behind a body of work that is tremendously immediate and will be relevant for decades to come. Art is long, life is short.

And so, this month, I’ve found myself drawn to works of art about humans engaged in the activity of humanity. Doing the things that define our condition; messy, silly, and sublime.

Slingshot in Viridian and Cerulean

Lee Simmonds

Limited Edition Print, edition of 40 

50 x 75 cm (19.7 x 29.5 in)

GBP£420 (£350 outside UK)

Slingshot in Viridian and Cerulean by Lee Simmonds | Image: Later Editions

Do I know exactly what’s going on in this image? I do not. But that’s what makes this so human: people doing their thing, relating to each other in a manner that has evolved over time. This is a chat with people you know - with a bit of mischief. And I love the color.

You can buy this work here.

Lee’s Instagram

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Interwoven

Sharon Madanes

Limited edition of 50, 30 x 28 inches

USD$250, unframed

Interwoven by Sharon Madanes | Image: Exhibition A

We weave our world around us. I’d love to see this in real life.

You can buy this work here.

Sharon’s Instagram

Sharon’s website

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Solitude

Karolis Strautniekas

Digital print, Edition of 100

42 x 59.4 cm

€120

Solitude by Karolis Strautniekas

This evokes for me the best of classic, mid-century illustration, like you might see advertising trips to Rome. And, kayak is my absolute favorite mode of transport.

You can buy this work here.

Karolis’s Instagram

Karolis’s website

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Bath Salts

Cynthia Talmadge

Limited edition of 35, 24 x 21.7 inches

USD$300 unframed

Bath Salts by Cynthia Talmadge | Image: Exhibition A

Good gracious, this is lovely. And with a bit of edge perhaps. It’s a portrait of a moment in a life, but might it also be comment on vanity and its futility?

You can buy this work here.

Cynthia’s Instagram

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Space Hiking

Anne Storno
Limited edition screen print on paper, edition of 15
50 X 50 cm

USD$243

Space Hiking by Anne Storno | Image Affordable Art

I’d get this for the sweaters alone.

You can buy this work here

Anne’s Instagram

Anne’s website

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Her Pass By

Andrew Pope

Print, 18" x 24"

Limited edition of 50

USD$200

Her Pass By by Andrew Pope | Image: Exhibition A

I really like this one. As an image, it couldn’t be simpler; basic shapes roughly defined by line and blocks of color. But shoot, there’s a world of story in there. Great title, too.

You can buy this work here.

Andrew’s Instagram

Andrew’s website

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Skinny Dip

Sarah Hardy

Limited Edition Giclée Print, Edition of 100

11.7 x 16.5 inches (A3)

GBP£60

Skinny Dip by Sarah Hardy | Image: the artist

Are you ever more alive than when you’re skinny dipping? This is a really gorgeous image, but the little gesture of the toes breaking the water’s surface makes this a human moment for me.

You can buy this work here.

Sarah’s Instagram

Sarah’s website

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Marigold Couch

Aubrey Levinthal

Print, edition of 50

17 x 22 inches

USD$200

Marigold Couch by Aubrey Levinthal | Image: Exhibition A

What a great bit of painting. I feel like, as much as this is a portrait of a person, it’s a portrait of human connection. You can feel the knowing between subject and viewer . Plus, banging colors. Sheesh!

You can buy this work here.

Aubrey’s Instagram

Aubrey’s website

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The Portrait Painter

Juan de la Rica

Giclée illustration print

11 x 14 inches

USD$64 (unframed)

The Portrait Painter by Juan de la Rica | Image: Drool

This is a great depiction of the focus and intensity required of person trying to capture the likeness of another person.

You can buy this work here.

Juan’s Instagram

Juan’s website

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