You Should Own Art. 2nd Edition
Landscapes!
Hello! This is the second edition of You Should Own Art.
So far, there's been a really nice response to the first edition. Many folks have told me that this fills a gap. So, I'm going to start publishing twice a month. I trust that you’ll let me know of that becomes too much.
Also, I've started an YSOA Instagram account. It’ll be another, possibly more convenient, place to get the content of this here publication. I'll also post time sensitive info, for instance a particularly great work in an auction that ends before the next publication date. So, if you're Insta-inclined, please give it a follow.
Ok, to the art!
I decided to focus this edition of landscapes. Landscapes are not a genre of art that I normally gravitate towards. I completely understand the appeal, especially if the location being depicted is meaningful to you. But I think I often lose the trees for the forest, in that I fail to appreciate the skill required to compose and realize a great landscape. The depictions of space and place that I am attracted to tend to be the ones that challenge the form. The later landscapes by Richard Diebenkorn are right up my deconstructed and abstracted alley. So, I've assembled a set of landscape works that, to me, represent an interesting cross section of how artists are pursuing the form today.
I hope that you use these individual works as points of departure and explore the work of these artists and discover others.
Thanks again for subscribing. And please, feel free to forward this to anyone that might appreciate it.
“Witham Friary”
Acrylic
I love this painting. It is incredibly hard to pull off this kind of simple yet complex rendering of a specific place. I feel like there were are a lot of decisions taken. I’ve never been to Witham Friary which Wikipedia tells me is a “small English village and civil parish located between the towns of Frome and Bruton in the county of Somerset”. But I think I’d recognize it if I did.
You can buy this painting here.
“Bright Cloud”
Oil
James is one of my favorite painters. I came to his work through his portraiture and figurative work. I absolutely love how he builds form with incredible deliberateness but without sacrificing character. I don’t know much about his background, but I feel he’s part of a tradition of English painting that includes William Coldstream and Euan Uglow. I really encourage you to check out his work.
You can buy this painting here.
“Ring of Fire/ Briones Reservoir”
Woodblock print
Printing seems like one of dark arts to me. There’s a particular balance of artistry and craftsmanship that I find intimidating. This work carries some flavor of the Japanese woodblock prints that so influenced the European artists around the turn of the last century. And at the same time there’s a disruptive surreal element that makes this really interesting.
You can buy this print here.
“Apples and Oranges”
Limited edition print
Ok, this is not exactly a landscape, but it also is not, not a landscape. The naive yet totally not, messy on purpose maneuver is a hard one to pull off. There’s real harmony here and an embedded narrative that you can sense but maybe not know.
Shout out to Delphian Gallery. They work with some really interesting artists and take real steps to making very interesting art broadly accessible. I recommend getting on their mailing list as they’re always up to something.
You can buy this print here.
“Lousiana Summers”
Oil
You can just tell when someone knows what they’re doing. I love this little work. Of the works I’m sharing, this is pretty on the nose as far as landscapes go. But, daayum! The brushwork and impasto make me think that this is as much sculpture as it is oil painting.
You can buy this painting here.
“Summer Woodland Pond”
Linocut print
This is just great. I love the sense of place and the mastery of color. I’m reminded of some recent-ish work by David Hockney. Alexandra’s got a ton of lovely work that you should check out.
You can buy this print here.
“Pink Lake”
Monoprint on paper
Yes, the cost of this is outside of the “few hundreds of dollars” parameter I set for myself, but I just really love Rachel’s work. She has created a body of work that is minimal and abstract, but keenly observed. Magic!
You can buy this monoprint here.
“There is/was a plague but still the cherry trees bloomed. HUZZAH”
Silkscreen, gouache, caran d’Ache water soluble
Nancer Lemoins
We all need this. I’m reminded of storybooks and tales of long journeys through forests of weird and (mostly) friendly creatures. I haven’t found out too much about Nancer, but her work seems special.
You can by this work here.
If you’ve made it this far, I thank you for your attention and support. Please take some time and dig into the work of the artists featured here.