Art and Social Change

file image: Melbourne Street Art

Trolling through FB this morning because, well, I just did not want to really do anything productive...but art slapped me in the face.  Not once but TWICE!

First was a post from a friend whose son is now traveling to the Ukraine helping those who have had their a art community center taken from them and turned into a prison. You can read a bit about it here.

Blew. Me. Away.  To think this young guy who I bounced on my knee as an infant is going halfway across the world to a very dangerous place to help others to be able maintain or regain their ability to express themselves.

Then I happen across this other piece that puts in into a larger and poignant context.  Sarah Lewis nails just why and how art experiences have inspired and sparked many social justice movements.

All in under 2 1/2 minutes.

How Art Can Change Society by curator, Sarah Lewis 

Once on the page, just scroll down just a touch to find the video link. This is an incredibly concise and insightful explanation about how the aesthetic affects and even creates social change.

Materials and Color Geek Fest!

Wow! just fell into the most amazing art experience last weekend.

 I think it will make me a very happy, geeky artist for a while.  Maybe even as happy as I am below...

Happy artist me with one of my biggest, dearest supporters, Helen Ardman

Artist Workshop Demo

Thanks of Kris Iden at VisArts in Richmond Virginia, some extra time on Saturday since my kids baseball game fell through, Amy Shawley-fantastic workshop artist, and the Golden Acrylic Company I got to finally find out what the paint I have been using for the last oh 1/2 my life is made out of!

So just what are you made of?  It's ok, I can handle the truth..

Shameless marketing?  Or shrewd business plan?

I thought it was going to be one, but delightfully actually turned out to be the other! Or maybe it is both, will find out just how much of this new stuff I start buying in the next few months.

Chemistry Flashbacks-the good kind

Now I am reading all about oils, polymers, chemistry, molecular structures and the history of pigments. (My personal favorite cool discovery in this...there are two sets of pigments-mineral and modern, who knew?)You, too, can read more about some of this in Golden's newsletter called Just Paint.  Look up the Safflower Oil Paints article in particular...very good to geek out to.

Actual Chemical equation for oil paint. 

Incredibly, eerily similar to oil we cook and eat 

Cool illustration of chemical bond.  Just here for looks

 I know my high school chemistry teacher, Sr. Eileen  would not believe that I am actually getting into this subject matter willingly...but yes it is true!

Not actually Sr. Eileen- but feel this would have been her response had she known about
my recently discovered love of chemistry.

So now I am experimenting will all sorts of cool things in my studio, like acrylic skins, pastes and gels.  I cannot wait to teach this stuff.  

But wait!  There is even more!

You can geek out on books about this too!  (Remember those?)  So Amy recommended Bright Earth by Phillip Ball and apparently so did lots of other folks on Amazon.  And because Amazon knows a sucker when they see one, recommended another color book for me on the history of pigments called Color-A Natural History of the Palette by Victoria Finlay.  Well thankfully for my wallet, I am not a total sucker.  I am getting the second book from the library first ;)

Looking forward to getting to know you guys better...

so I can get you to do exactly what I want you to here.

and of course,  here.

The Take-Away

So any of you artists out there ... if you ever have the opportunity to take a materials workshop from a paint manufacturer, don't shy away because you are afraid it is only a dressed up sales pitch.   Go for it!  You will be amazed at what you will learn.  If you want to seek them out, hit the website of your favorite art materials company and I bet you dollars-to-donuts that they will have a schedule of workshop demonstrations or a request form.  

Happy Exploring!