Looking at Art .an interpetive view.

Grunewald "Crucifixion"

National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC.

Looking at Art.

Different ways artists express and interpret.

 

Because of the subjective nature of engaging in art every person’s response will be different. Some will respond positively, while others will view the work in a negative way. There is therefore a paradox in any form of art criticism, the reviewer may describe the work in a literal way or attempt to interpret what they believe to be the artist's intent. This may be achieved through the recognisable objects portrayed or the general expressive mood of the art.

Often over the years many artists have told me of their considerable amusement at the interpretations of their work in the written media. This of course can be a lot of fun, as they debate with their friends that at long last they now know what they were trying to express. Many viewers of art works often don’t seem to understand the living nature of all creative endeavour, whether the work under discussion be a piece of writing or painting, they all have a life of their own. If this was not so, there would always be the danger of producing a sterile or academic piece. It seems reasonable to me that works of art need to tell us more than a  photograph would. Art works must express more, allow the viewer to gain an insight into what the creator of the work wishes to express.  There needs to be a balance between the likeness, the illustrative, and abstract qualities. Art should never be just a copy of appearance, rather it  should endeavour to tell us something more about the subject, about the hidden emotional experience. This may be spiritual, ideological, emotional, or even political.

 

To illustrate what I mean look at the Renaissance paintings presented here, one by Grunewald and two others by Perugino. A German and Italian, and examine how both have interpreted religious subject. One of Perugino's subjects is the martyrdom of Saint Sebastian a fairly gruesome subject you would think, but Perugino has the Saint standing there in an idealise landscape almost without a care in the world. A peaceful scene on a summer’s day, Saint Sebastian looks contented, his loin cloth neatly tied around his private parts, no suggestion of blood from the arrow wounds that killed him. We could go on, but as you can see this is a typical Italian painting of a sweet, peaceful, world. His Crucifixion presents the same serene world, which is Perugino contribution to art. Christ nailed to the Cross presents a similar emotional state as Saint Sebastian. His hands lay neatly on the cross, loin cloth nicely folded, no sign of blood, all set in the tranquil Umbria country side.
 

Saint Sebastian. Collection of the Louvre.
 
 
 

G "Crucifixion" by Perugino Mellon Collection.

Grunewald Crucifixion could not be in greater contrast, full of
 human tragedy. Christ’s suffering and sense of sorrow very much in evidence. This has been achieved by emphasising the distortions and disfigurement in the treatment of Christ’s body. Fingers sprayed skyward in all directions in a natural response to pain. Muscles distorted under stress, the torn loin cloth, mourners clenching their hands in grief. A dark sinister scene, cold uninviting as blood oozes from Christ’s nailed feet. These paintings although illustrative each in their own way of religious subjects have different lives. This is what great painting should be all about, the expression of the inner world of our separate consciousness. A world we connect to subconsciously.  Painting of the highest order does not need artist’s statements or explanation, its presence speaks to you by itself.

"Small Crucifixion" by Grunewald

National Gallery of Art. Washington. DC.

 

Lifes voyage through stormy seas.

Setting out on life's journey
Painting by Peter Kreet.
Acrylic on board $600

Over the past few months, I have been searching for a visual icon to express the journey of life and the human ageing process. I have wanted to find an image that had weathered a long journey, through storm and calm. Finally, I settled on ships at sea that seemed to hold all the ingredients, long journeys through troubled waters often with unknown outcomes. My images would have to express vessels in distress where the final outcome could be in doubt. My first painting “Homeward Bound” portrayed a container vessel about to founder, losing all of life’s accumulative wealth. The question of survival or otherwise of the doomed ship could represent the optimist or pessimist viewpoint depending on your nature.

As the meridian age of our western population continues to advance ever upwards, the question as to how we cope with these extra year in terms of contentment. Several years ago I discovered that the island of Crete has produced a disproportionate number of long livers. I believe they share this honour with a number of regions in Japan. Often such longevity is put down to diet, or healthy climate. Many elderly Cretan natives I observed seemed to chain smoke, eat whatever they liked without any apparent ill effects. This was confirmed when I walked through various grave yards, so I can vouch for their long life spans. What was highly noticeable was the way they spent their days quietly chatting in taverns and cafe, simply passing the day in undemanding company, playing cards or backgammon in the company of friends.

It was not a look in the mirror that prompted this enquiry, rather an attempt to understand the true meaning of happiness throughout life, particularly as our ship starts on the final leg to its home port. The answer obviously will depend on who you ask, but strangely it is not wealth. In the west we are addicted to cosmetic surgery, jogging, and even youth enhancing hormone treatment. What Epicurus had in mind in Ancient Greece, when discussing life was happiness, this would give you the best possible life. He did not believe in an afterlife, so every decision

you made was critical. He wrote, “It is not the young who should be considered fortunate, but the old who have lived well, because the young in their prime wander much by chance, vacillating in their belief. While the old have docked in the harbour, having safely guarded their true happiness”.

These were the ideas running through my mind when I embarked on this series of paintings. Firstly there would have to be ships in serious distress as they came upon the hazards of life, were it could be touch and go whether one would survive, would you reach a safe harbour. The sea like life can be very unpredictable. The seaman needs to be free of vacillating beliefs to survive. A Chinese friend of mine suggested that the emptiness of striving was what Epicurus had in mind, much as a Buddhist strives for in meditation.  Many of us in later life became anxious about what we have not achieved, the unfulfilled dreams of youth, or we believe happiness is bound up in owning stuff the commercial world tells us we really need, sometimes both.

When we free ourselves from these obligations we gain freedom, and like my Cretan friends can sit for hours with friends in a tavern or whatever passing the time of day. There is no schedule at this end of life’s span. Just the great pleasure of shared conversation, laughter, and the shared communal silence. There is no need to impress, these are hallmarks of friendship. Strangely with age it becomes easier to start conservations with strangers particularly with women. I suppose  you no longer present any threat, other than perhaps being boring. One final remark from Epicurus "If Death is nothing there can be no fear of it, any more than the fear of nothingness in our pre-birth years".
 

                                       " Setting out on life's journey". by Peter Kreet

                                               Acrylic on board 600 x 520   $600.

                                              

"Youthfully encounters"  by Peter Kreet

Acrylic on board  600 x 520  $600.

"Mid-life crises"  by Peter Kreet

Acrylic on board  1000 x 600  $1200.

"Loss of Possessions" by Peter Kreet

Acrylic on board  $600.

 

"Journey's end"  by Peter Kreet

Acrylic on board 1000 x 600   $1500

 

 

"Possible surviver?" by Peter Kreet.

Acrylic on board.

 

 

Bruegel- "The Blind leading the Blind"

The last two blind figures in Bruegel's "The Blind Leading The Blind"

When I first viewed Bruegel's masterpiece "The blind leading the Blind" in Naples, I had been living in Italy for nearly a year, so it's impact was instant. Whether this was due to my diet of sweet Italian paintings I'm not sure, but the comparison of a more brutal Northern European style hit my sensibility straight between the eyes. The sheer economy of paint on canvas gave the work a sense of urgency not found  in Renaissance Italy. The forms seemed to have been created by simply rubbing a rag across the canvas. The result left me somewhat speechless, for I must have stood there for what seemed like an hours.

The more you study Bruegal's master work, the more you see and more importantly feel for it is a depiction of human misery on a grand scale. Each man's inner thoughts seem to be presented in all their despair. The Blind leading the Blind" is more than a mere painting, it depicts in graphic form the cruelty of humans towards each other, while at the same time suggesting a sense of brotherhood. The blind participants express and symbolize various fundamental human conditions.

First figure on right lying on the ground and about to fall into the swamp.

The figure on the extreme right portrays absolute despair. He has fallen almost head first into a swamp with little hope of escape from drowning. Each of the figures are unable to see any reality beyond their inner most thoughts. Their is no dream for them of a better future, already his mouth is open like a drowned man. There is nothing to clutch hold of even if he could see, just water plants and the swamp itself.

Fallen figure.

The second figure falling over him represents hate, his empty sockets gaze menacing out into the void. His hand seems to be pushing the fallen victim towards  the water. A viewer almost feels that he also will follow a similar fate.

Second blind man from right.

Innocence is the next condition, he has under gone much suffering throughout his life. He seems a rather tender sort of man intent on holding the staff confident he is safe, unaware of the drama unfolding before him. His bellowing cloths suggest further misfortune that has plagued him  through  out life..

Figure on right represents innocence.

Following him is the blind beggar representing tragedy. His trusting hand placed on the should in front. He believes he belongs to a brotherhood of similar spirits.The figure behind him is totally attached to both the men in front and behind. His hand falls affectionately on the figure in front, while he holds fast to the staff for his companion behind. He seems lost in thought, listening to their marching feet ,drawing confidence from its regular beat.

Tragedy

Figures five and six, the last represents trust.

The final walker has a child;like expression on his face, he seems to be in a dream state as he drifts along. Nothing from the outside world reaches him as he clutches the staff unaware that he too is condemned to fall.
This painting has a strange spiritual feeling about it, there is a sense of pity, but there is nothing we can do to save these individuals. The philosopher Schopenhauer once rightly pointed out that pity is the ultimate goal of all spiritual seeking. The more compassion we have for others presupposes the pity one would expect from them if fortune favours their future.

This painting in my view is one of the great works of the 16th cent. It presents a universe of personal perception. It presents in graphic form the march of the have no ts of our world as they march along to their fate. In a contemporary sense it is pertinent to our current situation , were the greater mass of humanity struggle to survive. Our political masters are in a way portrayed by these blind men locked in there own personal agendas, unable or unwilling to see were they are going.

What have chess & fine art have in common?

In order to address the problem of short time-span viewing of paintings in Art Galleries & Museum (appox.3 sec), I decided to embark on a small series of chess problem painting. Other means will need to be found for non chess players, perhaps bridge or crossword puzzles. It must be apparent to any serious viewer that 3 sec is no where long enough to view,analyses the content and structure of a work of art. By presenting the viewer with some direct involvement  ie a chess problem ,they would be forced to look and spend a little time on analyse . No doubt the degree of difficulty would need to be increased from time to time, but then all these a
activities require time and thought.

Peter Kreet "Mate in  Two"  2011

                                              Acrylic on Board. 800 x 700    $1200      2011