- liveletroam
An artist's perspective: "A View through a skill"
"The culture of a civilization is the art and literature through which it rises to consciousness of itself and defines its vision of the world." — Roger Scruton English philosopher
Source: https://quotepark.com/quotes/1752967-jean-sibelius-art-is-the-signature-of-civilizations/
On my travels, viewing the art side of cities is a special favorite, whether they are widely known for it or not. Looking at the small details of the city and it's art you get a window inside the culture as well as yourself.
Creative origins
In the 1980s, NYC graffiti was becoming a defining art movement. I remember seeing Keith Haring's drawings in the subway, thinking they were fun simplified characters. On the way to my aunt's place, I would love when we passed the handball wall of a lion with the tag name LEE in big letters done by the graffiti artist Lee Quinones. As a kid, my own creativity would come out in making clothes for my dolls, copying cartoon characters from the newspaper comics, and practicing writing my tag name "BOP" mimicking my brother's graffiti.
My earliest direct art influence would be my aunt. She graduated from FIT and would share her artistic visions with me as shown in her expressive cubist pictures. She would tell me she knew that artist who painted the lion and how she once spoke with Andy Warhol for an hour outside the Factory when she was younger. Drawing and creating became an outlet from all that was happening in my own life and the world around me.
Artist influences
I am drawn to decorative arts such as the art deco/nouveau stylings of Gustav Klimt as well as the dark emotive works done by Francisco Goya. As a teenager visiting the Prado for the first time, seeing Goya's black paintings I felt a connection with how he expressed beauty in darkness.
As I began to study and learn more about the history of art and artists, I felt more like that was my journey. In college, I would browse through my 4-inch thick art history book looking at different pieces imagining what it would be to see them in person as I had at the Prado. To be face to face with history and immeasurable creativity and what that would feel like.
Traveling and Museums
Living in NYC and going to college just north of Boston, MA I was exposed to some of the best museums in the world. Visiting the MFA and the MET in NY is a perennial treat. On that high school trip, I got to visit not only the Prado, but the Lourve, Versailles, and Toledo. I was hooked on travel and art.
My travel destinations are inspired by the art there or seeing artwork in its element. I did this while visiting the Egyptian Museum in Cairo and the Pyramids in Giza in 2009. To date, this was the most stunned I've been visiting a museum/destination. I remember coming face to face with the Ramses mummy, and hearing Moses say "Let my people go" from the Ten Commandment movie in my head. As well as seeing the statue of Akhenaten, an artwork that I perused several times in my 4-inch thick art history book.
At the beginning of the Covid 19 pandemic, I got into the recreating art challenge where you recreated famous art pieces from items available at home. You can see the 3 examples above and more if you head to my Instagram @crickylarue.
"A View through a skill"
When Eric and I came up with the idea for the podcast/blog we talked about what we wanted to say. Part of what I expressed was about how I view the everyday world as a painting and as a time capsule of what the past is speaking to us and what we can share with the future.
When I'm visiting a place/art I stop to view the details. In paintings...what are the expressions, colors, a tiny background object. I imagine what it must of like to create in that time. In places... what are the colors, shapes, and faces of people interacting around it. I imagine being taken back in time when it was created. In nature... where are the small creatures or plants, and pareidolia things. I imagine a fairy world where there is a whole life in a knot of a tree.
When you see my pictures or hear my ramblings about an artwork take the time to stop, listen and look at the everyday things in detail and what they are sharing with you.
About the author:
Christy is an artist/creative spirit & blogger/podcaster with a passion for many things especially the arts, nature, and weird things around the world.
Check out the Live Let Roam "For your ears only" podcast to hear more about Christy and the experience of art through her eyes.
#crickyrecreations #liveletroam #christy #episode3 #artsculture