Peter Smolenski.  Ever heard of him?  Well you should.  Peter is an artist who I have been in touch with and have tremendous respect for.  His work is in the realm of abstract expressionism but there is something about his work that is a cross between Roy Lichtenstein and Picasso.  I can’t quite rationalize what is happening with Smolenski’s work.  To me, it has a never ending energy and it feels like his is literally transcribing his entire life without any disernable language.  One of his most famous works is a 36 foot long painting.  It is a mind bloggling size for a painting and I cannot wait to see it.  

Peter’s work is vibrant and full of content.  At first, the work seems chaotic and totally varied but once you spend some time really looking at the work, a new world opens up.  A world where nothing interacts with everything and what you thought of to be safe is actually wildly unstable.  I love it.  It inspires me and makes me connect with it, without even trying.

Peter and I are looking to exhibit together, and we both agree that our work compliments one another brilliantly.   I will keep everyone posted on the progress of that.  In the meantime, my next gallery show is:

Ted Mikulski: Literally Abstract
Middle River Gallery
Stafford Springs
December 13th 

There will be mostly new work, so make sure you keep the date open.  Also, my work finally comes down from the Pump House Gallery in Hartford.  That work will be spread out between Scoop This! Cafe and the Old Saybrook Library, where my work goes up for display on Wednesday.

Art is not the pursuit of perfection, it is the goal of art to surpass perfection.

Anybody see anything in the painting?  Sure, you could relate some sort of recognition to it.  I, for instance see quite alot of paint splattered on a canvas.  Pollock was making a statement to the art world.  He numbered his paintings so that you couldn’t understand its deeper meaning, you could only define your own.  This was brilliant and it changed the way we think about art, but hasn’t that concept come and gone?  Isn’t the joke over?  

Listen, as an abstract expressionist, I honor Pollock for paving the way.   But is it any coincidence that no one has even come close to him in the past 70 years? I believe it is time to take “expression” to a different realm.  Instead of forcing on-lookers to create their own opinions, why can’t abstract expressionism be obvious?  Of course this is a complete debacle of the entire genre, but someone has to do it.  Being obvious seems to take away from the mysticism of the painting and ultimately it loses its artistic effect.  

Let me tell you something.  I feel much more comfortable talking about my meaning and having them see it, rather than me ranting and them blinding following me.   I am after taking the ‘con’ out of the ‘con-game’ of modern art.  Where a painting with blotches of paint sells for millions.  I want to adhere to a hybrid of old world and new modern theory.

My next few works are going to try and make this a reality.  They will be on display December 13rd at the Middle River Gallery in Stafford so mark your calendars.  Meanwhile, enjoy the debates tomorrow.. they should be quite interesting.

Some may scowl at this but I think this is one of those inalienable artist moments where I admit to wrong.  I have probably spent  close to 8K on art supplies over the past 8 months and with it, run a bit dry.  I have 50+ paintings, but I do not want to stop simply because of financial reasons.  So this is where I openly admit to painting over alot of my earlier work to make way for more refined painting.

It is not something I relish but it is absolutely necessary in my mind.  Chances are that if you buy one of my works, there is probably another painting underneath it.

No. At least not in the traditional sense.  Whereas art in general is suppose to test barriers, ask questions and ultimately shake up our everyday lives.  Abstract Expressionism is traditionally known to be pictures of nothing.  Modern art is conditioned as work that ultimately loses sight of story telling.  

Art in the traditional sense, always reflected the natural world or at least captured a story or moment in time.  So with the disconnect between aesthetics and functionality being so large, who is bridging that gap.  Abstract Expressionism is emotional, expressing beauty or torment through the artist.  So in that sense, it becomes more about the artist than the painting/sculpture.  The story of the artists life is what defines the perception of the work.  

This is in stark contrast to most other art genres that we identify with.  I think that is why there is still so much controversy toward contemporary abstract art.  People cannot identify with the work because they are not emotionally ready to accept it.  Abstract expressionism tends to anger people because of the financial success it has achieved.  If only abstraction reached a level of compliance to meet average human thought in the middle.

Story-telling is the opposite of what abstract expressionism is.  If it did tell it story it would become a different genre all together.  I intend to find a way to change that.  It may take years, but there is an obvious opening for art to explain its modernism to the public.  Perhaps through a series of installations or maybe a book to enhance peoples awareness and understanding of modern art.  So trying to evolve an inherent rule of modern art is an overwhelming task and I can’t think of anything better to pursue.

I wanted to let everyone know that I will have an exhibiton at the Middle River Gallery this winter.  It is located in Stafford Springs and is a wonderful environment for my work.  This exhibition will be special because it will feature installation pieces as well as just paintings.  These will have a strong relation to my current work but will tell a bit more of a story than the simple expressions.  I do not have a date locked down just yet for the show, but I will be sure to update when I know.

An artist is a special breed of human I am finding out.  Once the black hole of art has opened up, life begins to swirl around it.  Recently I have had to cope with an incredibly painful loss.  Before art.. my mind, in an attempt to desensitize, would downplay the very pain itself ultimately lengthening the inevitable hurt.  Loss is something that has been studied over and over by scientists and physiologist.   Which begs the question:  How do artists, a profession without scientific levies, deal with the pain of loss?  
Through my own introspective I am beginning to find out, for no matter how much you hear it, you can never relate unless you feel it.  Sitting in my studio, staring at a blank canvas, I find myself replaying moments in my head and analyzing the loss.  I then realized that art, and abstract art in particular is the search for personal understanding.  At least that what it starts off as.  Abstract expressionism is the best example of such understanding as one is no longer restricted by rules or guidelines and it allows emotion to take hold.  

Sitting there, staring at a blank canvas.  It seems as though time stands still and yet it feels incredibly rapid at the same time… which pain usually feels like.  Before I know it I am looking at my colorful hands and the dripping canvas in front of me.  I sit back down and stare at the emotion that has just left my body and realize that it is no longer a part of me.  The hurt and pain that had plagued my mind are now comfortably attached to an object.  It’s almost as if I have food poisoning and I am slowing ridding myself of it as I paint. 

From my perspective, art is really the physical depths of the artists soul.  Cliche sure, but sitting there realizing that my mind was at peace if only briefly allowed me to finally understand.  These canvases which bare this pain I will choose not to keep, as they are a painful reminders of the past.  

Now, I am a young guy but I think I am beginning to get an understanding of my life through my art.  It is interesting to see how rapidly life changes and the people in my life affect me.  Ultimately, my work is affected and it tells a kind of life story.  Much like a diary gives you a literal rhetoric, art allows one to dive deeper into wordless feelings.  

Perhaps my work is truly my outlet for dealing with lifes inevitable changes.  I sit in my studio, looking at my hands covered in paint and I can’t help but grin, and to remember not to take life too seriously.  As I mix paint and start attacking my medium I feel a sense of inner peace.  Moments like those allow me to then sit back and float and ultimately allow me, to say goodbye.

40/40 Vision Lecture: Neurology and the Passion for Art

Damien Hirst.  One of the most recognized faces in the art world today. Well, not his face but his work.  His work is on the other end of the spectrum to Jeff Koons.  Hirst is obsessed with death and often times plays off of pop culture to hybrid his two obsessions.  He is having an auction of mostly unseen work over the next couple of days that is expecting to bring in astronomical figures.  Even with Merrill Lynch being bought and Lehman Brothers filing bankruptcy, Hirst sells a shark in formaldehyde for 9.6M on the same day.  

Absurd? Absolutely.  Expected? Absolutely.  This is modern art to a tee.  The artwork is absolutely ridiculous and I personally it has no longevity.  This is not the pop-art era where something new and exciting generates a revolution.  Hirst is an artist who will be remembered as the wealthy conversation piece.  They get to brag that they have a Hirst.  Down the road the work will still be valuable but to what cost in the art world.  Are we so de-sensitized and vulgar that we have to reduce ourselves to finding beauty in dead animals?

I am not sure what the next art revolution will be but I am truly hoping that it comes soon.  Hirst is another story of hype influencing design.  I am personally sick of the ’shock and awe’ crowd that dominates popular culture.  Perhaps it is my job to define the next step.  I can certainly tell you that it is not the work I am doing now that will lead the charge.  Needless to say, I want an art revolution.  My guess is that with our economy, most artists will go overseas since the market right now is incredible in places like London.  If the revolution starts there I’ll get my plane ticket.

So Jeff Koons is probably the most iconic artist in the U.S, possibly the world.  I must say that I do love his work, especially his recognizable sculptures.  More importantly, Koons is a sign of the times.  No new art genre has been defined with Koons, nor does he probably care.  His work can be labelled ‘pop art’ and I think it is important to recognize that at present, the art world is beginning a slow shift.  The tech generation is slowly taking over and in the next 20-30 years, the tech generation will define what art genre is king.  I have a feeling that still life and realism may fall by the wayside… maybe that’s because I’m an abstract expressionist…

I think this new generation of art admirers are going to lend themselves to modern or contemporary styles.  Jeff Koons is without question the most influential artist at the moment, however I do wish that there were others with the status of Koons.  It would be nice to have 4-5 artists defining genres and giving us a better understanding of what art defines this time period. Jeff Koons being a pop-artist signifies that pop-art is still king, 50+ years after its inception.  The thing that is interesting is that graphic design has put an enormous shadow over popart.  Take incredible movie posters and promos.. these would have been great pop art if they were done by hand.  Now that computers are involved, pop art has to be taken to a higher level.

Artists reading this are probably rolling their eyes shouting “Who cares about genres or public opinion!” at their screens.  Yes, yes - If I cared about pop culture I probably wouldn’t be an artist (and I would watch more E!).  Nor does Koons care either, he is just creating something beautiful that people enjoy.  But what makes his work so special and ground-breaking?  Nothing really… he is just driven to be seen.