Happy New Year! (...in 40 seconds)

Happy New Year! Whether we know each other, or not, I hope all your wishes come true for 2009 and beyond.

Early in 2008, I began this blog on art collecting because of questions that came up from novices and seasoned collectors about collecting art. Questions ranged from the importance of original (one of a kind, or singular) work versus editioned (copies and/or multiples) works. Depending on the circumstance, I've advocated one thing or another, and yes, I do stand by what I say (or in this case, write). My initial intent was to follow a formal line of ideas forming general philosophies toward art collecting, but it seems too many things come up in life, and it's much more fun and perhaps more relevant, to address the issues of art collecting as they arise. For now, this blog's organization is informal and simply chronological. If there is anything you wish to know in particular, and don't find it here, please write to me and let me know. I will do everything I can to assist you and develop a collecting plan.

Lately, the case for collecting art has arisen a lot in my immediate personal circle. By way of explanation, among my personal friends, I'm the only one that collects art on a selective basis (planned and with focus), and often defend what some see as a frivolous or silly pastime as an academic pursuit, formal, worthy of high mindedness and considerable investment. Even in today's gloomy economic times? Yes, because the presence of the arts is, whether visual or performance, what separates man from beast. Art is the particular dialogue of soul to soul that compels us like no other thing. It is appreciation for beauty, however we may perceive it, and the effect of it on our lives.

An example of this is something I found purely by chance this morning. As I wrote in a separate blog today, I opened my Yahoo account instead of work email, to escape from the remnants of 2008, relax and find cool things that are endlessly fascinating ... here is one exciting discovery, and my entire justification for starting a video collection:

The video, as you'll see from the first page, is credited to Eirik Solheim at eirikso.com. From his website, he seems to be an ordinary guy in Norway with a particular talent for cameras, he's marvellously intelligent, and enjoys considerable personal integrity. Further reading shows he has a worldwide following, not just resulting from his simply elegant and marvelous video. I hope you enjoy his video, and if you do, please let him know (email him at eirikso@eirikso.com). Every artist should receive thanks and appreciation for beautiful work! Bravo, Mr. Solheim, I am definitely a fan!

Art Collector 101: Definitions - Sculpture

Someone dropped this note in my email box this morning about the future of video. Considering it was written by YouTube head honcho Chad Hurley, I read it, and am passing it on to you. Yes, it's a little dry (honestly, it's pretty dry), but it's good to hear there is life in video. (The image on the right is from Scott Kiernan's video, Standing Wave, 2007.)

How does video relate to sculpture? Yes, well, buckle-up, here's today's wikipedia definition for sculpture: three-dimensional artwork created by shaping hard or plastic material, commonly stone (either rock or marble), metal, or wood. Some sculptures are created directly by carving; others are assembled, built up and fired, welded, molded, or cast. A person who creates sculptures is called a sculptor. Because sculpture involves the use of materials that can be moulded or modulated, it is considered one of the plastic arts. The majority of public art is sculpture. The definition goes on to describe types of sculpture:

• Free-standing sculpture, sculpture that is surrounded on all sides, except the base, by space. It is also known as sculpture "in the round", and is meant to be viewed from any angle. (image, right, Thomas Scoon, Companions, 2008. Cast glass + granite)
  
• Relief - the sculpture is still attached to a background; types are bas-relief, alto-relievo, and sunken-relief
• Site-specific art
• Kinetic sculpture - involves aspects of physical motion
  • Fountain - the sculpture is designed with moving water
  • Mobile (see also Calder's Stabiles.)
• Statue - representationalist sculpture depicting a specific entity, usually a person, event, animal or object
• Stacked art - a form of sculpture formed by assembling objects and 'stacking' them.

Materials used for sculpture have generally, and historically, been sought to produce works of art as permanent as possible, working in durable and frequently expensive materials such as bronze and stone: marble, limestone, porphyry, and granite. More rarely, precious materials such as gold, silver, jade, and ivory were used for chryselephantine works. More common and less expensive materials were used for sculpture for wider consumption, including hardwoodsoak, box/boxwood, and lime/linden); terra cotta and other ceramics, and cast metals such as pewter and zinc (spelter).

Many sculptors seek new ways and materials to make art. Jim Gary used stained glass and automobile parts, tools, machine parts, and hardware. One of Pablo Picasso's most famous sculptures included bicycle parts. Alexander Calder and other modernists made spectacular use of painted steel. Since the 1960s, acrylics and other plastics have been used as well. Andy Goldsworthy makes his unusually ephemeral sculptures from almost entirely natural materials in natural settings. Some sculpture, such as ice sculpture, sand sculpture, and gas sculpture, is deliberately short-lived. (image, right, Mark Abildgaard, Twister, 2008, detail. Cast + sandblasted glass, stainless steel)

Sculptors often build small preliminary works called maquettes of ephemeral materials such as plaster of Paris, wax, clay, or plasticine, as Alfred Gilbert did for 'Eros' at Piccadilly Circus, London. In Retroarchaeology, these materials are generally the end product.

In contemporary terms, modern sculpture forms are now practiced outdoors, and often in full view of spectators, thus giving them kinship to performance art in the eyes of some. Ice sculpture is a form of sculpture that uses ice as the raw material. It's popular in China, Japan, Canada, Sweden, and Russia. Ice sculptures feature decoratively in some cuisines, especially in Asia. Kinetic sculptures are sculptures that are designed to move, which include Mobiles. Snow sculptures are usually carved out of a single block of snow about 6 to 15 feet (4.6 m) on each side and weighing about 20 - 30 tons. The snow is densely packed into a form after having been produced by artificial means or collected from the ground after a snowfall. Sound sculptures take the form of indoor sound installations, outdoor installations such as aeolian harps, automatons, or be more or less near conventional musical instruments. Sound sculpture is often site-specific. A Sand castle can be regarded as a sand sculpture. Weightless Sculpture (in outer space) as a concept is created in 1985 by the Dutch artist Martin Sjardijn. Lego brick sculpting involves the use of common Lego bricks to build realistic or artistic sculptures sometimes using hundreds of thousands of bricks. (image, right, Jonathan Russell, Pendants, 2005. Copper, bronze, stainless steel)

Hi...you made it this far. Relax. We'll discuss editions in another post!

Art Collector 101: Definitions

The next posts will define general terms of fine art, sculpture, painting, drawing, photography + video, figurative/representational art and abstract/non-representational art.

Fine art, as defined by Wikipedia, is any art developed primarily for forms, including formaesthetics rather than utility.^[1] This type of art is often expressed in a limited number of visual and performing artpainting, sculpture, dance, theatre, architecture and printmaking. Schools, institutes, and other organizations still use the term to indicate a traditional perspective on the art forms, often implying an association with classic or academic art.

I know, using Wikipedia for a definition seems too easy...the problem is there is so much information out there, and the idea here, is just to give you a general idea. Write to me if you'd like more. By the way, did you hear about the Goya print stolen from Bogota? The stolen artwork was a priceless engraving on view for public exhibition (image above credit: AFP/File photo). It is described as priceless for its extreme rarity.