James Abbott McNeill Whistler: 1834-1903

Many of Whistler's paintings were titled with the names of "Harmony", "Arrangements", and "Nocturnes" linking his artistic practice to the ideals of music. Particularly, what I enjoy about a title such as "Arrangement in Grey and Black No. 1" (the portrait of Whistler's mother) is its call to the two dimensionality of the medium itself. The title calls into attention the illusion that the black and grey arranged in such a manner create the portrait of his mother. The title seems to abstract the painting into colour shapes placed in a harmonious composition. His choice of titles lends to his philosophy of "art for art's sake". The colours and interplay of line work within his etchings creates a sense of harmony and uniformity amongst his pieces. My eye feels at ease to dance around his image, from colour shape to colour shape, line to line, never offended or caught off guard at a jarring colour that interrupts his creations. The softness of his atmospheric elements are soothing. In his painting "Symphony in White, No 1." (the white girl), the dress and background get lost within each other. Her hair frames her face as the focal point, allowing your eye to then travel down vast whiteness towards the wolf skin rug she stands upon and the wolf face and dropped flowers that capture your attention in the bottom of the composition. The model herself was Whistler's mistress and with that comes associations of innocence lost with the flowers dropped upon the floor and the masculinity of the wolf's skin she stands upon. The symphony in white series continued in other pieces Whistler created. Overall, it is the atmospheric muted tones Whistler establishes that pleases my eye and allows me to travel around the pieces locating lost and found edges. 

Anders Zorn (1860-1920) : A Master of Flesh

Anders Zorn depicts such beautiful fleshy figures in both his etchings and oil paintings. His etchings, in comparison to his paintings, add a great sense of dramatic lighting with the use of darks and a wonderful understanding of line in establishing forms. Particularly, the etching of the nude figure entering the water displays his vast understanding of line and light. The figure appears soft, under the lighting of the sun without harsh shadows in comparison to the dark water with light dancing off of it in the ripples she creates. In his paintings, Zorn is able to establish such wonderfully believable figures. The muscle and fat beneath their skins takes such a presence. Through his limited palette (Titanium white, ivory black, vermillion (cadmium red), and yellow ochre), the colours appear very balanced playing between warm and cool. In some paintings there is the introduction of blues and greens much more vibrant than those that can be produced in his limited palette. In this case he often introduced cerulean blue and viridian. His understanding of form and light is impeccable as well as his interplay between soft and hard edges. He is truly a master of his craft and an artist often sought after in learning technique and application of paint. I have recently ventured into attempting his limited palette and was quite pleased with the outcome. I'd suggest making a colour chart if anyone else would like to dabble into Zorn's genius. I found that the limited colours pushed towards a more unified palette and a greater understanding of the cool vs. warm colours within the painting. The ivory black is a quite cool colour and the cadmium red is very warm. The earthy yellow ochre is a wonderful addition to draw the warmth out of the red or add to the black in order to produce dark shades of green. (The link I used to create my colour chart  as well as get the palette information for the blog post is this... http://michaellynnadams.com/zorn-palette/) 

Happy painting if you choose to explore!

Bruno Walpoth

Bruno Walpth's sculptures stand in isolation, existing in a state of utter silence. The technical aspects of his work are astounding. These solid wood figures appear to the viewer as a fleshy substance, soft to the touch. The effects of gravity on the figures pulls skin and muscle downwards in a convincing life-like feel. The two full bodied figures fool the eye in the reality of these figures requiring what I can imagine as a second and third glance when seen in life. White paint is smeared amongst their bodies echoing a layer of dust and dirt, collected from the air and settling on the figure. I can't help but feel they exist in total isolation, and the viewers presence makes them uneasy. They think, they feel, they exist. 

Felicia Forte

Felicia Forte is an artist currently based in San Francisco. She has a vast understanding of form, light, shape relationships, and compositions. As an artist who is currently trying to develop technical skills, her artwork is sought after as she often not only presents the final product but the process work along the way. I find her work to be most accomplished when they are presented in their beautiful simplicity. By this I do not mean by any means of what she does is simplistic in nature, but her understanding of her subject matters allows her to capture only the most vital aspects of colour and form and the simplicity of these forms is magical to view. Something I am particularly drawn to in any art form is the concept of time. The time that occupies the world within the painting, drawing, sculpture etc. Forte's works seem to convey a sense of connection between reality, and the world within the painting. Through painting from life, Forte slows down time, she analyzes the subject at hand and examines all of its nuances and through this slowing down of time, she is able to convey a similar sense of the slowing down of time in her artworks. It is in her ability to pause time, to compose her subject and to simplify forms allows her to depict a peanut butter and jelly sandwich in the most beautiful light.

http://www.feliciaforte.com/felicia-forte/