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Post 0

Wednesday, February 9, 2005 - 3:26pmSanction this postReply
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Michael,

I have looked over your latest work; it's wonderful.

George


Post 1

Wednesday, February 9, 2005 - 4:42pmSanction this postReply
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Great stuff, Michael.

My goodness, you're productive!!

I love 'Storm' - I always like that sense of strong light shining through fog or darkness, much like a dramatic Autumn sky. Your 'PM' tree has that similiar quality, doesn't it.


Post 2

Wednesday, February 9, 2005 - 10:42pmSanction this postReply
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Michael,

I am sorely disappointed in your work. 

There are no dogs playing poker... no clowns... no Elvises... no little big-headed girls with enormous, sad eyes. 

I see no malnourished males in leather, will bull-whips hanging out of their anuses, or pictures of Christ submerged in urine.

There are too many complex shapes and colors on your canvases, too.  There should only be one enormous simple shape of one color ONLY on each canvas... or at most, two.

And finally, your titles are unacceptable.  Proper titles feature such words as "post-industrial", "hegemony", "desultory", and any word that ends in the suffix "-centrism". 

You'll never make it as an artist, if you don't get with the program.



Post 3

Thursday, February 10, 2005 - 3:13amSanction this postReply
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I think there is one thing I liked about post-modernism. It promoted film to be on the same level with the fine arts.
Since I am deeply interested in movies, I appreciated the rise in the eyes of the critical observer and I hope that now truly artful work can follow. :)


Post 4

Thursday, February 10, 2005 - 11:52amSanction this postReply
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Danny wrote,
"There are too many complex shapes and colors on your canvases, too.  There should only be one enormous simple shape of one color ONLY on each canvas... or at most, two."

Actually, I think the simplicity and scarcity of shapes and the very limited palettes of neutral-ish tones are precisely what make Michael's latest paintings so appealing.

Good work, Michael.

Best,
J

Post 5

Thursday, February 10, 2005 - 2:19pmSanction this postReply
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Danny wrote,
"There are too many complex shapes and colors on your canvases, too.  There should only be one enormous simple shape of one color ONLY on each canvas... or at most, two."

Actually, I think the simplicity and scarcity of shapes and the very limited palettes of neutral-ish tones are precisely what make Michael's latest paintings so appealing.
No, no, no.  You are totally wrong. 

The whole point of modern art is to invest as little as possible in the art work itself, while at the same time claiming a maximum investment of thought and effort.

In other words, you paint a single red brush stroke across a plain white canvas.  Then you call it "Dialectic Symphony on Equine Colonic Evacuation in Red".  Then you adopt a superior and condescending manner and wear bohemian clothes and glasses with very narrow lenses.  Demand a five-figure price for the painting, and spread false rumors about famous and important people at your gallery showing, to intimidate others into wanting to stay in good favor with you.  Also hiring a beautiful, haughty prostitute to pose as your "significant other" during the exhibition doesn't hurt, either.. 

Then you take the money and run, and snort cocaine off the prostitute's back later.

This is how it's done; don't you know anything??? 



Post 6

Friday, February 11, 2005 - 1:12amSanction this postReply
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Michael, it's wonderful that you can make a dead tree elegant and beautiful. I've fallen in love with it.

Barbara

Post 7

Friday, February 11, 2005 - 11:03amSanction this postReply
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ah, thanks all for your compliments...there will be more waves of work, I have a big exhibition coming up on May 6th, in Chattanooga, Tenn. BTW I have a discount for Soloists...so give me a shout.


Michael


Post 8

Tuesday, March 29, 2005 - 3:43pmSanction this postReply
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I got interested in this site while looking for some articles on post-modernism, specifically minimalist, art.  I ran across an article, and later, after entering this site, some posts on why post-modernism is no good.  Your expression, i.e. the painting, newberry is good.  However, if this site is to serve as a place where people can disparage the merits of post-modernism, please recognize that at given times in art history, an derivation from realism or objectivity in expression of an actuality was viewed as post-modernism.  Newberry, you stated that you had altered the position of the tree from its original, meaning you had in some way abstracted from reality.  I think many of your peers here would call that type of abstraction post-modern.  As for the cute imagery of the artist and prostitute -- there is no doubt that some of your favorite artists were world class debauchers.  

Post 9

Tuesday, March 29, 2005 - 4:37pmSanction this postReply
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Johnathan says: Newberry, you stated that you had altered the position of the tree from its original, meaning you had in some way abstracted from reality.  I think many of your peers here would call that type of abstraction post-modern.  As for the cute imagery of the artist and prostitute -- there is no doubt that some of your favorite artists were world class debauchers.  

ROFL

Johnathan, I don't know whether Michael will respond to your post or not, but if he does - I predict that I will fall out of my chair after reading his reponse.

George

PS: I'm the guy that bought that "post-modernist" painting.

(Edited by George W. Cordero on 3/29, 7:30pm)


Post 10

Tuesday, March 29, 2005 - 5:36pmSanction this postReply
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George,

Man, you were on the first thread to which I initially posted.  I did not think I would generate a response that quickly, but I am glad to see it.  I hope Newberry does respond, as I am honestly interested in how folks who subscribe to Rand's philosophy propose to remove all the evils of post-modernism from their art.  Note that I view post-modernism not as a phenomenon of our time, but relative to any time in history.  Clearly, the artistic license involved in tilting a tree is more limited than Ad Reinhart's creation of black squares to encompass all expression, but where do you draw the line? 


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Post 11

Tuesday, March 29, 2005 - 8:10pmSanction this postReply
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Namesake!

You just just missed the great boat ride into PM Romantic immortality.

Tsk, tsk, tsk... Shame on you.

You should have hauled that fucking dead tree into your studio and painted it with sparkles or something instead.

Won't you ever learn?

Michael


Post 12

Wednesday, March 30, 2005 - 3:41amSanction this postReply
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Namesake, how 'bout putting a kat in the dead tree.... maybe a toilet papered tree. It would be sublime, dahling.

Colonel, I hope you don't think this is too forward, but what are you doing May 6th?  There is an art exibition coming up in Chantennooooookie by a really great artist, who happens to be a friend of yours. I'm a big fan of his work too.

BTW, Tina gave you the thumbs up. You made a very good impression on Mini-Me.

(Edited by katdaddy on 3/30, 3:44am)


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Post 13

Wednesday, March 30, 2005 - 2:40pmSanction this postReply
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Hey George, Michael, and Katdaddy,

 

Your good hearted responses are welcomed! BTW, the exhibition is the 7th! In Chattanooga that weekend there is all kinds of arts stuff going on, a huge party on Friday night and all weekend an arts festival…and my exhibition on Saturday night.

 

Johnathon,

 

Welcome.

 

You wrote: “… I am honestly interested in how folks who subscribe to Rand's philosophy propose to remove all the evils of post-modernism from their art.  Note that I view post-modernism not as a phenomenon of our time, but relative to any time in history.  Clearly, the artistic license involved in tilting a tree is more limited than Ad Reinhart's creation of black squares to encompass all expression, but where do you draw the line? 

 

And: “In Malevich or Coltrane's case, that next step was to create a work that encompassed the history of art to their time, with further innovation and expression of their zeitgest.  I think objectivists may be frightened that there exist expressions so wide in scope that they can contain an entire history.”

 

I will try to answer your questions. Let me observe that many postmodern works, such as with Duchamp’s Fountain, the social aspect of the work, i.e. how it plays off history, plays with cultural/political ideas, etc, is of primary importance while the art object is of little or no aesthetic value in itself. I noticed that you comment on the importance of art history and I do think that art history is important but from my standpoint and from Rand’s, the primary aesthetic value is the artwork itself. You mentioned Reinhart’s abstractions as if they “encompass all expression”, http://www.guggenheimcollection.org/site/artist_work_md_133A_1.html , but if you were to approach it from the perspective that the artwork as an artwork, there would be nothing to say about Reinhart’s black painting other than it is an nihilistic expression, in fact, quite the opposite of “encompass[ing] all expression”. I do think Reinhart’s work is significant from an art historical and philosophical context: it shows what happens when aspects of art are minimalized.

 

From another perspective as a representational painter I love to study, work with, integrate, and play with the following aspects of painting:

Emotion,

Form,

Light,

Space,

Color,

Anatomy,

Proportion,

Composition,

Eye movement,

Ideals,

Perspective,

Technical/method theme,

Theme,

and Subject.

 

It’s a gigantic mass of integrated stuff from introspective awareness of my emotional/psychological life to being aware of how my eyes sense vibrations of light and color and movement. Pile on that the study of how people express their inner worlds by their observable body language and, yes, that means if I meet you in real life I study your body language! And pile on all the above concepts which take a tremendous amount of focus and study to master; but the truly difficult part and the most rewarding is integrating the whole fucking caboodle.

 

I think if you, for a moment quietly think about it, it is someone like me, www.romanticrealism.net,  who encompasses a huge range of expressions while Reinhart rigorously limits himself by cutting himself off from all the expressions possible to a painter.

 

BTW, I and many, many other painters were habitually told that painting was dead in our 70’s education; “it has all been done.” But there are millions and millions of combinations possible in the above aspects of painting, there is still yet a whole universe of new possibilities ahead for those that have the interest and talent to do so.

 

Michael

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


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Post 14

Wednesday, April 20, 2005 - 11:27amSanction this postReply
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Newberry,

Very sorry it took me so long to get back, but my only access to the web is at work, so I cannot post very often.  I cannot disagree with your standpoint that some good art is such, simply for the fact that it carries an intrinsic beauty, but I must disagree that "the primary aesthetic value is the artwork itself."  I reason that there has never been an artwork without social/political significance.  It seems that you feel that we can only appreciate art for the beauty of the image, and not the significant impacts that certain images (symbols) elicit.  Further, we ought to recognize that any emotional interpretation of a work does contribute to its social value.  I recognize that Reinhart's black square paintings may have more social value than aesthetic, but Newberry don't you find beauty in the fact that our society has advanced to the point where nihilism, atomic theory, and Grand Unified Theory are in public discourse.  I guess I view it like this -- how can you capture the impact of an atomic bomb with an image of an atomic bomb? 


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