Happy Wednesday gals :)
Not to small talk or anything, but the weather lately- errmuhgosh! Soo wonderful out :) Being from the south- where it will soon be hot and humid, I cherish these sunny [almost hot] spring days- free of humidity [but full of pollen- yuck!]. Luckily, Easter Sunday the weather here in Atlanta was perfect! So Chris and I had some time before heading home to see family, to snap some pictures for today's post. Instead of a brightly colored wall, we went with the Miami-esc apartments just down the road from our loft. They are just oustide of Studio Plex, [if you are in the Atlanta area] with the cutest + yummiest juice and sandwhich place called Lotta Frutta just on the corner! It is a must for a nice spring + summer day in the city! Anywho, the reason I wanted a Miami vibe was because my artist inspiration this week is Alex Katz. If you aren't familiar with his work, check out his website here, or my Pinterest board for him here. I myself only discovered this artist in the past couple of years, but he is most definitely one of my favorites. Keep reading + check out his work and you will understand why!
Alex Katz is an American born, jewish artist out of Brooklyn, New York. He is best known as a figurative painter and YES, he is still alive + well- at 87 years old. Katz loved using bright, bold, flat colors and painting from real life. Other than the way that he used color, there are two things that I really love about him/his work.
I love that his wife, Ada Katz was the subject of over 250 of his paintings. Maybe its because I am an artist, in a long term relationship with another artist- BUT I just love hearing stories about artists in love, who were each otheres life long muses! Its romantic and inspiring! [I know, I'm such a cheese ball!] I also read [and love] that Katz admitted to destroying atleast a thousand of his paintings during his first ten years as an artist. He did this in a effort to find his own style. This is something that I respect and can relate with. And it is such a werid [hypocritical] spot for me to be in- being an art teacher. After graduating from college, I painted over all of my work [white, blank canvas] to start fresh. I felt like soo much of what I did/'accomplished' was too influenced by my formal training. It didn't look like 'me'. I still feel like I am trying to establish my style as a painter, and as valuable as my art schooling was- alot of times I think it really clouded my vision as an artist. College just left me feeling very lost as an artist. The more I have read, and study about artists on my own accord- the more I am realizing that a lot of artist with formal training face this same issue. I honestly think it is an issue we all face, not just artists. To not loose ourselves to whatever institution we belong to. The struggle to always hold on to our voice, in a culture that wants us all to be standard and standardized. But that may be for another post... Back then, pop art wasn't a thing yet. Alex Katz was a precursor to this movement. He dared to be bold, destroying old work he knew wasn't true to himself. He bravely created big, bright, bold, canvases filled with flat colored images inspired by every day life. And that is exactly what he became known for, and is still known for today. He was a pioneer. He didn't meet the standard, he set the standard! I have shared some of my favorite paintings of his in this post, and also on my Pinterest board. Also, please note that I am wearing a vintage swim suit as a top! I LOVE it soo much! I mean whatever works right!? 
Get this look : [ stripped button up : Old Navy || swimsuit : vintage || belt : Target || bell bottoms : True Religion || shoes : American Apparel || Bag c/o : Sun Jellies || necklace c/o : Sun Jellies ]
Photography by : Chris Burden
|
#iliketoARTYhard
 
Paint with me :
About me
Let's be Friends!
Currently on the Gram :Archives
April 2020
|
RSS Feed
