Wednesday, July 18, 2012

Lecture Notes: Pattern Painting

I was in a lecture recently that discussed Pattern Painting. It is important to me because I use patterns and grids to create my paintings. According to this lecture, Pattern Painting is the opposite of Abstract Expressionist, or said another way: Post Painterly Expressionist. Post-painterly Abstraction is a term created by Clement Greenberg.
Suzanne Gibbs, 2011.
Pattern Painting in itself is not an art movement. Yet many artists use patterns in their work or use patterns as their work. Saying pattern painting is the opposite of abstract expressionist is true and relevant in an art historical lecture, but not as relevant when viewing artwork as influence. A short list of painters to look at in the genre of pattern painting are:

Agnes Martin–gorgeous lines on a neutral background
Suzanne Gibbs, 2012. String, acrylic gel on canvas. Influenced by Agnes Martin work.
Bridget Riley–graphic alteration of perspective on a flat space in black and white
Karl Benjamin–he has the most awesome command of color
Tim Bavington–making music in color
Carl Fudge–super patterny (made up word)
Philip Taaffe–complex all over patterns often made with stencils
Suzanne Gibbs, 2012. a detail of some stencil work I've done influenced by Philip Taaffe
Jackson Pollock–all over drip paintings (a strange and fun Pollock website)
Jasper Johns–his motto: do something that friends aren't doing
Suzanne Gibbs, 2012. Detail of XO. Encaustic, paper, ink and house paint on paper. Influenced by Jasper Johns.
Robert Motherwell–bold black marks on white
Willem De Kooning–bold expressive mark-making, often female forms
Hans Hofmann–another master of color in loose shapes all over the canvas
Barnett Newman–color fields zipped together by color
Robert Rauschenberg–his work is loaded with stuff, combines
Helen Frankenthaler–every bit of the surface is important in her work
Clyfford Still–worked a lifetime of paintings, now has a Museum in his name
Frank Stella–geometric paintings that were flat then moved into three dimentions

The lecture made me think about:
  1. Creating a totality and a choreography of the space.
  2. What are valid subjects for paintings?
  3. Giving people a point of reference.
  4. Starting with materials and make the work coming from that.
  5. No planning just canvas and materials are brought together.
  6. The experience of color is tactile and more.
I could have found pieces of my work that have influences from each of these artists. All artists look at other artists work for inspiration. My son asked me the other day: "Where do musicians get their ideas?" I said, "from other music I suppose, and from life." We are all learning from one another.

Leo Castelli is an important guy because he had the galley that showed most of the artists I listed above. He influenced the art through sales.

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