Fur In The Paint

I shared a hotel room a few events back with a very dear artist friend of mine who said that she loved watching The Big Bang Theory. Having only DirectTV with no local channels I hadn’t heard of this show until it became syndicated. Now Connie’s work ethic makes me look like a lay-about so if she says she stops and leaves her studio to go watch this show … well I was intrigued.

It took me a couple of times of watching to get into to it but now I can pretty much watch show after show and giggle like a school girl. Yeah I know I’m like a decade behind everyone else but I get there eventually.

An Actual Art Related Show
So now that my Project Runway has ended there is that creative void where a television show should be. I have started watching the new season of A Work Of Art (last year I did a show by show commentary on the series) but this year I really can’t get into it too much. I tend to have it and another show (Umm …. Big Band Theory) running at the same time and surf back and forth between them during BBT commercials.

They are just too far off my artistic world for me to not just shake my head at their antics. Basically it’s like if you can BS your way through the critique you may win. The show seems to drag out the most base, obvious and stereotypical thoughts of what artists are.

So anywho a recent episode did catch my attention … the “artists” were to create artwork to sell on the street and whoever made the most money could not be eliminated. The lack of creativity was astounding … several made t-shirts that they spray painted stencils on, one made construction paper feather crowns (you know like in grade school), one sold nude photos of herself with her secrets written on it (guess how well she did selling her work - men couldn’t throw the money at her fast enough) and lastly one woman (who is the one I’m hoping to win since she seems like a real artist and not just a poser) did several delicate illustrative (and yes some had sexual content) watercolors pieces. And when she sold out she did on the spot portraits.

I am gratified and relieved to say she made the most money and won that day’s competition even over naked girl. Not by much mind you, but still … true artistic expression can win out in the end.

So Anybody watching this seasons A Work Of Art?

In case your not familiar with BBT (I feel like I had to be the only one) Sheldon is such a nerdy straight man that when he makes a joke he’s so straight no one knows when he’s making it. So he says Bazinga to let people know. He also uses it for other things and I just love the way it sounds. I can be quite the child sometimes.

My favorite of all my creative reality shows starts a new season tonight on the Lifetime channel. Project Runway totally fascinates me. Why I don’t know. I’m certainly no fashionista. Tim Gunn is totally adorable. He’s such a cutie pie I could just squeeze him.

The other new artsy fartsy creative type competition reality show that’s a new favorite is The Glee Project. Now I am probably the last person on the planet to have NOT watched an episode of glee but I totally love the competition show. Why? Again I can’t say. I’m not an American Idol fan so I imagine it is the celebration of the quirky and unusual that the Glee Project celebrates and embraces.

So there’s my latest tv addictions. So looking forward to the new season of Project Runway tonight.

So did anyone watch the most recent episode of Face Off? It was a very artistic challenge called Naked Ambition and I thoroughly loved it. The contestants were allowed to select a model who had been placed in front of several large (around 4 foot x 8 foot if I were to guess) photographs of various things like rain forest, city streets abstract art, that kind of thing. Their challenge was to paint the nude body of the models and create an interesting visual image to be then photographed and judged.

It was awesome. Frankly this was a much better challenge than those set forth by that Next Great Artist Show. The winner was an image where it looked like the woman was literally forming and bursting out of a pile of petrified wood. (See above photo - this is only a partial of the whole image) The artist painted it so believably that it looked like an optical illusion. Others did things like make their models look like bronze or marble statues which while somewhat believable in the photos I thought lacked the inherent artsyness of the challenge.

The reviews I’ve read on this shows have all been glowing and I think I’m pretty well hooked on it and I can’t wait to see what they have to do next.

Drag Race Anyone?
The other show of this ilk (though much much farther down on the classiness scale) I’ve started watching is RuPaul’s Drag Race. Okay I’ve admitted before I like bad tv and this certainly qualifies.

For those of you who don’t know this is a competition for up and coming drag queens. Bet you didn’t know that some folk’s aspirations for greatness is becoming a famous drag queen huh?

It’s kinda like a cross between Project Runway in that all the contestants have to create their costumes for each challenge (and that one of their Judges is a PR winner) and America’s Next Top Model in that it is a fashion and runway show combined with various challenges involving acting and skits (and that one contestant is the AMTM Makeup artist.) They get some big name judges like Lily Tomlin. All in all it’s slightly amusing and a tad bit shocking. It’s filled with high school level humor and some seriously bad make-up. What’s not to love.

The Big (as in huge) difference between this show and the others are the sponsors and prizes. Instead of Elle magazine, Covergirl Makeup or new cars and trips to exotic places. This show is sponsored by PaulandChuckTravel-dot-com and the big (pardon the pun) prize for the most recent episode was a pair (is it pair?) of handcrafted (because they provide nothing but the very best) ginormous boobs by a company called BoobsForQueens-dot-com. Thant’s right Boobs for queens dot com.

I can’t say exactly what my fascination is with this show … Perhaps it’s the fact that the contestant line-up reminds me of some of my relatives. (just sayin’) … so we’ll just call it artistic interest and leave it at that.

BTW I deliberately did not create a real IP address for Paul & Chuck Travel And BoobsForQueens because I really didn’t want the google traffic from those.

I just watched the first episode of Face Off last night on Syfy channel. It the perfect marriage between the artsy fartsy part of me to the geeky scifi nerd part of me. Loved it.

Face Off Is a competition for up and coming make-up artists. And by make-up artist I don’t mean face painting super models, I mean creating creatures for alien movies and Pirates of the Caribbean (which one of the judges did all 3 Pirates movies.)

This is a show in the family as Top Chef and Project Runway and is pretty much set up the same. An initial challenge and those who win that get immunity from being eliminated from the big challenge.

I was totally fascinated with watching it all come together. Last nights big challenge was to create a human animal hybrid from one of three critters: Elephant, Ostrich and Black Beetle. Totally fascinating.

You can get more information or watch full episodes online at www.syfy.com/faceoff

So last night was the final episode to the reality art competition show. Honestly it was far more interesting than all the other episodes combined. It was nice to see the artists being able to create their own art, instead of trying to make it fit some sort of crazy challenge.

Miles’s (aka OCD guy) show revolved around some cellular phone photos taken from a white castle surveillance video. Then he added pixellation and enlarged to a point where they become abstract patterns. He displayed artwork from beginning to end of this process. Kinda his usual schtick of creating a simple pattern through a very complex set of steps. He tried to sell it by personalizing the work, telling a story about a homeless person who froze to death 3 days after he photographed him. This is tragic, but it was not what the work was about despite the one judge making that leap for Miles saying it was. Miles’s work here was like all his work in the past. It was about process. There’s nothing at all wrong with that until you try to sell it as something else. Like something about humanity and death. Despite the usual favoritism for Miles’s work, he was at the bottom of the three for ranking at the end of the exhibit.

Peregrin’s show was set with a carnival theme complete with sideshow. She created a lot of wax figures, heads, frames and horses. She used some Breyer models to cast some horses which is definitely questionable and I’m sure Breyer would take serious offense at. Her showing was both light hearted and bizarre. Her premiere piece was a photo of a taxidermy of twin unborn fawns. Again this strikes me that she wasn’t actually creating by doing this, but the judges ate it all up. They thought her fabulous and much like in previous shows when they threw accolades at her . . . well, I just can’t grasp why. Apparently her art is way about my intellectual level.

Abdi’s show was set around figures of himself. He did life sized sculpturess of figures and placed them on the floor, and paintings and altered photos on the walls. It was quite impressive.

I have felt like this guy is genius. He took on the various challenges and for the most part created unique and wonderful art that was all over the map. Meaning painting, drawing and sculpture, all done really well. One of the judges clearly does not like him and said as much during the show (paraphrasing) “I threw everything at this guy to get him off the show” But in the end he’ the guy that won.

And I’m thrilled because it reaffirms that the system still kinda works despite all the “smarter than thou” airs and floating around on the show.

Congratulations Abid! Now if only they’d create one more episode showing his solo exhibition at the Boston Museum Of Art. That would really be TV worth watching.

For previous commentary on the past episodes see below.
Lessons I’ve learned (so far) from that Work Of Art Reality Show: Part 1
Lessons I’ve learned (so far) from that Work Of Art Reality Show: Part 2
Lessons I’ve learned (so far) from that Work Of Art Reality Show: Part 3

I meant to post this earlier but it has been yet another loooong day. And tonight was my all time favorite reality show Project Runway, which is how all these other creative reality shows like Top Chef, Shear Genius and this one got started. If it weren’t for PR huge success there would be no Work Of Art. Mind you, WOA is no PR.

And I took my crop circle photos today and if I have time before I run off to the event tomorrow morning I’ll post them. Otherwise it will be first thing I do when I get back.

If you want to catch up on Part 1 and 2 of this series just click on the links below.
Lessons I’ve Learned (so far) from that Work Of Art Reality Show: Part 1
Lessons I’ve Learned (so far) from that Work Of Art Reality Show: Part 2

Week 7: This weeks challenge was to create artwork that is reflective of your artistic influence in childhood. Surprisingly this was really difficult for everyone. The piece that won was . . . well I didn’t get it as great art. But then that’s kinda the theme for me and this show.

Lesson Learned: Same as on a previous weeks challenge, create a good enough story and you can sell the idea as art.

Week 8: Another team challenge where they were assigned a theme and had to collaborate, each making their own work as one half of the whole. Male/Female, Order/Chaos and Heaven/Hell. Okay I already didn’t like OCD guy and now he’s really starting to annoy me. I’m sure he thinks he’s being clever or whatever but still. Unfortunately the judges love him. And somehow (divine intervention perhaps) stripper girl pulls Male/Female with Miles (aka OCD guy) So guess what she does? Yeah, I know right.

Lesson Learned: It’s Porn if it’s a photo of a naked woman pleasuring herself. But it’s art if she paints over the photo. Or maybe they’re both art. Or maybe they’re both Porn. Or maybe it makes absolutely no difference if the judging panel is all male and then it’s all a winner. (oh for craps sake!)

Note: So my snarky attitude about stripper girl is softening a bit. I gotta kinda wonder if once she leaves the bubble that she’s currently living in she’ll regret exposing herself this way in public. Not just physically but emotionally and spiritually as well.

The judges commented (and by commented I mean mocked) that she had issues. And while I agree I think them holding that 1 million dollar carrot in front of her, rewarding her stripping for every challenge as being a bit twisted. It like berating a hooker for her lifestyle choice after you paid her for services rendered.

Week 9: The challenge is to be inspired by nature. Most everyone gets excited by this challenge but poor stripper girl is completely lost. It’s cold and rainy and she’s just not in the mood to get naked in the woods. So after hours she shoots herself in the bath tub. I think she planned on superimposing herself on a nature photo or something the the other contestants oppose it’s use since it wasn’t done during studio time. (well yeah, duh)

Abdi does a seriously awesome self portrait using crushed stone from the park, charcoal and a pigment binder. I am so hoping he wins the competition just like he won this challenge. He’s been my favorite from the start. Miles does his usual BS and wins judges approval.

Lesson Learned: To be a great artist you need to be more than a one trick pony. (yeah it takes one to know one . . . meaning me. I’m like so how would I represent Heaven? Unicorns cavorting in a field?) Okay back to the show. Stripper girl gets sent home for her forlorn lake photos. I’m guessing putting herself in the water nude would have meant she could have stayed.

NEXT SHOW is the finale. I’m rooting for Abdi but somehow I think it will be Miles.

Warning: This one seems snarkier than normal so if you’re not in the mood hum a happy tune and skip it. Tomorrow (late tomorrow) hopefully I’ll have a new painting started for the demonstration I’m giving this weekend at the Side Street Gallery in Okiboji.

So I’m still watching the Work Of Art reality competition series. Sadly I think the artists themselves are becoming characatures of what most people think of as artists. They do have a couple of folks who have real talent but most of the rest are relying on a persona. It’s hard to explain but they just sorta stop being real and start becoming the tortured artist or the woman who complains about feeling violated and victimized by men’s desires and yet had a boob job (really bigguns) and gets nude for nearly every challenge.

Week 3: This week’s challenge was to create shocking art. You know like the Piss Christ by Andres Serrano. (Who BTW was also a guest judge) Not surprisingly most fell back on using sex as shocking which oddly enough is kinda one of the things most of us are really getting used to in mainstream life. I mean they use sex to sell everything from cars to brown rice. So really not so much shocking as just a little disgusting and totally pedestrian.

Lesson Learned: Apparently no matter what the challenge, taking nude photos of yourself in the bathroom IS the answer. Yeah I know it didn’t work all the other times but this time it did. So maybe the real lesson is to keep with it it until “it” succeeds.

Week 4: The challenge this week was take a drive in an Audi and use it for inspiration for your art. Um . . . really?

Lesson Learned: Big corporate sponsors get their own challenge dedicated to them. Nothing is really free in this world.

Week 5: This challenge was to create public art. The remaining 8 contestants (I hesitate to use the word artists) split into 2 teams and create a piece of work to go into a public setting. The *untrained guy pretty much got mauled by stripper girl and OCD guy (or as characterized on the show as the cool kids and the loner.) So no real surprise they tossed him out as the go home guy for this week.

Lesson Learned: Though your personality may be fierce you insecurity will make you vulnerable, especially when surrounded by wolves. Wolves always pick off the weak.

Note: I referred to him as untrained instead of self-taught because as self-taught he would have had to have developed an artistic voice. This guy was totally lost. He had an urge to create but had no real idea how to go about it. Hopefully this experience didn’t totally ruin art for him and he will still seek to express himself through art.

So I’ve been watching the Work Of Art reality competition series and for the most part enjoying it. I tend to roll my eyes a bit at the judges from time to time but I’m really enjoying the show on the whole. After the second week I realized there could be some actual artist life lessons to be learned here. So for the benefit of those who aren’t or can’t watch, here they are.

Week 1. was a portrait challenge where the artists had to do portraits of each other. I must say I was impressed with many of the artist’s work.

THE LESSON: When asked for a portrait don’t create a wall paper design.

Week 2. The premise for this challenge was to create ART from an electronics garbage dump. Old computers and miscellaneous stuffs. While I thought some work was interesting. What intrigued me the most was those who had an extensive story to go with their art, did well. Even if what they were selling was bookended between two concrete anuses the size of bean bag chairs. (true story)

THE LESSON: If you create a good and believable story you can sell just about anything as art.

Week 3. The most recent challenge was to create a book cover for one of six classic novels. The novel for each artist was assigned through drawing tubes of paint. This seemed like it would have been a real fun challenge to do.The winner actually got their cover on the book.

THE LESSON: This episode has two.
1. While sex sells it doesn’t necessarily impress the judges (especially for a Jane Austen cover.)
2. If you can’t work under someone else’s parameter and consider yourself above making commercial work, then don’t join a reality art competition show.

SO the event was . . . okay. Weather I think played the largest part in moderate sales. Saturday it rained heavily in the morning and then remained ominous all day. There was tornado watch, flash flood watch and severe thunderstorm watch (with chance of damaging winds and hail) all day. And the skies . . . well they kinda looked like they’d open up at any moment. They didn’t. But they looked like they wanted too. That evening the storms resumed and there was some tornado activity in the area to boot. Sunday was sunny and lovely and the sales were triple that of Saturday. All in all rather mediocre.

Hard to imagine that I used to do events even earlier than this one. The word on the street was the three shows that were running prior weekends were rained on or out.

Sorry no pix this time around. Forgot to charge the camera batteries. (totally kicking myself)

Work Of Art
SO did anyone manage to watch the new art reality show?

I did despite it running until 11pm. Though I’m usually up that late I usually doing something more productive than watching tv. Still it was better than I had expected and will continue to watch. The commercials made it look a little stupid but the first competition was doing portraits of their fellow contestants. Most of the work was surprisingly good.

Anyway would love to hear you’re thoughts on it.

As a big BRAVO fan of shows like Project Runway and Top Chef I was kinda thrilled to see they’ve expanded out into a art competition version of these two popular artsy fartsy programs. I’m not sure how something like this could even work but will be curious to see if it does. The Next Great Artist by Bravo will be airing Wednesday June 9th.

According to the Bravo TV Blog they describe their show as follows:

Golden Globe and Emmy Award winner Sarah Jessica Parker and her production company, Pretty Matches, will team with the Emmy-nominated Magical Elves (”Top Chef,” “Project Runway”) and Eli Holzman, to produce (The Next Great Artist) an hour long creative competition series among contemporary artists. “American Artist” (Note: This was it’s working title and has since been changed to “Work Of Art: The Next Great Artist”) will bring together twelve aspiring artists to compete for a gallery show, a cash prize and a sponsored national tour. In each episode, contestants will create unique works of art highlighting art’s role in everyday life, while they compete and create in a range of disciplines including sculpture, painting, photography and industrial design (to name a few). In working beyond their preferred mediums, artists will have to adapt quickly to changes in order to succeed. Completed works of art will be appraised by a panel of top art world figures including fellow artists, gallerists, collectors, curators and critics. The finalists’ work will be showcased in a nation-wide museum tour.