New negatives are drying, doing their thing. Now the only thing I can do is wait, but in the meantime I've always have something floating around to show off. Here's one I made a little while ago. I made it for the same reason I am making this entry, just to pass the time. So when you're ready...
There is a paradoxical relationship an artist has with his or herself, that is, if one admits that they are an artist. Just the declaration that one is an artist can't be said without some stink of narcissism on their breath, because what they are saying is that what they do or make deserves to be seen. But while one side of their mouth is speaking arrogance towards others, they are speaking messages of doubt at themselves. At least this is how I am with myself.
As much as I like the pictures I make, I am my biggest critic. I always want my next picture to be better than the last, more interesting, more aesthetically pleasing, always better. When I make something that doesn't fit that bill, it leaves a sour taste in my eyes, and usually the picture finds a home in a box or something somewhere, only to be pulled out at a later date.
With time comes usually comes appreciation, and while I still think this one is a bit weak, I do like it a lot more than when I made it.
It's made with three negatives. The first would be a still life I setup for an art history project. The project was to create an art piece inspired by norther renaissance art, but with a personal touch. Mine was an atheistic version of a Madonna and Child using my inanimate buddies and a few towels.
The second layer was a collage of different bricks and wall negatives that I cut and paste into a collage-y wall.
With a simple four square mask I made a window and outside is the third negative, which was a view from central park.
Lukewarm as I may be on this image, it does make reference to artistic history, the most obvious being that of the Madonna and Child:
There are tons of pictures of this dynamic duo to choose from, but I like this one because like my bony friend Thrifty, in this painting my man Jesus does not have the body of a baby, but more of a little man. This is "Rest on the Flight into Egypt" and it's by Maerten Van Heemskerck (b. 1498) from 1530. Even though this scene is outdoors, and there isn't a window to look through, there is some similarity between the relation of the subject and background to its left.
Another one, this time a photo even, that reminds me of mine is this one. It's called "Juliet in Camouflage Jungle" from 1942 by Gyorgy Kepes (b. 1906). He liked taking natural forms and "placing" them in fields of unnatural geographic shapes. Perhaps this was a metaphor for the human relationship with technology or machines. But whatever, most importantly it reminds me of mine, so I like it... I guess I am a little narcissistic.