Artist of the moment………Ben Frost

Tags

acrylic, australia, australian, ben frost, comics, drug culture, enamel, figure, paint, pop art

 

 

 

Ben Frost is a contemporary painter from Australia. Ben Frost was born in Brisbane, Australia in the year 1975.

Frost often makes reference to the drug culture in his work. He uses a very colorful palette. Frost is associated with the Pop Art movement.

To create his art Frost draws inspiration from collage art, graffiti, and commercial signs and logos.

Price range information: Sorry none available.

In this clip some great works by Ben Frost:

Below a link to the website of the artist:

http://www.benfrostisdead.com/

Frost is based out of Melbourne, Australia.

In this clip we view a timelapse of Frost at work. This work is acrylic and enamel paint:

Ben Frost’s work is a combination of great graphic design and humor. The artist seems to push the viewer to feel that the pill industry is no different than the smoking industry was decades ago.

The smoking industry used to have internationally renown symbols such as Joe Camel and the Marlboro Man. Frost incorporates modern characters and large company symbols as a genius way to drum up even more business for the drug companies.

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Artist of the moment…………..Ana Serrano

Tags

al qoyawayma, american, ana serrano, art center college of design, cardboard, red grooms, sculptures

 

 

 

Ana Serrano is a mixed media artist renown for her cardboard sculptures of buildings. Ana Serrano was born in Los Angeles, California in the year 1983.

The artist attended the Art Center College of Design located in Pasadena, California. Serrano earned a B.F.A. with honors.

Serrano is inspired by the Mexican and American cultures.

In this clip we view an exhibition by Ana Serrano from 2011:

 

Serrano is based out of Portland, Oregon.

Price range information: Sorry none available.

Ana Serrano is a fantastic artist who creates wonderful works of art using scrap cardboard. Her work is very contemporary in style, due to the fact the cardboard is mass produced with acrylic colors.

Two other artists who also do great work in this genre are Al Qoyawayma and Red Grooms.

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Artist of the moment………..Photographer Carleton Watkins

Tags

american, carleton watkins, landscape, photography, yosemite

 

 

 

 

Carleton Watkins was one of the first American photographers to capture the beauty of the national parks. Carleton Watkins was born in New York in the year 1829. He was the oldest of eight children.

One of the artist’s favorite locations to shoot was Yosemite Valley.

Watkins became a photographer by circumstance. A nationally known photographer named Robert Vance had a studio close to a store where Watkins worked as a clerk. After an employee of Vance’s quit, Watkins was chosen as his replacement.

The artist married at age fifty. He went on to have two children. He opened a gallery, but lost it to creditors after bankruptcy.

Watkins lost his sight in the 1890’s. Later in his life his daugher would commit him to the Napa State Hospital for the Insane.

The artist also is given credit for the first person to shoot the famous Sequoia trees with a large camera.

Price range information: Works range from $10,000 to $350,000.

In this clip we view some pieces concentrating on the landscape:

Carleton Watkins passed away in 1916. He was 86 years of age.

Watkins is proof that great photographers who specialized in the landscape existed before Ansel Adams!

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We remember Barkley Hendricks

Tags

african american, barkley hendricks, figures, painter, pennsylvania academy of art, yale university

 

 

Barkley Hendricks was an African- American painter renown for his work with the figure. Barkley Hendricks was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in the year 1946.

Hendricks earned a B.F.A. from the Pennsylvana Academy of Arts. The artist went on to earn a M.F.A. from Yale University.

The artist was renown for working with mixed media with many paintings including mixed media of oils, acrylics, and magna.

Hendricks was also a professor at Connecticut College in from 1972 to 2010.

Below a brief interview with Barkley Hendricks:

Barkley Hendricks passed away on April 18 of 2017. Hendricks was 72 years of age.

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Artist of the moment………….David Drake

Tags

african american, dave the slave, david drake, potter

 

 

 

 

David Drake was an African- American potter and slave. David Drake was born in the year 1801 on a plantation in the state of North Carolina.

Drake is given credit for being the first slave potter to sign his work. He signed them Dave.

The artist is also known as Dave the Slave.

David Drake was not only a gifted artist, but he could also read. This was very unusual for the fact most slaves were illiterate. Its thought that his owner taught him to read by showing Dave the Bible.

Dave often inscribed his vessels with poetry.

In South Carolina just teaching an African- American to read or write could lead to a fine and prison term.

Historians argue over the number of works the artist actually produced.

Price range information: During the era that David Drake lived a person could buy one of his vessels for 50 cents. At auctions recently some have sold for more than $50,000! What an investment!

In this clip a closer look at work produced by Dave in 1857:

David Drake passed away in the 1870’s. He died a free man. His name doesn’t appear on the census taken in 1880 so its thought he passed away in the 1870’s.

Works by Dave the Slave can be found in the permament collections of the Smithsonian in Washington D.C. ,and the Philadelphia Museum of Fine Art.

What an amazing artist and person. Drake overcame many obstacles in order to produce wonderful art and make a legacy for himself. At a time when most African- Americans were not allowed to learn to read and write David Drake must have been a beacon of hope for a person of color. Drake was a reader, writer, and gifted visual artist.

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Artist of the moment…………Frank Weston Benson

Tags

academie julien, american, female figures, frank weston benson, impressionist, painter, school of museum of fine arts boston

 

 

 

Frank Weston Benson was one of the first American painters to introduce Impressionism to the United States. Frank Weston Benson was born in Salem, Massachusetts in the year 1862. Benson was also a printmaker.

Benson attended the School of the Museum of Fine Arts located in Boston. He also studied overseas in Paris, France at the Academie Julian.

Price range information: The artist worked in oils, watercolors, and etchings. Prices range from $4,000 to one million dollars.

Three painters who influenced Benson were Diego Velazquez, Claude Monet, and Johannes Vermeer.

Benson also taught at the collegiate level. First at School of Art located at Portland, Maine. He also taught at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston.

In this clip a montage of works by Frank Benson:

Frank Benson passed away in 1951. He was 89 years of age.

Frank Benson was a fantastic painter of the figure. His work is similar to that of John Singer Sargent. Benson had a great concept of design. The use of color in his shadows was extraordinary.

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Artist of the moment……..Karen Kunc

Tags

abstract, american, karen kunc, ohio state university, painter, printmaker, university of nebraska at lincoln

 

 

 

Karen Kunc is a contemporary painter and printmaker with an abstract style. Karen Kunc was born in the year 1952.

Kunc earned a B.F.A. from the University of Nebraska at Lincoln. The artist went on to earn a M.F.A. from Ohio State University.

Price range information: Prints range from $400 to $2,000.

Kunc enjoys finding visually interesting patterns and portraying them in her work. Some subjects include scaffolding and window frames.

The artist is also a collegiate professor at the University of Nebraska at Lincoln.

In this clip Karen Kunc talks about the printmaking process:

Below a link to the website of the artist:

http://www.karen-kunc.com/

Kunc is part of the permanent collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art.

Over her career Kunc has been included in more than 350 exhibitions.

What a great style of abstraction! I enjoy the many different textures and patterns she creates in her work. Kunc also has a wonderful grasp of color.

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Artist of the moment……..David Hollier

Tags

British, contemporary, england, guildhall university, new york city, northumbria university, painter, portraits, wolverhampton, word portraits

 

 

 

David Hollier is a contemporary painter renown for his word portraits that use text to create faces and figures. David Hollier was born in Wolverhampton, England in the year 1971.

Hollier had an extensive collegiate career earning a B.A. in visual art from Northumbria University located in Newcastle- Upon- Tyne.  The artist went on to earn a M.A. in computer imagery and animation from Guildhall University in London.

Below a link to the website of the artist:

http://www.davidhollier.org/

In this clip we catch up with the great James Kalm to view an exhibition featuring the work of David Hollier:

Price range information: On the low end digital prints can be found for $600. On the high end original acrylics on board can be reach $10,000.

In this clip we view a mural dedicated to former South African President Nelson Mandela:

Hollier is now based out of New York.

What an interesting style of portraiture! Capturing the person with images as well as a recognizeable face. Hollier has a tremendous amount of skill portraying everyone from the Queen of England, to Ben Franklin, and the now deceased artist formerly known as Prince.

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Artist of the moment……..Bonethrower

Tags

addidas skateboarding, american, bonethrower, david m. cook, illustrator, painter, playing cards, printmaker, skateboards

 

 

Bonethrower is a contemporary street artist now based out of Los Angeles, California. Bonethrower was born in Louisville, Kentucky.

Some recurring motifs of Bonethrower include skulls, snakes, and strange creatures. Bonethrower works as a painter and printmaker.

Price range information: Sorry none available.

The artist’s government name is David M. Cook.

Bonethrower is actually colorblind.

Below a link to the website of the artist:

https://dmcook.carbonmade.com/

Bonethrower recently collaborated with Addidas skateboarding to develop a line that includes a shoe, track jacket, and shirts.

Bonethrower has mastered the skull! What a great artist to have to celebrate the Mexican culture’s Day of the Dead! Bonethrower is very innovative when it comes to portraying a traditional subject such as the human skull.

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Artist of the moment……….Flix

Tags

caracas, flix, painter, rafael fernandez, street artist, venezuela

 

 

Flix is a contemporary street artist from Venezuela. Flix is renown for painting robots. Flix has been influenced in design by the Aztec culture. His work emphasizes geometric shapes and bold color.

Flix was born in Caracas, Venezuela in the year 1976.

Price range information: Sorry none available.

The artist’s government name is Rafael Fernandez.

Flix is based out of Caracas, Venezuela.

One of the artist’s goals is to change the streets of society through art and culture.

What a unique style Flix has developed. The artist is a realist painter whose work contains very strong elements of abstraction. His robots have an old school feel and remind this viewer of Rosey the housekeeper robot from the cartoon show The Jetsons.

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