Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres 1788-1867

Ingres is part of my foundation and "Artists on Art" is studio companion of 30+ years.

"If I were asked to put up a sign over my door I should inscribe it:  School for Drawing, and I am sure that I should bring forth painters."

My art school was "Debbie Clarke's School for Drawing" following Ingres advice.  The interesting thing is that some painters were drawn forth.  BUT most of my students ended up being sculptors, designers, video/performance artists, ephemerists, collagists, etc.  hmmm.  I should have just named it Debbie Clarke's school for art.  because that is what I drew forth:  artists.  and when my students would tell me that they were there to become artists, I always told them that it was beyond my ability to create artists or teach them how to make 'art'.  all i could do was to teach them how to see as an artist, how to think as an artist, how to use materials.  the foundation was always drawing.

now, I am not a sculptor; but, i learned to see space through the eyes of a sculptor.  Andy MacMillan.  He gave me "B's".  His classes always challenged me to 'look', 'look', 'look'.  and for every 'look' there was always another way of 'looking' at the space, the figure, the picture plane completely contrary to the first look.  I would get confused.  Finally I confessed in frustration "What am I looking for?"  and Andy simply said "Anything."  and he held my gaze for 30 seconds and moved on.  he was one of my best teachers.  when I teach figure drawing, I lean into Andy's guiding words.

heh...and I thought I didn't get it or him.  He was right and i am so blessed to have had him for a teacher.  his teaching was as hard and durable as the granite this island is built upon.

By-the-way Andy studied with George Demetrios, right here in Folly Cove.  I had to go to Boston to The Art Institute of Boston to meet Demetrios' approach to seeing through Andy's classes.

sleep well Andy.  there are many deft eyes and hands as a result of your constancy.

best,

deb.

Ferrini Mirror progress report

ferrini is coming into relief. all of the words have died down, now all there is when i work is the landscape of his visage, the materials at hand. i have run out of gold leaf. i have run out of silver leaf. i now work with what i have left of the aluminum leaf and some indigo colors.

and this brings me to my favorite Thurber response to his editor's request for a progress report on his writing: 'well, i have drunk up all of the rum.'

my response to a friend's encounter with modern art that she didn't like and didn't get

i am an artist. i know what i like. i know what is art. there is a lot of 'art' that is not "ART". we all know "ART" when we see it, feel it, because it carries that certain unidentifiable: the transcendent.

then there is art that requires a conversation: you know it is art, you don't know why, you know you don't understand, and yet, something gets stirred, one finds one thinks about it, one goes back to question again,

and then there is art that you don't get right away, and then one day far into another future, something happens. the art pops into your head and you go AHA.

and then there is art that is just plain ugly. and that is it:

"there is no such thing as good or bad art.

there is just the beautiful and the ugly."
(a paraphrase of some famous artist, the name momentarily forgotten.)


look at rembrandt's side of butchered beef. it is a horrible subject. it is one of the most beautiful paintings in the world.

Audrey Flack said (again a paraphrase and rumination on her writings in "Art and Soul"): "Art is an energy exchange. the artist with the subject, the artist with materials, the artist with self. then the art goes out into the world and people view the painting. again another energy exchange. (remember physics? anything observed closely is changed) perhaps what makes Rembrandt resonate is that there have been so many viewings, so many energy exchanges, the work vibrates and resonates."

wow...i am surprised i have so much to say. thank you for allowing me to use up some of your white space to write. i think i will copy and paste this to my journal.

deb.

ps: in feng shui anything that is pointed, phallic, are energy daggers, not conducive to a healthy living or work environment. what if someone walked into them? i once got snarled by a snarley curley copper wire wall sculpture thing. not good. not ART, just violent.