December 8, 2011 – Diego Rivera

125 years ago today the great artist Diego Rivera was born. On his birthday in 1940, he was in San Francisco. Rivera celebrated his birthday by marrying Frida Kahlo for the second time. It’s easy to imagine what Diego and Frida would be doing if they were in San Francisco in 2011. They’d be marching and participating in the Occupy Wall Street movement. Would security let Comrade Diego back inside at the Pacific Stock Exchange to see his own work? Diego Rivera’s first San Francisco mural is inside, “safe” from the prying eyes of the general public and the rabble in the streets.

September 25, 2011 – Rothkollages

Mark Rothko is a painter who unexpectedly influenced my collage work. Over the years I kept encountering his work in museums and, I have to confess, I didn’t always quite “get it.” But something was getting me.

In 2001 I started creating collages where the only element used was maps. Over time the pieces evolved. The pieces became more monochromatic and started having less structured patterns. I started using a 3-hole bunch on old maps to generate small dots of map. Then I created pieces where there were nine dots of map per square inch. When looked at closely they are works of with intricate detail. From a distance the detail is lost and the “dot” pieces take on the look of abstract squares and rectangles of color. I had done a few larger pieces when I finally began to recognize Rothko’s influence.

So for a painter, who was born on this day in 1903, a series of little collages made from the scraps from the 2011 Project. Little Rothkos, or if you prefer, Rothkollages.

September 11, 2011 – Sister Wendy’s Miracle

For some time I have been pondering how I should address the Anniversary of September 11^th. So many pieces for the 2011 Project have been date specific. Obviously this would be a date I could not ignore. The most obvious choice would be some kind of memorial piece. As important as memorials are, I’ll save that for another time. Instead, I decided to focus on one of the most positive things I witnessed in the aftermath of that horrible morning.

I remember back to the days shortly after September 11th. Within a couple of days many of us had to just turn the news off. It was not about forgetting, but people needed things to distract them, if even for a brief moment. Not surprisingly, the shelves of video stores were emptying out.

During that week, I’ll never forget what was possibly the most beautiful thing I have ever seen on TV. It was a few nights after September 11^th. It was the evening television broadcasts were starting get back to “normal” programming. At last it was possible to watch something, anything else. I can’t say what the date was, but the first program I watched that night was at 9 p.m. on KQED. It was back to the regular schedule and Sister Wendy was on with her new series.

I love Sister Wendy. She is sweet, entertaining and loveable, a delightful personality and, with that, she is incredibly smart and knowledgeable. She carries on the tradition of the days when PBS was known as educational TV. No one can explain a work of art like Sister Wendy. I knew Sister Wendy would be a perfect distraction.

In 2001 she had a new series called the American Collection. It had a visit to a different American art museum every week. The episode for that night had been filmed in New York City at the Met. There was Sister Wendy in the city we had been watching all week. And there she was, showing us work after work of Islamic art at the Met. This brilliant, endearing, Catholic nun was going on about the beauty of Islamic Art — that moment was magic and truly divine. For just a brief instance, against all the anger and fear in the world, there was a voice of sanity. It was a reminder that, in spite of all the evil in the world, the world is a good place. I have never felt it was ironic that Sister Wendy was on TV that night in an episode filmed at the Met in New York. It was miraculous, but it was not ironic.

September 7, 2011 – Pieces of Picasso

Today I finally got to the de Young to see the Picasso mega-show. Even as a museum member, seeing these hyped up shows is a challenge due to the crowds. I’ve learned that mornings, mid week are the key, if you have the time. Anyone who has been to enough art museums over the years has probably seen their share of Picassos. He had a long and prolific career. With such a huge body of work, even some of the smaller and flung art museums around the world often have a Picasso.

We always benefit when museums are under renovation and the collection takes a road trip around the planet. The show at the de Young is a treasure trove of work from the Musée National Picasso in Paris. Having seen Picasso’s work in many museums, including the SFMoMA and the Legion of Honor did not prepare me for this show. The ability to see a large amount work spanning a lifetime is a very different museum experience. It’s not the same as looking in an art book or seeing a handful of pieces in one museum.

The five things I took away from seeing it all at once were:

1. A real insight into Picasso’s artistic development and earlier work. So many pieces did not “look” like a Picasso. Who knew he even painted a lighthouse.
2. A much better understanding of artists who influenced his work and the subsequent artists he continues to influence.
3. It never fails to surprise how much vivid paintings can be in person. Even familiar works like his 1937 Portrait of Dora Maar are surprising. Colors that border on day-glo at times.
4. In case you hadn’t figured it out yet — Picasso was a boob man. He loved ‘em, really, really, loved them.
5. And, a few postcards for today’s piece for the 2011 Project were purchased as we exited through the gift shop.

September 2, 2011 – Harlem Renaissance Man

One hundred years ago today one of America’s true Renaissance Men was born. He was an educator, a writer, a musician and an artist. Romare Bearden was an artist at the heart of the Harlem Renaissance and he was a true Renaissance Man. Bearden could be considered the Father of Modern Collage. His work has influenced countless artists, myself included. I personally considered Romare Bearden a major source of influence and inspiration on my own work. With that in mind, a Beardenesque collage for today’s piece for the 2011 Project.

August 21, 2011 – Kidnapped

"Kidnapped" - mixed media on canvas, 4"x4"

100 years ago today the Mona Lisa was kidnapped from the Louvre. Many would say she was stolen, but I think when it comes to the Mona Lisa, we’ll call it a kidnapping. She didn’t make it back to her French home for two years. Even Pablo Picasso was questioned as a possible suspect. In the end, the culprit was a Louvre employee named Vincenzo Peruggia. Mona lived with him for two years. And that thought alone makes me want to write a play. If only I had the time. Finally, Signore Peruggia tried to sell the painting to the Uffizi in Florence. He was arrested and served a scant six months with the reputation of being a patriotic Italian trying to repatriate the Mona Lisa.

She took a tour of Italy before returning to Paris. Spent World War II in hiding and since has survived acid attacks and a rock. Safely now behind bulletproof glass, she even survived a coffee mug hurled at her in 2009. It makes one wonder why museums sell things like coffee mugs at all. It’s been quite the century.

July 22, 2011 – Hopper’s Palette

Edward Hopper is one my very favorite painters. He was born on this day in 1888. One of the best ways to celebrate his birthday would be to celebrate his palette. It best might be called the Palette of Calm. So much of Hopper’s work capture’s the light at the early or final part of the day. And, when Hopper painted midday, he usually was painting its stillness. Hopper’s colors always have a calming effect, as do so most of his paintings.

Hopper’s work is often misinterpreted as a representation of loneliness. I never feel that from his work. It’s a feeling of calm and quiet. It’s a waking city, peaceful at 6 a.m. or it is Cape Cod at its best, when it is empty. I always look at the Maine and Cape Cod paintings and see one thing — the off season.

Even though Hopper’s work is ubiquitous in the art calendar and coffee table book world, it is best seen in person. And certain artists’ work really needs to be seen and appreciated in person. Every time I see an Edward Hopper, I am reminded why I visit museums.

July 15, 2011 – Dutch Masters

Rembrandt would have been 405 years old today. For the 2011 Project I decided to create an homage to Rembrandt. I couldn’t find anything appropriate in my collage horde until I remembered the old cigar box. I found the cigar box a few years ago in my mother’s attic. It contained all sorts of postage stamps and other saved items that I collected when I was about 12. I remember my great grandmother gave me the box but I have no idea what she kept in it. The box must have belonged to my great grandfather. And to give you and idea of the box’s age, it was from a time when the cigars were priced at 2 for 27¢.

How odd that 300 years later, in may circles, Rembrandt would be best known as the artist who painted the guys on the cigar box. The Dutch Masters brand is celebrating its 100^th Anniversary this year. I doubt they’ll be around in another 100 years. Cigar smoking is one of those habits on a steady decline. In 2111 the public might have a different image in mind when it comes to Rembrandt.

Imagine further into the future. What artists will be best associated with a product in 2211 or 2311? I have no doubt that Warhol will be a brand of soup. Will Wayne Thiebaud be reduced to an image on a cake mix? Will the A.K.C. have a registered breed called the Jeff Koons (a very yappy little terrier I suspect)? Will Hoppers be the best little pills to calm you down? I can’t even imagine what product my art will be associated with.

July 13, 2011 – The Bath

It was one of the most iconic baths ever taken, and it occurred on this day back in 1793. The bath was the last one taken by Jean-Paul Marat. Many of us know the image better than the subject or the artist. Jacques-Louis David’s painting La Mort de Marat (The Death of Marat) is probably the one image that is most associated with the French Revolution and the excesses that followed. It’s ironic, considering how many were killed by the guillotine that an image so associated with the French Revolution is of its leaders stabbed to death in the bathtub.

April 15, 2011 – Leonardo da Vinci

In the quest to have more public holidays where everyone gets a day off, today seems an appropriate one. Today is Leonardo da Vinci’s birthday. One of the greatest artists and geniuses of our collective history certainly deserves a holiday. Do we celebrate him as an artist? A mathematician? A scientist? An architect? The list goes on.

For my little tribute piece I have chosen to “sample” his painting “Lady with an Ermine.” I’ve never seen the Mona Lisa but this is one I have seen in person when the “Lady” visited us from Poland a few years ago. The painting is now in a museum in Krakow and has been in Poland for over 200 years.