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Archive for March, 2015

Quote of the Week: Hesse

Posted in Influences, Personal Mythology, Quote, tagged , , , , on March 5, 2015| 2 Comments »

GC Myers- Unpuzzled Hesse QuoteThis quote came from Hermann Hesse‘s most famous book, Steppenwolf. A great book but my favorite Hesse book is Demian, which I have referenced here a couple of times in the past.  It was a book that I read at a time when I was at a crossroads in my life and it was very influential in my heading in the direction which led to this point.  I think this quote very much jibes with my perception of the world portrayed in my work, that being that it is a real entity, a real place.

It has as much substance as the outer world to me.   It has depth and layers.  It has breath and light.  It has emotion and its truth comes the fact that it is a precise portrayal of itself– not a replication of the outer world.

It just is.

That may sound nutty or perhaps egotistical to some.  I get that.  But without this belief in the reality of this inner world, the validity of the work to myself comes undone.  It fades to nothingness and certainly doesn’t move across to others.  It loses all meaning for everyone, myself included, without this certainty in its being real.

I’m going to stop at this point.  I may have said too much already.  That is, too much for the outer world.  In here, in my world, it sounds right…

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Manipulated Reality/ Erik Johansson

Posted in Neat Stuff, Photography, tagged , , , on March 4, 2015| 3 Comments »

Erik Johansson Cut and FoldErik Johansson is a Swedish photographer working out of Berlin who has made quite a name for himself by taking the ordinary moment and inserting a twist in its perception through a very skilled manipulation of the photos, creating a new and surreal reality.  Johansson can look upon  a very mundane scene and see all sorts of other potentials. In his manipulated reality  there are row boats plowing through fields, a driver is faced with with a giant chrome ball that blocks his way and a biker comes upon a road that is cut like a piece of paper, its ends splayed high in the air above him.  Real life houses appear like those from an MC Escher drawing.  And that is just a small sample.

Erik Johansson ReverberateIt is an incredible combination of imaginative vision, skill and technology.  You can see more of his work at his website by clicking here.  There is also a wonderful blog on his site that gives a real inside look at his process, including a number of videos. Here at the bottom, there is one of these videos that shows in great depth the many layers of editing and manipulation that take place in composing  his photo, Cut and Fold, shown at the top of this page.  If you’ve ever used photo editing software such as Photoshop, you will appreciate his great skill.

If you don’t care how he came to his final product, it may take a way a bit of the mystery.  Or not.  I don’t know.

Anyway, it’s great fun so take a moment and let your mind wander into a different reality.

Erik Johansson The Architect Erik Johansson Rowboat Erik Johansson Set Them Free Erik Johansson Intersecting Planes Erik Johansson Greenfall Erik Johansson Nightmare Perspective

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Work In Progress/ Finding Soul

Posted in Painting, Recent Paintings, Technique/History, tagged , , , , on March 3, 2015| Leave a Comment »

2015 GC Myers WIPWhen I finished up in the studio yesterday, I was at this point in progress on a new painting.  It is a 20″ by 60″ canvas that was started with only the thought that it would be curtained in by two layers of tree trunks on each side.  The basic composition of the entire piece is laid in in an underpainting of red oxide and there are a numbers of layers of color in the sky, beginning to give shape to the tone of the painting.

It has definition and purpose now.  A forseeable destiny.

This is one of my favorite stages of my process.  The bones and form of the painting have been created, the decisions concerning composition made, and the painting begins to stir to life.  There is a keen sense of sharpness to it at this point, as though the essence of its being has been boiled down and captured in this layer of red oxide paint.

Like a revealing of its soul.

The layers that will follow will give detail and nuance to round out its wholeness.  It’s interesting  to watch it go from this sharply defined revelation of self through the series of transformations brought on by each subsequent layer of color.  There will be points when this sharpness will fade completely away, leaving the piece dull and flat–barely alive.

Sallow. Like a patient on a respirator.

At that point,  I sometimes finding myself questioning my prior decisions and asking if the piece will ever come back to life.  This comes near the end and, disheartening as it sometimes is,  would be my least favorite part of the process if not the fact that I have the knowledge of and confidence in what will soon take place on the canvas.

The layers of color come quicker and consist of fewer strokes but each small move now seems to bring more and more of a change to the piece.  The soul of the painting that once filled the canvas in the completed underpainting above now begins to reveal itself again in its fullest form.

Now, that being said, it what I hope happens.  Sometimes it just doesn’t.  But sometimes the soul of the piece is revealed so strongly at this point that it will not be denied.

And that’s what I believe will be the case with this piece.  At least, that is the hope.  We shall see…

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Off the Mainline

Posted in Motivation, Quote, tagged , on March 2, 2015| Leave a Comment »

GC Myers - Off the MainlineIf you can see your path laid out in front of you step by step, you know it’s not your path.  Your own path you make with every step you take.  That’s why it’s your path.

–Joseph Campbell

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I am running a little late this morning and have a long to-do list but still wanted to have something on the blog– I guess after six plus years of doing this it has become a habit.  I came across this quote from Joseph Campbell and painting, Off the Mainline,  from many years ago and thought it was sharing.  Plus it’s just nice to see a landscape not covered in snow and ice.  But Campbell’s words, as they often do, jibe well with my own views on our journey through this life.

We ultimately create ourselves and our paths and do have a choice in which direction they will take us.  That’s a simple concept that is easy to overlook in the crush of life.

Got to get to work.  Have a great day!

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Ball of Confusion

Posted in Favorite Things, Music, Video, tagged , , , , , , on March 1, 2015| 3 Comments »

Ball of Confusion- Artist Jerry Thompson

Ball of Confusion- Artist Jerry Thompson

Hard to believe it’s March first.  With the snow falling and the cold temperatures, it definitely looks to be following the old adage where it comes in like a lion.  I am hoping the lamb is not too far away but this year, who knows?  We might be saying the same thing for April.

Crazy world.  Which brings me to this Sunday’s musical interlude.  I’ve been doing this blog for about 6 1/2 years now (which is hard to believe, as well) and have played a lot of different music over that time.  But for some unknown reason, the one and only Temptations have never made an appearance.  How I could have waited so long is beyond me but I will fix it today.

For many folks, the music of the Temptations could well be the soundtrack of the 60’s and 70’s.  Motown at its very best.  If you grew up in that time frame, their music most likely was part of your life in some way.   My Girl, Just My Imagination, Papa Was a Rolling Stone, Ain’t Too Proud to Beg, and on and on.  I mean, come on!

So today, with another blast of winter weather confusing this corner of the world and the rest of the world in a constant state of chaos, I thought I’d share the tempting Temptations’ Ball of Confusion.  If the world is indeed going to hell as some fear, at least let it go with a beat laid down by the Funk Brothers, Motown’s incredible band of  musicians who performed the music on this and so many other immortal hits.  Have a great Sunday!

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