A contradiction is at work. Reading the first section of my new book on Paula Rego I am at once struck by the emphasis placed on her 'very academic' study at the Slade School of Art in London, followed by her attempts to unlearn this and find a return to the painting she had experienced as a child. I have no doubt about Rego's talent as a painter and have no argument with her methods of finding her artistic mojo; what pisses me off is how it is always considered so important to attend art school and write it up on your artistic CV, only to begin the deconstruction of any teaching you may have had to find the 'real' painter within. I failed to complete my degree due to my total allergy of educational institutions and a failure to operate within their constraints and ideas. I found it a horrific waste of time and money to make myself miserable for three years in order to afford the honour of writing some letters on my CV.
Maybe I am over sensitive, but I still feel that my lack of formal qualifications mark me as less relevant, despite the fact that formal drawing and painting skills were pretty much ignored by the time I was studying, in favour of the installation and the conceptual piece.
Having said that, my own personal journey through illness and other obstacles had doubtless contributed to my ability to work and its content; is art school another way of doing this? Build up to knock down to build up again; its one way of learning.
Sat and looked at my Paula Rego book again and her favourite picture which features in the intro: Max Ernst's 'The Virgin spanking the infant Jesus in front of three witnesses.' Besides thinking 'oh my god that is awesome' and wondering how I had never come across it before, I was also struck by a huge and strange injustice that has been in my mind for as long as I can remember; a weird bias against the Surrealists. I am, as we speak, trying to puzzle over this state of affairs as I can see no logical basis for it, but I know that when anyone has compared my work to any of them or suggested 'surreal' elements I have shied away in horror. My initial diagnosis, that it must be familiarity breeding contempt, is fatally flawed, as I am totally naive when it comes to the bulk of the surrealists work as I found when reading things about other artists that touches on them. No knowing much about Ernst at all is hardly familiarity and I have a feeling that there is probably more to Dali than 'The Persistence of Memory'. In fact I would probably find something to love about that if I were to look at it properly...
More, I think I have fallen prey to plagarisations of the surrealists, especially Dali, and all the bastardisations used in advertising and the media for the last x years- lobster telephone this, melting clock that. Hmmm. A gross misrepresentation I fear, which I must correct with all due haste.
Off into town tomorrow for day two of my Festival 2010; more days than I have managed in any other Festival since I was at college, I think. Meeting a great old friend who has been absent from our fine city for some four years, giving rise to some serious catch-up and gossip mongering being required; where to begin... I know his story is pretty interesting so I am looking forward to some first rate chat.
Oh. Sold one of my favourite paintings via the wonders of the internet to a fellow emerging artist down in England. So pleased to see it go to a good home, and I have involved a bit of barter for a piece of her work, increasing my happy painting wall; my living room will resemble a pretty hot gallery space before we know it:)
And... I have been so excited following the travels of a fellow artist who had the fortuity to be invited to an artists symposium in Russia; the pictures and words she has sent while on the trip have really moved me as it looks like the kind of two weeks that can change a life. Look forward to more news now she is back on our shores.
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