20 years of clutter

I have finished the main canvas in my newest abstract: "20 Years of Clutter". Some, who like my representational art, have wondered why I am branching out into abstract art. (Maybe I should give myself a pseudonym, and paint a whole different line of paintings as "Marcel" or "Etienne" or some such. NOT!)

The reason is actually simple. I have resisted the world of modern art for over 40 years. In college, I felt that I didn't "understand" abstract art, and so it was easy to kind of back away from and sneer gently at the whole subject. After all, wasn't it a case of the Emperor's new clothes — a vast gag on the art-buying public?

Well, I have to say that in some cases I feel that it has been so, and to the ruination of the artist. Too many artists, producing a line of abstractions that "caught on" and were selling, were then stampeded into producing more of the same (as that sold). Art became a business.

But you see, an artist isn't really a business-man. You could say that the artist thinks in futures. He (or she) is playing with the fabric of reality, using the tools available.

In the case of "abstract art", the visual artist is simply playing with the fundamental components of a visual presentation: line, shape, color, composition. So I thought, "Why, I can do that." And perhaps in the process, I'll learn things that will make my future art, whether it be realistic or abstract or something in-between, stronger. Do you see?

L. Ron Hubbard, founder of Scientology, and himself an artist in many fields (although primarily known as a writer) has some interesting essays on art. I urge you to read them.