The Importance of Seeing Art

Above: Caixa Forum, Madrid, Spain.

In my life, I have been very fortunate to see a number of master pieces up close and personal, one might ask why is it important to see art in the flesh? The main reason to view artwork personally is for the experience of seeing the world through different eyes. Aristotle once said, "the aim of art is to represent not the outward appearance of things, but their inward significance". The experience of seeing artwork can be up lifting, inspiring, and often thought provoking. For artists and art enthusiasts you can also uncover techniques by viewing work in person; often times there are many subtleties within the piece to be discovered. Nuances in colour, as well as brush strokes are often lost when a painting is reproduced, in a book for instance. Also, I am often surprised by the scale of many iconic works. A prime example of this is Leonardo Divinci’s Mona Lisa (also known as La Gioconda) because of the paintings notoriety, one assumes the piece is larger than it really is. In life the Mona Lisa is actually quite small, with dimensions of 20 7/8 x 30". On the opposite end of the spectrum Picasso’s Guernica, is shockingly large and it's massive scale is both awe inspiring and extremely moving in person.

In the list below I have outlined some museums I have been fortunate enough to visit and would highly recommend. Get out there and see art, on your next vacation or in your own community at local museums, galleries, or artist run centres.

Lisa's Picks
Musée de l'Orangerie- is an art gallery of impressionist and post-impressionist paintings located on the Place de la Concorde in Paris. The high light of this museum are the massive panels of Monet’s water lilies that were inspired by his own garden. http://www.musee-orangerie.fr/

Museo Reina Sofia- If you are ever in Madrid, Museo Reina Sofia features Picasso’s Guernica. The massive painting is a must see. This enormous piece is very moving and was painted in response to the bombing of Guernica, in the Basque Country of Spain.

Caixa Forum- This relatively new facility in the heart of Madrid, features rotating post modern art exhibitions and the dynamic architecture is amazing. Designed by Herzog & de Meuron the exterior of the building in collaboration with French botanist Patrick Blanc integrates living plants juxtaposed against a rusted sheet metal exterior (pictured above).

National Gallery of Canada- Closer to home, if you are in the Ottawa area check out our own national treasures. The National Gallery of Canada features an excellent collection from artists from the Group of Seven.

Musee D’Orsay- Located in Paris, the museum holds mainly French art including paintings, sculptures, furniture, and photography, Musee d’Orsay is best known for its extensive collection of impressionist and post-impressionist masterpieces (the largest in the world) by such painters such as Monet, Manet, Degas, Renoir, Cézanne, Seurat, Gauguin and Van Gogh.
Musée d'Orsay: Overview


Above Picasso's, Guernica, oil on canvas, 776 x 349 cm, 1937

My Time in Farrera

This blog entry is a continuation of my painting diaries. As I have mentioned before in 2008, I was fortunate enough to work as an artist in residence in Spain. While working at the Centre D’Art i Natura I encountered some of the most challenging days of my life both personally and artistically. The art centre is located in a remote village high a top the Spanish Pyrenees. There was not too much in this tiny village; no store, no café, or public transport. My days began with a self catered breakfast and the ritual of logging on to my computer selecting music, pouring fresh water and if weather permitted, opening the large glass patio doors of my studio. The studio was beautiful, featuring a long wall of exposed rock wall. The space was unheated, with a tap for water and amazingly there was also a small natural spring that jutted out of the base of rocks. The opposite wall of the studio, there were glass patio doors that opened on to a large deck. This all glass wall allowed for an abundance of natural light. After working in such a grand space, the Spanish studio is the template for the studio I hope to build one day.

I signed up for a seven week residency at the art centre. The days were long without interruption, with very little contact with others. In all honesty after the first week I wasn’t sure if I had it in me. I was intensely lonely at the beginning. After all the preparation for the trip; working hard, going away parties, as well as visiting with family and friends, the quiet and stillness of the mountain was almost unsettling. To battle the isolation, all I could do was work and that is what I did. I worked fast and furious, taking breaks only to eat and take walks. When I wanted time away from the studio, I would hike down the mountain paths, my main routes were two to three hour hikes. Even with large breaks during the day, I still worked any where from 6- 8 hours in the studio. Dinner was served at 9 pm, many days it was the one time of day I would speak to someone. As the art centre was very quiet in the spring with few residents, mainly visiting on weekends from Barcelona. Without the distractions of regular life; coffee with friends, maintaining a household, and running errands, time was in abundance.

The result of this experience, although at times difficult was extremely rewarding. I emerged from my time on the mountain confident and armed with an entire body of new work. The intense studio time allowed me to complete a series of works I began back in Canada. Before the residency I had the seeds of a new idea; the integration of text into my work. The time afforded to me during the residency allowed for me to develop this new idea completely, but by the end of the seven weeks I was completely tapped out creativity.

My time in Farrera also taught me a few things about discipline and I honed my work ethic. Before this experience I didn’t know I could work for long periods in the studio. During this time I developed rhythms in my studio practice. I worked on multiple pieces; while one piece was drying another was ready to go. I would sketch write, and work on unrelated side projects when I needed a change of pace. This way of working that I took away from the experience and are the methods use in my studio to this day.