Saturday, July 24, 2021

Yashimoto Nar and Tomoo Gokita at the Dallas Contemporary

We went to the Dallas Contemporary which has never been a disappointment and it's free—donations accepted. (It's small, so if you go, add something else to your itinerary.) Here are a few images from two of the artists I liked.

Yashimoto Nar

From this artist I prefer the more fine art paintings like the one just below. To me, they are more interesting than the cartoons. Though, they too have their place.








Click here to learn more about the artist Yashimoto Nara.

Next up...

Tomoo Gokita

This artist is known for his grayscale paintings. None of which we saw in the museum. When I looked him up, I discovered I prefer his color work. In fact, the style of these paintings are something I might put in my home...depending on the subject matter.












Sunday, July 18, 2021

Geometric and MADI Museum

Did you know geometric art and MADI is a movement? Neither did I, they don't cover it in art history. And so, the Museum of Geometric and MADI art in Dallas taught us something new.





MADI is an "international art movement focusing on geometric shapes that spill out of the traditional frame, and articulated mobile structures, MADI artists refuse to make the object representative. Instead, the focus is on the object and the colors themselves." –GeometricMadiMuseum.org

"In August of 1946, Carmelo Arden Quin read to the public the MADI Manifesto which he had written, and which launched the MADI movement."


Above: Arden Quin
Above: Oscar D'Amico 1923-2003
As a young man D'Amico studied architecture, philosophy and painted murals on the side. Soon he began working as a set designer for Orson Wells in Hollywood and others in the Italian movie industry.
Above: Yaacov Agam 1928-NA Titled "Sun and Moon Intimacy"
Received training at the Bauhaus, and had his first one man show in Paris 1953 where he still lives today.





Above: Ettore Le Donne 1950–NA









Above: Jan Maarten Voskuil 1964–NA,  Titled "There is no Point in Orange."

"Based on the premise formulated by De Stijl and Theo Van Doesburn that a work of art refers only to itself, Voskuil's abstract, wonkily geometric paintings-cum-sculptures are full of rigor and humor. His works are oriented on the circle and rectangle, whose forms he alters and distorts using mathematical principles."

Above: Auguste Herbin 1882-1960
One of the most important geometric artists of the 20th century. Herbin developed his "alphabet plastique," where forms and colors stand for letters, and greatly influenced several generations of geometric painters.