Rothko painting defaced by vandal

So,
I just happened to visit the Tate Modern today.  I came in near the Turbine gallery entrance and heard and then saw the flashmob style performance art going on in there. I watched that for quite a while. They seemed like swarming bees to me.

I then decided to go and visit the paintings.  I'd been looking around for about 20 minutes when the alarm went off and I thought it was very odd for a place like the Tate to have a fire drill.  We swarmed toward the escalators but as we arrived at the top, an attendant switched them off and ushered us back towards a small fire exit door.   But there were so many people and I was feeling a bit panicky at the thought of being cramped in a small space with so many people so I sat down on a bench.  Us all being a cultured lot, there didn't seem to be any pushing and shoving.  Before I could get through this fire exit door I was ushered back toward the escalator by the same attendant. So we walked down the escalator and up through the turbine gallery and out into the fresh air. 

After a little while the performance artists continued their crazy little performance, humming and buzzing around and drifted off around the corner to the riverside entrance of the Tate, which probably gave the visitors something interesting to look at whilst waiting for the gallery to reopen.

I didn't stay long as I wasn't sure how long it was going to be closed for.

I have just googled it, and discovered some idiot vandalised a Rothko.  Something about yellowism.

Tim Wright's photo of the vandalism.

The words say Vladimir Umanets (Anagram: I'm true vandalism) A potential piece of Yellowism.

I'm afraid to say that this is probably the work of some London based art students who have thought, as we all have from time to time, of wanting to create a new -ism and thought this was the way to go about it.

Well I have read through as much of their website as I care to and it just seems a load of b@llocks to me. I don't think it is right to destroy someone else's creation like this.

I don't think they have much substance to their claims for another -ism, whether this is a massive mocking of the art world or not.

And well done to the staff at the Tate Modern who got us all out calmly and efficiently!

Books

The more media a painting appears in, the more essential it becomes to the wider cultural conversation. The successful modern painter aims for penetration across the media.

My quote rewritten properly by A.D.Lutey.

Doctor Envy

It's been a while since I last posted, I guess I have just been busy, I would have loved to have written more about what I've been up to. Perhaps at some point I can go back and fill in the gaps.  Anyway here goes:

I have been visiting the dentist, doctors, hospitals, opticians, and various other health professionals quite frequently lately.  The frequency of the visits seems to increase relatively to me and my family ageing!

 

All these services are provided free to families on a low income, and I fit into that bracket at the moment.  So I can't even sit at the dentist and think, some of my taxes are going to pay your wages.  It gets me down sometimes as they are all doing the most amazing jobs (I know they are getting paid and have a much better lifestyle than the one I have). They have studied for years and are working hard to earn their money and I come along and answer "Artist" when asked my profession.  Not even "Graphic Designer"! I wonder if they pity me or hold strong political views about my type of family being a waste of space.

 

I was reasonably clever at school, I might have been able to be an optician or teacher if I was so inclined, but I always wanted to be an artist as far back as I can remember existing.  But sometimes I feel so useless and don't get a feeling of true worthiness and job satisfaction.  I want to be helping people feel better like a doctor, or bringing joy to peoples lives.

I then have to reason with myself.  I THINK about what brings joy into my life and many people I know.  So many people enjoy books, wear fashion, love music, love comedy because of the joy they all bring. When a person walks into a gallery just one out of many paintings might catch their eye, as art is so subjective.  But it gives them something. And it is important. And they may well choose to take that picture home with them.

 
I feel there is a lot of nastiness and jealously thrown in the direction of people like me.  People that have a 'proper' jobs can, and some do, really show their resentment towards me.  What they don't realise, is quite how much I DO work.  How I work odd hours? Or have trouble sleeping sometimes just thinking up new things like a lunatic? I am certainly not idle in any respect.  Trying to figure out how I can get from where I am now to where 'those' people are. They certainly did not give up.  They worked very hard. 

When I am feeling negative I like to read David Hockney's books, which give me a lot of confidence.   Now there is a man who has constantly 'played' all his life and is so well known and respected for his art.  He has no doubt made other people a lot of money too.  So many people adore his work.  What would the world have been like if he had become an optician?

My favourite Hockney book so far

 

I can't wait for the day that I start contributing and paying taxes towards the wages of the wonderful people in the public sector. (The goody ones, not the baddies!)  But this may take some time, with the kids still at home.  I keep trying to not get distracted and focus on the main goal. But it is going to get a lot harder in the next few years for people like me.  It's a shame it has to be such a fight.  If we have a gift, we need to use it, whichever profession it leads us to.

 

My first book published with Lulu

Got my first book published through Lulu.com. It is a children's book full of colour pictures of my silk illustrations and is now available to buy through Amazon.co.uk too.