Dimensions 36"x36"
Medium: Oil, charcoal and pigment pens on panel
I do not believe I have ever created an artwork that is the summation of my artistic goals better than this painting (I say that now, but may change my mind in a month!). This larger piece is the paradigm shift in art that I have been slowly working toward. It is painting my attitude toward society at large. I hate overt masculinity and sexism more than anything. Though sketching and ideation development went on for a couple years, the final production only took 2 months of part time painting (I'm a full-time stay at home father).
With this painting:
-It will challenge the present and generations to come
-The painting will test the courage of galleries and curators
-Pisses artists off
To further clarify my assertions, I refer to my preliminary sketches and artwork. The challenge to the present and further generation lies in the censorship of my art on social networking media. Fat men have breasts, there is but a hair's difference between the appearance of a man with developed breasts and a woman. A stroll down any beach in the summertime, virtually anywhere in the world, reveals a male mammary exhibition that should have any red-blooded man drooling at the mouth. Double DDs and beyond sit upon our most burly of menfolk once unclothed. Why then do my sketches and paintings cause such uneasiness amongst the viewing public and their moderators? It seems to be the utter definition of absurdity. Could this image ever be made public for ALL to see? Should we then force men with huge tits to "cover up" while in public? It is at odds with my own Pessimist art movement to create art for the sake of being controversial. If there is not a personal expression of the artist in the work, it is simply not "fine art". It will be graphic design, crafts, assembled garbage or decoration. So "controversy" is not the aim of this painting.
The courage of galleries, curators and online media must be significantly observed, as it will be almost comical to see how the experience unfolds. I will present it to all, as if it were Van Gogh's Sunflowers. Excuses will be front and center from them. Galleries may not believe that the style is "for their clientele", or it is not to their "caliber" of work. The reality is, the non-artist public does not like almost all contemporary art. But they will look at this piece. I haven't been around the world of fine art as long as some, but I understand the game. It is this disconnect between the viewing public and the art community that initially propelled my re-emerging into fine art in 2007. To state it bluntly, people do not need to be told what they like or do not like....it is inherent to us all.
Some fellow artists will have problems with the painting. It is virtually free of the trends. It is not assembled garbage or scribbles and splatter, there was no silk screen involved and I do not give a shit about having graffiti "street cred". There is a herd mentality amongst many of the "open-minded" libertine artists, it is no different from greater society. They will mostly focus on and work within a narrow confine of what has been presented to them previously. To some artists, the painting will lack of technique or realism, or for others it doesn't have enough abstract "painterly" style, etc, etc....most will not be content....mission accomplished.....I'm not going to follow your trends.
For those that do get it..... I'll see you aboard ship, until then, man ye cannons my shipmates!
