Jagged edge: A Phrase In Picture

                                                                Jagged Edge


Life is full of edges. There are times we choose the edge to go over. There are times circumstances makes the choice for us. There are other times when we just can't say how or why but the point is, life is full of edges

Rough Around The Edges

There are times things in life don't come as smoothly as we would want them to.
There are times even after they come that they are rough around the edges.
This are times when we have to smooth them our ourselves.
The satisfaction we then get is not just that they came,
But that as they didn't come as we expected,
We did something about it.
 Jagged edge.

Highway: Life's way

highway, life's way
hi, this is an article on this piece but we will still do the interview.
The artwork highway is special in many ways. As you can see it looks like there is something amiss(the truth is with the way art is you might even notice it as such). This was not how the finished work was at first. I was satisfied with it when i loafed around and it conjured up out of the paint program. But the next time i tried to open it i found that it had a problem when i was saving it hence 'corrupting' it. But i had already christened it highway and as i pondered on what to do with it...whether to delete it forever or not it kind of struck me how apt the name and what happened to the art work coincided to underscore what life is all about (about art).
Life is like a highway and smooth sailing is not necessarily defined by there being no challenges on the way but by how we still 'rule' as it were over them. This is a short piece on the highway. Thanks for the time taken to read through.

Highway

HighWay

Hi,
Today we will be doing just the posting of our latest artwork and may be do the interview next week. Thanks.
The name of the art work is Highway. One of these days we'll start getting responses and another breaking news is that i signed up on Fanbox! And one of the blogs is about this blog. I don't just want to be repeating everything i say here...there...i will be adding one or two things.

There is something extremely unique about this art work but I'll post it first for you to view and we'll talk about it later.

Highway

                                                       

The Interview

 The interview is back. Today it is on the latest art work that has just been posted.
how are you doing today?
Fine.
Great Britannia...that is an interesting title...?
Yes it is.
How come the name Great Britannia?
The first thing is that at some point the picture looked like a lady sitting on a throne... a queen perhaps.
What is the implication of that name...is it talking about past glories?
Good question...now the name would seem to point to the past in terms of past glories but in actual fact it is talking about the future i.e. the hope of the future in the light of a past that was glorious...so to speak. There was a time the British empire arguably ruled the world. What the art work reflects is that time of greatness with regards to a future hope of coming greatness.

                                                 Great Britannia

What about the present.....does it not then imply that the present is not filled with as much hope or is not as rosy as one would want it to be?
True...but the thing with the present is that it doesn't it is in the eyes of the beholder.....things may not really be as bad now and they might even be swell but the future should always paint a picture that is brighter than the present...no matter how beautiful the present is now.
So the artwork doesn't necessarily say that the present is gloomy?
Exactly...it points to a better tomorrow without casting any shadow on today...it is all about hope and betterment...that is the essence of Great Britannia.
Let's talk about the colors.....is there a particular reason for the colors?
Not really...but the thing is the colors do speak even when you don't want them to.
What are they saying?
It depends on what the viewer is hearing...it is very subjective....what you hear may not be what I'm hearing... this is why i don't what to say anything that will distort the purity of your own interpretation.
Thank you.
Thank you.(end of interview)

NB...I kind of like how this blog is shaping up. I never thought I would have gone this far with it but I think i might just stick to i as a hobby of sorts...we still need more viewership though. But i love it...it's relaxing.

The Good Ol' Days

There was a time i posted at least once a week..those were the days. Today we want to post a new art work. I want to see if we can get back on track....the interview, an article or two and the wrap up. The artwork of today is apt...i christened it Great Britannia. There was a time they ruled everything they saw...at least as much as the other powers that be allowed. Great Britannia doesn't talk about the past but actually points to the future. It talks about hope and restoration but more of this later. Today we just want to do the uploading.

                                              Great Britannia

first upload

hi, I finally got one of our art works uploaded on freemarket. The first to be is the error artwork and the last time i checked. it had about seven views but no downloads yet.....price is at $1.

Quick Update

Just been up at Freemarket.....i don't think they have or made room for the kind or graphics I want to upload but we will just have to find a way....

A RUSHING WAVE

It is going to be a beautiful September month! Don't ask where i've been all this while.....my art is loaf-art...haven't had much time to loaf lately. But the good news is that last month was filled with music! I didn't do much with my last art posting.....it talks about 2the connection between the old and the new. It was the gramophone that bridged the divide and changed the way music was distributed hence appreciated forever. Without the gramophone there would be no ipod...think about that.

                                                                      gramophone

There are so many things we can say about it but that will be for another time.
I just had this idea....i want to put up all the art works we have posted here on freelancer (being a member). They have this new addition which seems to be really cool. It is like a market where members buy and sell from each other. I want to see what the response would be like and i will keep you posted on how they are faring......that would add to the reasons why i have to remember my loaf-art. they call is freemarket.

Hi there!

just popped in to say hi.....been so occupied that i have not had much time to loaf....so no loaf art or time to do the interview...but I'm still around and remember that there is still music in the air....sing.

Music is in the air

This week has been beautiful and I've been singing all through. Today I want to post an art work that mirrors the moment and my wish for those who don't feel like dancing is that they choose to smile because in the end life is about choices.

                                                              gramophone
Life is music and one of the instruments that ushered in music into the modern era is the good old gramophone.There is a lot to be said about this and we will try to as we find time. But till then keep on singing.

The error Interview

Hi....did you create this art work by ...mistake?
Not really...but come to think of it...all of my loaf art has been by mistake as it were because i have never really set out to do anything.

How do you mean?
That is one of the thing about the art....it started by me just playing around the Paint program (just doodling about ) and then it suddenly started taking form and shape......at that point of consciousness, i followed after the form it took and I've never stopped.

So was it the same way with error?
Yes...basically the same way..

                                                     error

What made you to give it the name error?
 It really looked like a computer error to me (at some point in  time).

You didn't use your primary colors this time around....
Yes....that added to the error i.e. the name.

Does this picture say more to you than it looking like a computer error?
Not just to me but as an artwork that aims at reflecting  life, experience has shown that at times lovely things have come out of mistakes and even when they are not so lovely....they have at times turned out to be preferable even though they were not planned.

When did it stop being a mistake?
I don't know exactly...


But looking at it closely...it seemed to have definite...even human forms...
That is you...the viewer creating the forms...to you they look human, to another they might look like something else...maybe aliens...that is just one of the perks of abstract art.

Thank you.
Thank you.

LOADING ERROR

Loading error (the art work) is becoming a major issue. But maybe this is a good opportunity that we can use to talk about the art work. Error seems to be an apt name for it. Mistakes can become master strokes that sets apart one work of art from the rest. Art doesn't necessarily have to be deliberate -this s one good reason why art can't be boxed in. Anything can become art and art can be anything. So art is tied to just one word....consciousness. This is the key word that defines art. Once a person becomes conscious of the art value or sense of an object or an observation, that thing at that point in time becomes art.

 

                                                                   error....
                                                     
An error can lead to art...even a masterpiece. This also reflects in life when a wrong turn as it were leads you to the right place and with hindsight we begin to appreciate those errors. Well we have finally uploaded error, till next time...enjoy.

BETTER LATE THAN NEVER

We have gone well into this week and we would have posted this the Monday gone by but experienced a few glitches.
This week's artwork has two main points of interests. The first is the name and the second is the work itself. Remember that this is still on my Loaf-art theme i.e. artworks based entirely on the Microsoft Paint program.
The title of this week's piece is error and we might end up spending the rest of this week and the bette part of next week on it.
The Interview segment will come up with one or two related articles.
Another interesting thing of note is that we are contemplating doing a review of art outside our Loaf-art....picking on something that may not be called art and finding the art in them. It may cover themes or issues and the interesting thing about this is us bringing out or declaring the art in them....it's something we are still looking into but more on this later. But for now, we are only posting the art work for the week  for you enjoyment...so enjoy.

NB....still having problems uploading error...maybe it has something to do with the name.......have to resolve this...and do it later...till then.

Cosmopolitan Interview Continued - the open Lines

Now you used definite shapes or completely closed shapes most of the times but there were time you used open lines....why?
Very good question, the whole shapes represents individual...individual with roots elsewhere who having detached themselves from those roots and coming to the city began attaching themselves to the sub-culture of the cosmopolitan life. This is why the shapes overlaps in some placing in varying degrees.....

                                                  cosmopolitan



But the open lines represents individuals who are seeming rootless. That is they had no previous roots as it were..

Are you saying such people really exists...born without roots?
Speaking abstractly..yes. There are people who will just tell you that they are from the very cosmopolitan city that everybody seems to have found there way to and this people when you look at them are not really traditionally from that city. But they have become so dis-entangled from the past and all there previous roots and at the same time become so entangled in that city life that they have become the true indigenous of that city. They are the open lines....the true cosmopolitan and people whom the rest are turning into even subconsciously. And because they are so open they are the ones who represent the adhesive factor that binds all the various peoples and differences together. They have access limited by the limitations of the individuals they interact with and not by anything that has to do with them. They are the ones that are the most opened minded, the ones that show consummate intelligence in their ability to entertain every other notion, culture or belief without necessarily taken to any but tolerating all.

So these open lines represents the adhesive that glues cosmopolitanism together...they are not much because unlike the other shapes it's as if you can count them...
Very true and they don't need to be that much because in reality they are not that much especially when you compare them with the other types of individualities that are represented in a cosmopolitan culture. Like i said before they are what others are sub-consciously aspiring to be as they get more and more into the city life.

 Thank you.
You are welcome.

The Cosmopolitan Interview

Your art work for this week is rather interesting....i read your article and what i would like us to start with is why you chose the name cosmopolitan for this work.
I was inspired really and the name invokes an aspect of city life that i didn't really highlight in my other art work of the same title i.e. city life.
And what other aspect is that?
City Life talked about how i city struggles against staying alive especially as it grows and all the vices of growth begins to set it. It is more or less an artwork depicting a loosing battle with the dirt and all show casing gradual systemic failure. But Cosmopolitan looks at the vibrant side of city life as it has to do with the mixing of peoples and cultures and development causes more people to troop in, dis-entangling and dis-engaging themselves from where they were coming from and integrating and engaging with the new environment they have adopted.
So while one talks about death as it were the other talks about life...like opposites...right?
Exactly.
But why didn't you depict both on the same artwork?
Good question, i believe the themes of death and life are just too massive to use one canvass or artwork to deal with. Again, since the themes have to do with the city, i felt as cities are a product of expansion and contraction that different artworks for both aspects is justified.
You still stuck to your primary colors...
In more ways than one.
The shapes didn't follow the traditional....
True but it had some traditional...in fact more of the traditional squares and all but it then included oblong curvatures and this was 'deliberate' because Cities normally develop from single homogeneous to multi-ethnic and then mixed cultures as the go along the cosmopolitan path.

Cosmopolitan (article)

Defining the word cosmopolitan from the artistic point of view could be a handful. This is my own attempt.
We already know that the world is getting more cosmopolitan by the day especially as the reality of the term global village comes to bear on us.
Cities are striving to be more cosmopolitan as they add on in years and as they expand. Now not every city is cosmopolitan but as they expand and people keep on trooping in from the nooks and crannies....they move towards cosmopolitanism.
That is the underlying current that defines the cosmopolitan city i.e. people. And it is not just people but a melting pot of diverseness. The more diverse they are, the more cosmopolitan that city tends to be.

                                                       cosmopolitan
                                                    
And looking at the art-work, cosmopolitanism is an embedding of two "extensialisms". The first extension we are going to call dis-engagement and the second we are going to call engagement.
These two distinct functions has to take place before cosmopolitanism within a city can be achieved. This is simply because cities are made up of individual entities. But these entities usually have roots outside of the city. So they first of all have to dis-engage from those roots before they can now engage into the new environment and culture of city life. The greater the degree of dis-engagement, the greater the degree of engagement. The two must work in pari pasu (sorry i got carried away...hand in hand).
The inter-play of  dis-engagement and engagement and it building up till it reaches a critical mass that births cosmopolitan cities.
An interesting point of note here is that the more cosmopolitan  a city become the less xenophobic that city (i.e. as a single organism) becomes. This is why the art work is an interplay of colors representing a mixture of various individualities within the context of their native roots and them letting go of issues that ties them down to those roots as the move on to fully engage in true cosmopolitanism.

NB There is still much to be said about this...may be we might just extend to next week.

New week - getting my groove on

Hi there, i'm still a bit groggy following the period i was temporarily 'laid off' but  we just have to knuckle down and get on with it.
This week we will hopefully have the full compliment of the interview, the new art work to be posted and one or two other write-ups.
Today we want to start by loading and posting the art work for the week. The title of this piece is cosmopolitan and maybe you should do me the service of telling me why i gave it such a title.

                                                   cosmopolitan


I am also looking forward to the day where i would feature a work that is not mine. The work will have to be with Microsoft Paint program and your specs should be manageable (go for the small and simple).

The defense

I chose the drum to depict Life because the drum in itself paints a picture of latent energy. It is an energy that has been stored up and the thing with it is that once you strike it, it gives out that energy.
Now is that not what life with all its bustling energy is all about?

                                                                  The Standing Conga
                                                        
The standing conga(which i think is a better name for this work of art) implies that life is on its toes. That is, it is very ready to act. Now some might pick the guitar (because of it strings) to depict life but i think it is a trifle too romantic (except for the electric rock guitar).
And the keyboard too seems a bit too controlled for my liking. It is only the key you strike that will give you a definite sound.
Beyond this we must touch on how a title does the uncanny act of limiting the art and in a way boxing the viewer in to only look at it within the confines of the name. So even if the name is part of the art and indeed even more so than the canvass i.e. to some, it could be a real limiting factor as it concerns appreciating the art.
Life is beautiful and it is art.

Life's Drum

Life speaks. Life doesn't just speaks, it sings, it drums. And the art work for this week depicts life as an instrument. If life was an instrument what will it be to you?
                                                    

                                                        The Standing Conga
In my own case i used the conga drum to represent life as a musical instrument. Now this art work goes beyond my own nomenclature. Don't allow it to limit your own sense of perception. There is more to this than meets my own eye.
But still on the theme of using a musical instrument to depict life, there are various reasons why i chose the conga and hopefully in my next posting i will attempt to make a credible defense.

The Interview

Hi?
hi.

It's been quite some time now?
Well, i've been here and there; doing this and that.

The art work you posted is very interesting indeed...
Yea.. i particularly like the name.

The Box?
Yes.

Why that name?
Because it looks like a...box.


                                   Box

But it also looks like other things..like a drum...
That is the beauty of art..it can be many things and that is why the name is so apt. You can get many things from a box. A box is meant to store things, at times they are practical or flimsy but they serve one purpose or the other...as it tickles our fancy.

So what does the work tell you?
Many things...but its not what it tells me but what it says to the person that looks at it. To that person it becomes art i.e. just saying what it means to you is art in itself...get it?

I...think so...let's continue another time..OK?

NHURU!!!! We are back!

At last gmail resolved my accessibility issue and i can now access my blogger account. I used my gmail password to create this account and they forgot to tell me that i won't be able to access it if anything untoward develops between me and gmail. I bet many don't know about this.
But the good news is that we are back on track and i miss my box, miart, my Paint and everything else. Can't wait to get started (which will hopefully be later this week).
We are still going to have our interview and a write up or two on art, just stay tuned and if you have started following this blog, feel free to contribute. Thanks

New Art Work Post - B

Hi, all we are going to do today is to try and load up the Art Work. Thinking of posting just one for the week and to keep everything simple and sharp. We might talk about it in the next posting but feel free to add your comments now.
I love this work especially because of its symmetry, look and name. It is simply titled Box and please take note of the word simply.

                                                         Box

We'll do the discussions later but feel free to post even now.

Rounding Up The Week And Previewing The Next.

hi,
This week we posted two Art Works; Anotherlifespace and Bigben. We talked about them and also talked about the Canvass as part of the Art  Work and The Art of Art Critique and some of the things it does to us.
I ran out of questions for The Interview so i don't think i will be continuing with it.
But next week is going to be interesting (though i don't yet have a clue what I'll be posting up). There will  be the usual interview segment concerning the particular Art Work, a bit on the Microsoft Paint program, and one or tow topical Art themes.
All in all, it would be interesting. See you most possibly on Monday.

NB we have now posted about three Art Works (City life, Anotherlifespace and Bigben) and it is gradually building up without showing any sign of letting up because the Art Works in the kitty are increasing.....

The Canvass as art

hi, the interview will continue another time. Today we want to look at the canvass as a part of the art in Loaf-art.
The canvass is Microsoft Paint program (Start/program/accessories/paint). In this case it is part of the art because it won't be loaf-art if it isn't. Every art work that we will be displaying here would be on the canvass so it is very well part of the art and since this is the case.
The limitation of the paint program works for it here because it means the artist has got to master those limitations so much so that he/she is able to produce an art work that is still meaningful.

                          Bigben

  (I wonder what your thoughts are on these...)             
                                   
                                                    Anotherlifespace


The Canvass is an integral part of the Art work and it is really fun if you decide to get into it(as you can see, i want to win converts here).  And art is such that everything involved in that art becomes part and parcel of it, accentuating the various inflections that individualistic interpretation brings (big words)

NB the interview might be concluded on Saturday.

The Interview Continues

I hope you liked the trick....i.e. did you even notice it? Well...nevermind.

What about Anotherlifespace...why the combination of three words?

                                                           Anotherlifespace


Each word on its own has a right to be in that piece..'Another' has full representation in that you can see that it is like another  galactic system or another collection of planets and worlds. This too gives the 'life' credence and credibility because another world implies other forms of Life. 'Space' too is well represented in the art work because it can be taken as meaning either Space (as in outer-space) or space as in distance between two objects. This is aside from the connection it has with bigben when it has to do with time. 

Do you believe that their is life in other...worlds?
If you call it worlds...then logic demands that their should be. The thing is we tend to paint life 'forms' by our own imaginations ans standards.

Care to elaborate on that?
Not really.

Your worlds...sorry, the art work.. the palnets seem to connect..?
That is the point...who says they shouldn't or why must they look like the things we already know....can i take a break.....talk to you later.
 

The Art Of Art Critique And The Interveiw

Hi,
The thing with art is that you can never really be short of words when it comes to interpreting it. This is why anyone can Critique art. It is just a matter of verbalizing your appreciation or otherwise of the art work.
And the really seriuos can recieve some form of education because the art of art critique educates the person doing it.
This is because some subconscious things takes place. Your sense of observation is brought into play when it comes to being the art critique. You tend to notice things the more you concentrate on the art work. Concentration is one of the things too that you will develop when you become the art critique. Then logic as it has to do with putting two and two together is another thing that will kick in the moment you start forming an opinion within you as it has to do with the art of art critique.
Another very important thing that is developed is your sense of opinion. That is, you tend to become more independent minded as listen to the views of others regarding that same art work and you from your own opinion.
The education is complete when you begin to subconsciously apply all these virtues you developed as an art critique into other areas of your life.

The Interview Begins
You posted some two interesting pieces this week...
Yes, Anotherlifespace and Bigben.

                                                             Anotherlifespace

                                                                          Bigben

very interesting names indeed....and interesting art work as well...
                

Let's start with why you chose to post two loaf-art work for the week....
No reason in particular..but in a way they are both connected. 

Are you saying that Anotherlifespace and Bigben are connected?
Well the names are.


How so?
They both have to do with time and time has to do with space.


Why the name Bigben?
Good question......

                                                                       Bigben
The beautiful thing about names is that it comes about due to multiple reasons. Sometime during its point of creation it really looked like Bigben. But aside from that, the art is still all about space and filling up that space with colour. It has no emptiness..... this is time in its essence because time connotes a lack of emptiness and a period that is filled with one thing or the other.


But someone might look at it and think to call it something else?
True and that is the beauty of art...not image but perception. It is actually your perception that educates you and not the presentation, or image or what you are shown.


Why the emphasis on primary colours?
For this piece...contrast.

Next on schedule

hi, the next thing that will be coming up will be my world famous interview...it's going to be 'explosive' and it will be on the 12th (by then i would have found out why i named that piece of art Bigben). See you then.

The Art of Art Critique

Thank God its Monday!
And we are starting off with looking at how to critique art. This is to prepare you for the work you guys are about to do concerning the two art posts for the week (still haven't found a reason yet for naming that one Bigben). So i wold like to prepare your mind so that you will as they say tamper Justice with Mercy.
Now don't take anything i tell you serious here, especially as it has to do with becoming an art Critique or how to do it properly.
First of all, we'll divide it into two;the academic and the appreciative. The former has to do with you being the editor of Art for Times or you holding in chair in one university. This is where you look at a piece or art and you define it with references to the school it belongs, the era and time, the style etc To know this you will need a degree in the arts.
So let's move to the second. In this case, all you need to to be observant and inquisitive. Ask  the why, who , and what questions. Get the answer from the artist, from others and most importantly, create your own answers.
We would stop here for now.

Two new Paintart

They have unique names; Anotherlifespace and bigben. Bigben is not that unique for a name but the thing is looking at it now i just can't place why i called it bigben. I will get recall it...eventually.

                                                                  Anotherlifespace

Here is the second.

                                                                         Bigben

Now there are lots of things to say about these two and hopefully we'll be covering them this week.
 

NEW WEEK!

This is a new week and i will be posting two Paint art. The idea is to post them today and talk about them during the week.
The imaginary interview might also continue this week but the questions will relate more to the newly posted art.
We are also going to be looking at some things about art critique.
Hope you won't be bored to death.

The interview continues

City-life


How long have you being into this art form?
for as long as have stayed in front of the computer willing myself to work. It was borne out of escapism really. But at some point it became a hobby and a rather enjoyable one i must say.

Do you do abstracts as well?
They are mostly absentminded gibbirish. Paint (the program) doesn't really hold up well as a pencil or brush....the mouse is not that steady and at times I've used my finger tips on the laptop. So it is mainly abstract.

How large is your collection now?
it is increasing by the week and as long as i have the drive for this blog I'll continue to publish them through it.

the interview might end here.

City Life

I forgot to tell you the title of this piece. I titled it City Life.
The reason is not so far fetched with the street lamps and littered street.
And more than that it reflects a kind of decay that comes with the city. A decay that the authorities are constantly battling against.
It is as if a sentence of death was passed on the city the minute it was born and even though people keep on flooding in it still needs to be permanently kept in the emergency ward where issues like security, health, water, over crowding, litter are constantly battling the city.

Let's not go in too deep, here is an imaginary interview i held over this 'masterpiece'.


How did you come about this form of art?
well like i said before is was through loafing about with the system, i even call it loaf-art.

Are you saying you were just toying around with a computer program and City Life came about?

No i said that is how the art came about but in a way too City Life was not deliberate. I started without knowing how it would end or what i was going to do but as it started taking shape i kind of followed it through and that is how City Life came to be.

The interview will continue later but you are free to comment and critique the art. We will talk more on how you can go about this if you don't have a clue later. In fact let's forget about that....just say what you think.
i will be posting other loaf-art on this blog and all of them were done with Paint (the program you will find under Accessories from the start/programs tab).

hi, this blog is about my loafing hours in front of the computer. This is how the story goes.....one day i was in front of the computer doing nothing but just dabbling around. Then i found myself in the Paint program. I started toying with it and it suddenly began to take shape. This was how my very own art was formed. And one of the artwork is what i have just published.