Fluidity of Volumes / Coral Heads
( A series of paintings depicting the alchemical mix of Nietzsche's Apollonian and Dionysian
In 1947, Jackson Pollock developed the ultimate in abstract expressionism, called the drip method. He poured, splashed, and dribbled paint on canvases that were on the floor as he swung the paint from above. To many, this was the ultimate insult to painting and the end of any Apollonian content in his art. While some critics reacted with disgust, many were more than favorable, and an article in Life magazine solidified Pollack's meteoric rise in the art world, with these paintings selling for higher and higher prices.
While the work may have represented many things, the abandonment of any convention or classical aspect of art or beauty, molecular or atomic structure, they leave a lasting impression on yours truly, included. For most of my adult life, I have always regarded Pollack as a nobody with little or no talent. What I had missed is that his work represents the ultimate in Dionysian abandonism...and at least in my mind, lacks any hint of Apollinian beauty or aesthetics, which makes it no more than indigestion for me and many others.
In my latest series of paintings presented here, for the first time, I will be combining the Dionysian orgy of paint with the Apollinian female form to present a new look at not only what Pollack should have been doing, but a better description of what Salvador Dali was trying to depict in his Nuclear Mystical period.
Much of my work has tried to delve into the fluid nature of our bodies and life. Here I have meticulously painted every drip, every fluid extension of self, every ecstasy of form, with brush in hand. No splashes, no drips, no bullshit.
Here is the combination of both Dionysian and Apollinian beauty, in fluid form, abstract and realist, for your eyes and thought.
Dionysian - Pollack
Apollinian - Bougeureau
Coral Heads
n my previous series of paintings, Volumetric Fluid Bodies, I tried to not only evolve Dali's Nuclear Mystical content but to pictorialize Nietzsche's concept of perfect art, art that embodies both the Dionysian and the Apollonian. Here in the Fluidity series, I have taken these concepts even further by actually submerging my subjects and instilling in them the brilliant and convulsive life of the reef.
Dali's nuclear mystical depictions consisted of molecular patterns and rhinoceros horns, neither of which accurately describes the space between atoms nor the fluidity of matter. As science provides us with more information about the true nature, we as artists are able to convey the concepts more accurately and allow the viewer to share the knowledge.
Since our atoms are busy in their vibrations separated from each other by vast amounts of space and only our senses and perspective of size makes us seem solid, it is not hard to imagine that as entities in the world we have a certain flow, a flow that allows air to travel through our system....were we able to perceive size in this world we would see we are more like masses of particles, like smoke, that move as a single entity. My best way of visualizing this is to contemplate a school of fish that moves as one. This example best allows you to understand the true nature of our bodies and the flow that occurs within us. It is well known that human beings and almost all living things consist of approximately 60% water, with our hearts and brains consisting of nearly 75%. With this in mind, the concept of flow should be easier to grasp.
As with most of my work, this series was conceptualized on the computer, modeled, and rendered in C4D utilizing Arnold's unique volume textures applied to a female bust that has been volume modeled to have coral for hair.
These paintings relay the powerful message of how fluid our bodies and lives are and bring the concept of the complexity of the reef into the consciousness of our everyday lives. The parallels are strong.
All three of these paintings are available as 3D Holographic Lenticulars
Dali'Assumpta Corpuscularia Lapislazulina
Ever since becoming aware of Dali's Nuclear Mystical works in the early 70's, I have thought the best visualization of the concept of our atomic structure would be observed as a school of fish. Not only do our atoms move as a single body, but by our nature, they have a certain flow....as seen by the fish here.
