The Art Monk - The Blog of Sandro Sebastian

 Before we get started, let's differentiate this one from the classic Ralph Ellison novel "Invisible Man" which is another fine work that I might do another post on at some point. I'm using the opening line of this post to mimic the opening line of that book by Ellison, in where he bothers to differentiate his title from the "Hollywood movie ectoplasm" or whatever he described it as.      I recently had a one day lengthy road trip and needed an audio book to keep me company on the drive. I listened to all of Wells' novel there and back, and was positively riveted the whole time. This is another one of those books, a classic work of literature that is a science fiction novel in genre. Though it doesn't carry any genre-fiction cliches or over the top, high concept plot lines with hyper contrived scenarios and explanations.      I'd always been curious about the book, as a general classic that seems like an important part of English language lit...

 Yet another classic entry, one of those books we all hear about, maybe even watch a movie adaptation or two, but never really pick up to read ourselves.     "Wait, is that that one where the guy washed up on a desert island and he's like, stranded for like, 20 years?"     "No, I think that's Robinson Crusoe. Gulliver's Travels is the one where he goes to that island of like, little people, and they tie him down.     "Ooooh yeah. I've heard of that."     Yeah, it's that one. Now, it was interesting to discover how that famous bit of the story, when Gulliver is on the island of Lilliput, with the small people, is actually only the opening bit to the whole thing. The first island he lands on is filled with the small people. After that adventure concludes, he moves onto another island with large people, like big enough to hold Gulliver in the palm of their hands. So the second island is the reverse of the first.   ...

 Another visit with an American legend, Mark Twain. I'd read this book before, and it recently popped back into my mind as I was thinking about the purpose of the arts and literature, and history. To feel engaged with the past, and feel a voice of a former time period reach through and reassure you in your present world, cheering you up in your current circumstance, you can really become nostalgic for a time period you were never part of.      The innocence of the late nineteenth century, in rural southern America (politely disregarding the malicious racism for a literary experience), I love Twain's unapologetic individuality. He's deliberately teasing our notion of what literature is supposed to do. The children's, magical world he describes is accurate to all generations of children, playing pretend. Acting as pirates, or playing cops and robbers, or having superstitious rituals and "voodoo" magic; that moment before you really learn how the world works, and...

 This is a 1936 noir and crime thriller starring the great Humphrey Bogart in his first major role that introduced him to audiences. It's based on a stage play by Robert E. Sherwood, and features the classic actors Leslie Howard and Bette Davis. The story was compact, fluid and tight, and there was never a moment of plot that wasn't saturated with some kind of dramatic tension that effortlessly handles you through the story. All of the things that we love about classic cinema that are lacking from today's popular culture content.     The story is about a series of strangers that get thrown together in a rural, secluded diner in the desert of Arizona. They are stranded there being held hostage by a notorious gangster by the name of Duke Mantee, (played to perfection by Humphrey Bogart. His edgy, gritty, "frustrated outlaw just on the verge of exploding" demeanor translated crystal clear on screen). Leslie Howard plays a wandering intellectual, with no more purpose ...

 The majority of my influences as an artist are definitely the greats of the past, whether they are European masters of Renaissance and Baroque, or an ancient empire of thinkers like the Egyptians or African sculptors. The arts in the west definitely take a sharp turn South after Picasso and Matisse, let's admit. Even if it might not be polite to say that, it's also not polite to make mediocre works of art and aggressively promote them in order to normalize your particular brand of ignorance, lowering the cultural standard, so you don't have to put in as much effort with your own work, even if it is all the rage these days.  So I guess we're even.     But this guy was an exception to the rule. Someone who decided that using influences like Ingres and Albrecht Duhrer are appropriate for a modern day artist. You don't have to follow the trend if the trend is overrated. He thought for himself with his figures, never yielding to the generic, one size fits all, are-y...

 While I've yet to delve into the larger expanded work, Vasari's lengthy description of the painters, sculptures and architects of the Renaissance, it was generous of someone out there to do a "highlight reel" of the major superstars in a condensed version for those of us art history nerds.      Consider this a "best of" compilation of Renaissance thinkers, or a "greatest hits" album. Leonardo, Michelangelo and Raphael are all given excerpts in this book, (which is not terribly long, about 160 pages,) that give glowing reviews of their work by Vasari himself. It was very inspiring to be reminded of the impact that one individual can have on the flow of history, and  how there are enough people in that contemporary society that understand the impact that some individuals will have on future generations and therefore deserve to be written down. Vasari is a total badass for being that guy who gave us the term "Renaissance."       ...

       It's been a while, but this book really pulled me in ,just as much as you would expect. I remember seeing the movie years ago, with Rex Harrison as Pope Julius II and good ol' Charleton Heston as Michelangelo Buonarotti. This book, however, unlike the movie, covers all of Michelangelo's career, from the teenage years as an apprentice onward. The language sets up such a beautiful rhythm, that there are certain portions of the book, where the author is going on and on, and you wouldn't mind if this went on forever. He takes us through the major landmark pieces too, like the David statue and the Sistine Chapel, from concept to finish. The emotional journey of creating work, and all those little love letters to art-making and the inspiration process, Stone creates those emotions pretty accurately.      Even though this is a historical fiction, it's fun to speculate on the inner workings, and emotional journey of one of these big time...

  I was so taken with the audio book of Emma that I'd borrowed from the library for my long commute to OTIS College, that I decided I wanted to actually "read-read" the rest of this book. Having finally completed it only yesterday, I was pulled in even closer by the experience that Austen creates.     I think the analysis of a person's work has so many levels to it, that we don't properly discuss in all areas, due to how appropriate or inappropriate the tone of your thesis might feel towards your specific environment. The academic discussion of a person's work has certain rules to it, (as I learned while at Pratt and OTIS) based on "what we like to hear ourselves talk about, and what worldview we are trying to assert over the community as being the more sophisticated, polished off, thorough and nuanced worldview." Therefore, certain interpretations, of an artist's intent, specific to this individual might get (unfairly) left off the table in fav...

     While this type of cheesy romance is not usually my genre, and I normally wouldn't even admit to having devoured an entire book cover to cover about this type of drama, preferring to maintain my masculine dignity and stride on with chest out, I did enjoy hearing this fictionalized version of the inspiration behind some of history's greatest paintings.      The story is told from the perspective of one Simonetta Vespucci, as she is betrothed to her husband, Marco Vespucci, during Renaissance times, in Florence during the reign of the Medici family. She is hailed as an astonishing beauty with no equal, and is adored everywhere she goes, has men fighting over her, and lining up at her balcony to sing songs to her almost every day from the street below. (Pretty girl problems, right?) We follow her marriage to Marco Vespucci, (cousin of Amerigo Vespucci, for whom America is named) from her teenage years into her early twenties, before she was ta...

   I've been thinking about music lately, and the gift it is to our existence, and how it has influenced the direction of my own visual art as it opens up new doors in me, and gives us all a clear view into the undeniable potency of the human identity.     When it comes to music especially, there is so much fake stuff out there, and so many people who are fooled by it, if only momentarily. The people that just make random "exciting sounding noises" at spaced out intervals, to try and get us to "tingle" receive much more appreciation than they deserve. Cute little noises that make me "tingle" are not art, not music, and have no relation to the human identity, just a way of getting people to notice you as a performer, long enough for you to make some cash.      It really is too bad that so many people don't know the real thing when they see it, perhaps because they don't know any better. I've met those people, sat in classrooms with them,...

     I've taken to this new ritual, that I'm hoping will see some healthy mental health results. (oh, by the way, I'm not at OTIS anymore.)     Every time the sun is setting, and the sky is dipping into blackness, I like to be out and about, taking a stroll with the sunset. I've always felt as though it punctuates the day nicely, after the work is done and the mental focus is spent, it's like you are giving a little bit of thanks to the day for being what it was, and granting you the opportunities that it did. By going for a walk in that last 45 minutes when the sky dips from dark blue to black, you are watching the day go to sleep, showing that you don't take it for granted, and can feel a bit more in sync with the universe. At least, that's the way I feel about it.     And as I was walking, I was listening to a few selections from Mozart's piece, "Requiem" entitled "Confutatis Maledictus" and the following "Lacrimosa." T...

    Somehow, some way, I've been able to keep this guy in the rotation of readings, along with the OTIS creative writing MFA assignments. Keeping something close by that you trust, when facing the demons and mind games of everyday life, that is what keeps you from losing yourself out there. This guy helps me remember who I am.     By the way, I won't be writing any more reviews on the books they assign at OTIS. They started to get way too depressing, all about bigotry, racism, social injustice, and all the intolerant jerks of society, blech... Kind of started bringing me down. Plus, all the writing started to sound the same. Not a whole lot of variety of voices or execution with these things. But Chekhov keeps me grounded.     There's something about art making that I think we all overlook, and that's how when you're looking at a creation by someone else, you are getting a lesson in how they, as an individual, experience this medium when they ar...

    With Spring break in full swing for the Spring 2020 semester at OTIS, I decided to cut myself a little slack and do something I hadn't done in many years, a tradition I had developed back in my first years as an undergrad 10 years ago, in where I'd marathon a string of old movies to take my mind off of things.    I still remember being introduced to that magical world of the early to mid twentieth century as a millennial, absorbed by the artistic quality, time and attention, and overall care taken to presenting a motion picture product to the masses. Around the time of watching what instantly became my new favorite film (and still is) "On the Waterfront." I realized that up until that point I didn't even know what movies were, or what kind of experience they could be. And thus was an early crucial step in my journey to discovering the human race, and finding my own personal way of identifying with it.     Movies today are not really works of...

    Well, with the long commute across town to OTIS several times a week, sitting in L.A traffic, I might as well delve back into the old audiobooks. First up was a title I'd been interested in for a while, a Jane Austen novel called Emma.    It's one of her big, bulky, dense and juicy works, and I loved hearing every word of it. Now, full disclosure, I didn't get through the whole thing, maybe I'll finish it later on in life, but I got through what felt like maybe 3/4 of it.     The writing of Jane Austen always refreshes me, inspires me, and boosts my confidence in my own kooky little unexpected worldview that was never encouraged in school, in the workplace, or by my society in general. She really is one of those special people that keeps me going with her invented language that functions in a way that is unexpected, un-"educated" (if you know what I mean) and doesn't rely on formula or conventions in that "one size fits all" manner executed...

Interestingly, the Otis MFA course readings I'm assigned this semester include some graphic novels, which is a nice break from the traditional literary novels, and a fun return to form for me, going back to my adolescence. I loved comic books more than anything else, and missed that familiar language of illustrations setting tone along with words.    This book is about a black man with light enough skin to "pass" for white in the early 1920s in America, and uses this advantage to journey south and write reports on lynchings taking place in the deep, rural south. He is a journalist based in New York, and publishes his stories there, to raise awareness. It's an interesting premise, and we get a chance to see the difference in lifestyles for black folks in New York versus down South. Not to mention the way he's received as a light skinned black versus someone who's brown.    The main plot of the book is a murder mystery. The main character's brother, who ...

    Another post I've been wanting to write for quite some time, and finally got the chance to, having now finished the book at last.      This title was not on the reading list for the OTIS creative writing program, in case you're wondering. This was a book I purchased in June of last year, while taking a day trip down to Newport Beach to participate in the annual Art Festival into which I had been accepted. It took place in a lovely little plaza near the Newport Beach Library. After dropping off my work in the morning and with a few hours to kill before the festival opened, I moseyed on over to a local mall and picked this off the shelf at Barnes and Noble to read in my car. I'd always wanted to own a copy of any classic I can get, expanding my personal library of titles I know I'll be going back to for the rest of my life, and boy, was I right.     I just finished reading it a few weeks ago, because of my staggered schedule, I had to ...

    This title was one that caught my eye a few months back that I had to at least break into to see if the content is as fascinating as the title itself. I love the cheeky-ness of it, and what it promises. There's an unconventional approach to art history here as we talk not merely about the cultural significance of common place works of art, and the creative revolutions that occur in the wake of their popularity, but how said popularity occurred in the first place. The type of publicity a now famous work receives is always an interesting study, and to discover that some works fall out of fashion for a century or two, only to be catapulted back to super stardom by a timely exhibition in the twentieth century.      One of my favorite bits was when Nici was discussing the discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun, which was funded by a wealthy British academic and instantly captured the imaginations of people the world over, with largely successful exhibit...

      Yet another book by our gal, Jesmyn Ward. This time it's a fiction novel about a similar group of people to her memoir, a deep south, rural, disadvantaged community, but it centers around one family. There's a young lady, Leonie, who had a kid at 17, by a white boyfriend, Michael, and then another one some years later. We are following the family through various anecdotes as they deal with the grandparents, both black and the white ones who want nothing to do with them, as well as a long road trip to the prison where the boyfriend is being held, to pick him up.      Now, the anecdotes are pretty good, but she did add another layer to it by telling the story in the first person from multiple different perspectives. There are chapters told from the mother Leonie's perspective, and others told from the perspective of her son, Jojo, and one from another character, Richie, which leads to the supernatural element of all this.     ...

   The next book on this semester's reading assignments in the OTIS MFA creative writing program was a memoir by Jesmyn Ward, a black woman from the deep south, growing up in a disenfranchised community where the young people have limited access to resources like education and stable incomes. A very "Boyz 'n the Hood" type of set up.     The format of this novel is chronicling her life as it surrounds the lives of five boys who were eventually killed in their young adult years, whether by murder, suicide, or accident. One of the young men was her brother, as well.     Obviously, the fascination that comes with the story of this community makes use of the horror element of it. The throes of being on the bottom side of capitalism, in a part of the country where white supremacy is still fashionable, are a gripping subject matter that the rest of white America seems to be developing an interest in.      It's interesting to g...

     The eternal mystery of these people changed my life forever, when I first encountered their work in person at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in late 2018. Forcing myself to branch out, wanting these people to turn my head in a different direction, I copied them and therefore gained a new perspective on the Renaissance and Baroque art that had influenced me up to this point.     It did not make Caravaggio, Velazquez or Botticelli look BETTER or WORSE, the Egyptians just caused me to re-assess what I value about them and why, by giving me an unexpected perspective.     This little exercise is just a game of updating one of their classic looks to a modern day figure, trying to do my best impersonation of the ancient "language" on the paper in front of me. It being a language so far removed from my own, and one I would not use on my own work in a million years, it makes it valuable for opening my mind and getting some perspective on h...