ABSTRACT ART:
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Another Abstract Artist:
The youngest of four children, Mark Rothko was born in Dvinsk, Russia on September 25, 1903 to Jacob and Anna Goldin Rothkowitz. In 1910, his father, a pharmacist, emigrated alone to Portland, Oregon. After Jacob had established himself, he sent for his family. Seven months later, Jacob died and the children went to work to help support the family. Mark Rothko delivered groceries and sold newspapers after school. A precocious student in high school, he completed his studies in three years, excelled in many subjects, and expressed a love for music and literature in particular. It was not until he moved to New York, Rothko later recalled, that he "happened to wander into an art class, to meet a friend." Deeply impressed by the school, the experience provoked his determination to become an artist.
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Understanding Abstract Art:
Understanding abstract art is easy: all it requires is an open mind and a big imagination. When you look at the painting on the right, what do you see?
Swirling shapes, an array of colorful patterns... The path of a flowing river cutting through fields of lush vegetation... or maybe you see pure energy and cosmic flow? There is no right or wrong answer to this question. Abstract art is open to interpretation, and that is one of the beautiful things about it. Abstract art doesn't jump out and declare "THIS is what I'm all about." Instead, abstract art requires you to have an open, inquiring mind; you must enter the painting and see where it takes you. Abstract art gives you the freedom to explore the artwork and assign your own meaning to the piece. This intensely personal process enriches a viewer's experience of an artwork. |
Enjoying Abstract Art:
Look at abstract art in the same way that you would listen to a symphony. When you listen to music, you don't try to hold on to the notes - you let them wash over you. Let your eyes wander over the painting the way the notes of a symphony wash over your soul. Let your eyes play with the painting, slipping around corners, following the twirls, twists and turns, dipping in and out of the surface. Let your eyes dance around the piece.
Rather than trying to figure out what the painting looks like, just allow yourself to be taken in by the painting. See what emotions, sensations or memories emerge. Let your eyes relax and travel around the piece without expectation. Examine the colors, forms, materials, surface, and how they interact with each other. Take your time. Let the painting "speak" to you.
Rather than trying to figure out what the painting looks like, just allow yourself to be taken in by the painting. See what emotions, sensations or memories emerge. Let your eyes relax and travel around the piece without expectation. Examine the colors, forms, materials, surface, and how they interact with each other. Take your time. Let the painting "speak" to you.
Abstracts by Kids:
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Understanding abstract art does not come naturally for everyone. It is the kind of art that makes some people scratch their heads and say, "My 5-year old could do that." What people don't realize is that the best abstract artists have excellent drawing skills, a finely honed sense of composition, and a deep understanding of the workings of color. Most abstract artists have the ability to draw a perfectly rendered rose or a realistic portrait, but they choose not to. Instead they choose to express their creativity by creating a visual experience that is more free and unencumbered by the weight of objects.Give abstract art a try!
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Jackson Pollock
"Abstract painting is abstract. It confronts you. There was a reviewer a while back who wrote that my pictures didn't have any beginning or any end. He didn't mean it as a compliment, but it was."
Jackson Pollock, one of America's most famous abstract painters.