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Having fun with the iPad

8/11/2011

Recently, I was the sketch artist at a birthday party. This 1920's theme party was adults only, and the hostess went full out for her husband's birthday. Wonderful catered food, two burlesque performers for that "gin joint" feel. And, then there was me. I sat in the office, available to sketch people. I had all my traditional media ready to go, and I also brought my iPad. All the people who came to me chose the iPad as my medium. I was a bit surprised, but I think the newness of the idea was what attracted them, even tho digital art didn't really fit in with the 1920's. Perhaps I was an artist from the future, dropping in on a speakeasy, but ready to climb back into my time machine when the party ended.

So, I did the sketches, but then I had a lot of fun playing around with them later. First, here they are as sketches. All done using the ArtRage app. Scroll on down, if you want to see them after I played with them.

Here, a gangster costume.

Then, a gal dressed as a gangster's moll.

The hostess and her sister.

A couple came in for a sketch.

And, a female guest.

Then, I decided to have a little fun with the Half-Tone app and the Comics app. Right now, I prefer the Half-Tone app, but if you are interested in trying out the comic book style, play around with both and see what you think. So, here they are as comic strip panels.

Doing these took me back to when I was a kid, waiting for the next issue of Superman to arrive on the newsstands. So much fun!

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But, is it art?

8/3/2011

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I'm amazed at how quickly Young Turks turn into Old Farts. We all must age, but must we all grown old?. No! It is not inevitable that the free-thinker become the narrow-minded, the flexible grow rigid, the reformer convert to orthodoxy. Alas, even artists can fall into this trap. Artists, who, of all people, should be quick to recognize the creative possibilities of any new medium.

Some young artists today have never used charcoal, pen, pencil, ink, pastels, paint, paper or canvas. They create digital art, maybe on a Wacom Tablet or an iPad. If your immediate response is "Well, that doesn't count." or "That's cheating," then you may, indeed, be an Old Fart. We've been thru this argument before, you know. The old "Photography isn't Art" debate.

Check out the paper Art and Code: The Aesthetic Legacy of Aldo Giorgini (by Esteban Garcia and David Whittinghill): "Abstract: In 1975 Aldo Georgini developed a software program in FORTRAN called FIELDS, a numerical visual laboratory devoted entirely to art production. Working extensively as both artist and scientist, Giorgini was one of the first computer artists to combine software writing with early printing technologies, leaving an aesthetic legacy in the field of the digital arts. His individual process was innovative in that it consisted of producing pen-plotted drawings embellished by the artist's hand with painting, drawing, and screen-printing. This paper is the product of a multi-year study of Georgini's primary source materials provided by his estate. The authors examine the methods used by Georgini during the 1970s that allowed him to create computer-aided art, in the hope that publishing this work will ensure that future generations of digital artists, technologists and scientists can be educated in Georgini's contribution to the history of the digital arts.". http://www.leonardo.info/isast/journal/currentiss.html

Wait a minute? 1975? Here is one of his images, titled "Claustrophobia":

Op Art, right? Here is "Metamorphosis," by British artist Bridget Riley, done in 1964.

Does paint make one piece art and the other something else? (For more on Aldo Giorgini, you can consult Wikipedia. Or, chick out this great little article her wrote, as a letter to the editor: http://www.atariarchives.org/artist/sec3.php)

Remember the Quantel Paintbox? From Wikipedia: "The Quantel Paintbox was a dedicated computer graphics workstation for composition of broadcast television video and graphics. Its design emphasizes the studio workflow efficiency required for live news production. Following its initial launch in 1981, it revolutionised the production of television graphics." Here, an image by Eduardo Gutekunst, using Quantel Paintbox, from the December, 1985 issue of Antic, (from atarimagazines.com):

Was his given last name Gutekunst? In German, it means "good art." Did he decide to live up to his name? Or, was it his nom d'artiste?

Now, let's look at Bert Monroy, who began his digital art career in 1984. Here is his artist statement: "As a photo-realist painter, I have often been asked why I don’t just take a photograph. Good question, when you consider my paintings look like photographs. Well, for one thing, I’m not a photographer. To me, it is not the destination that is important—it is the journey. The incredible challenge of recreating reality is my motivation." Yes, his work is digital. And, yes, he calls himself a painter. Here is his piece Lunch in Tiburon.

Check out Bert Monroy's website: http://www.bertmonroy.com/

Now, consider this painting by well-known photorealist Janet Fish:

Does it count more simply because she used a traditional medium? Here is a quote from the artist herself: "I think it is important to do what you believe in and ignore the critics."

Let's close with famous British artist David Hockney. He has used every kind of traditional art media you can think of. But, throughout his career he has worked with new technologies. Prints using photocopiers. And fax machines. He worked with the Quantel Paintbox for the BBC program, Painting with Light. (I would share the Youtube link, but the video has been removed. Copyright violations. I understand, but I still sigh.) He worked extensively with the Polaroid Camera, putting together amazing photocollages. See some on his website: http://www.hockneypictures.com/photos/photos_polaroids.php

And, lately, he has been working with the iPhone and iPad. The exhibit "David Hockney: me draw on iPad" is currently on view at the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art. Visit: (http://www.louisiana.dk/uk/Menu/Exhibitions/David+Hockney%3A+Me+Draw+On+iPad)

Perhaps I will discuss MacPaint another time, since it is past my bedtime. For info, consult Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MacPaint

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Having fun with the iPad

But, is it art?

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