Freedom from Want, by Norman Rockwell
Oil on canvas, 1943
I get to choose this week's artwork for SIA, and I feel like for me, personally, it's a burden and a gift. I found out about what happened in Paris right before I went to bed that night, and I haven't slept well since. Our world is in crisis in so many ways, and now I'm being slapped left and right with reminders of the commercialism that has overtaken the winter holidays. Do people in America even care what Thanksgiving is about anymore? That two groups of people who didn't know or understand each other still assumed good faith and sat down together for a basket of corn and a pile of eels? To love, to care, to hope for better?
So I struggled with what to pick for SIA this week. I wanted something that would embody some happiness for the holidays, that compassion of family (even when they talk politics) and love and care for one another. Nothing screams that quite like Norman Rockwell, so here in all its glory is the famous Freedom from Want. I've always loved Norman Rockwell's ability to capture sentimentality, and there's no better example of that in his body of work than this one painting.
Send me your photos inspired by Freedom from Want by Monday, November 30th, to be included!
Capax Infiniti, by Faith 47
Paint on brick, 2014
To pile worse on top of bad, I was on vacation without access to the blog world because my computer power cord broke and I had to leave the computer at home! But here, belatedly, is this week's SIA, selected by Jen. This mural is part of the Forest for the Trees initiative to support public art in Portland, Oregon. I love public art, especially on walls of buildings--I'm always so impressed by the scale that mural artists are able to achieve--and Capax Infiniti is no different. It's absolutely beautiful, especially the draping and shading.
Below is a photo collage that Jen made when she saw the mural last year, which gives us a better idea of scale and the colours used in the mural. Submit your photos to Jen by Monday, November 16th to be included in this week's collection!
I hope you all had a happy Halloween! I had to work yesterday, so I went with something fairly easy to move in, and Sweet Tooth is now my favourite costume as an adult of all time. (Cousin It still takes the cake for childhood.) I tweeted Jeff Lemire, the author of this great comic, and he favourited and retweeted this photo. So I feel like Halloween was a success. Did any of you guys dress up? What were you?
The Seasons, by Alphonse Mucha
Colour lithograph, 1896
I was in the process of writing the code for this post and unceremoniously dumped a bowl of pasta on my lap. RIP carbs!
But anyway--this week's Style Imitating Art inspiration is compliments of Alphonse Mucha, whose beautiful artwork reminds me of a fantastical version of John William Waterhouse. The colours, the lines, and with this set, the group--everything is so well placed and has clearly been considered, but Mucha still manages to maintain some whimsy.
Send Salazar your SIA photos by Monday, November 2nd to be included!
