Triple roles as an Australian Chinese artist
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Table of Contents
Introduction 3
As an Artist 3
Art 3
As Chinese Art promoter & facilitator 5
Physical aspects: 6
Relationship to Australia, Oceanic art analysis 7
Researcher 7
Theorist 8
Conclusion 9
References 10
Introduction
The gift of artistic prowess can be acquired in many different ways. While others are born with the gift, others have to learn the art of being an artist. It is important however that we appreciate the fact that regardless of the paths we take, anyone has the capability to be an artist. The only difference however comes in on how we let out our creative urges. Some do it more aggressively than others and that is what makes a good artist and as Albert Einstein once said, true art is characterized by an irresistible urge in the creative artist.
As an Artist
I consider myself one of the few lucky people who in addition to being born with this amazing natural gift; I also have had the opportunity to learn how to be a professional artist. Starting out as an artist can be quite a task. Any aspiring artist needs to have the drive within themselves and most importantly a mentor or someone they can look up to for inspiration in their work. Courage also is of utmost importance (Hung, 1999). As artists, we must feel secure about our artistic works and be ready to put them out there for the world to see. This is the only way through which we get to experience growth in our work.
Art
Art is a pervasive subject. The two main divisions in art are, fine arts and applied arts. Different types of art serve as means of expression. The development of any form of art takes time and considerable effort from the artists as well as the community. Art reflection on its part refers to the gallery and collection display of artifacts like idols, sculptures, statutes and abstract art paintings. It provides for fine art collection, original artworks, custom framing, and home-wares. American art is one of the arts that have evolved in terms of complexity (Marter, 2011). The trends indicate a major shift from traditional and rather conservative art to modern and postmodern art. Each of the genres of art seen in the American community is both alluring and unique. American art expresses a lot of information on the American people. This is with regards to the individuals that lived at the time of the genre in art.
Chinese art is dynamic and draws a lot from Europe. The correlation between the Chinese art and its Australian counterpart can be attributed to the close historical ties that the Americans had with the Europeans. However, in as much as there are some genres of art that draw a lot from Europe, there are other types of art that have come to be recognized as powerhouses in the global art arena. Modern art in is unique in that it is the pioneer of modernism in the global art. An example of unique modern Chinese art is the movie industry (Hung, 1999). China has established its place as the leader in the visual art through the motion pictures. The motion pictures as a form of modern art are the most interesting to me since they have the ability of attracting most of the people. The ability of art to communicate with the world constitutes another interesting aspect. Studying art is a continuous process. There is always something new to learn in the world of art. Having been in art school for two years, this only helped me play ground for my work as an artist (Wardwell, 1994). As I was to learn later, there were many things involved, some of which you are not taught in class. It is through creativity and willingness to try out new things that we learn more.
Trying to be an artist can be a daunting task. Sometimes it is the fear in us that we need to overcome in order to express ourselves on a canvas. To begin a painting, we must have knowledge of certain basics. Such can be acquired through reading books and articles on painting, watching instructional videos and doing a background research on methods employed by painting artists. This equips you with all the information you may need. After this, one can go ahead and get the supplies they need for painting, which include the various types of painting brushes and different surfaces on which to do your painting such as the canvas. As an experienced artist there are certain materials I would not do without, some of these include; acrylic paint, canvas, crayon, a brush, oil paint, different media such as wood or stone just to mention a few. Basically, an artist has many tools of work.
As Chinese Art promoter & facilitator
After moving to Australia, my work took a broader perspective as an artist. I now double up as a Chinese art promoter and a researcher. Juggling between the triple roles requires a lot of commitment. As a promoter/facilitator of the Chinese art, I work hand in hand with other artists in art centers, schools as well as other organizing events for public demonstration through art exhibition. Being a researcher on the other hand requires collaboration with other cross media artists in order to understand better the world of art. Though sometimes the roles can be overwhelming, they bring with them a sense of gratification. These roles are tied in understanding the following; rituals and theatres lifestyles.
One of the major distinctions between a ritual and theatre is the fact that rituals can subsist without a spectacle. The unifying factor between the two is that a theatre is ritual that is different to great extent from the religious rituals. It is not rote, a case in which religious rituals are performed the same way every time. The Chinese chorus is normally sung during drama, with range of 15 individuals, but it can extend to even over 50 people (Leong, 2000). It consists of identically dressed individuals, who serve as commentators and observers during the time of a play. The song is themed on the play which is transposed in form of narrations. Majorly, the choruses served to provide for the viewers an exposition of the play
Physical aspects:
Chinese – it was integrated to bring an audience and performer association in which they are not separated, bringing a rapport. They were first to erect sittings, they erected special structures that brought the audience and theater performers together. They were commonly located in sloping and populated landscapes. The Chinese art integrates the following generations and models;
Medieval-the plays once took place in churches but later moved to the streets. The staging entails a platform arranged in such a way that audience could move from one place to another depending on the need of the cast (Hung, 1999). Shakespearean- it also integrated an interaction between the sympathetic audience and the performer. They had a specific target for the audience relation in which the performer was allowed to improvise schemes during presentation. Italian renaissance- the Italian model introduced the painted scenery. The theatres were constructed in roman models. There was the proscenium arch that created a picture frame stage. This brought more reality between the audience and performer depending on the theme.
The western theatre is considered to be integrated theatre because, of the development in terms of drama, comedy and the supporting aspects of technical theatre and the performances. They integrate fall play, Broadway cabarets, musical, cappies, modern lighting and sound.
Drama staging; In the environmental stages, they integrate realism, a case that brings in a state of interaction between the performer and the audience, ultimately sharing common scenery of the current environment. The art industry was facing a revolution by then. The tradition separate environment was slowly being eradicated to a more interactive model. The stage and platform was made more accommodating for interaction and involvement during delivery, a case that was welcomed wild wide.
Review
As a professional artist, I have come to realize that it is absolutely impossible to skip art history and art theory, as this is where the basis of a successful artist is. One has to really find the background of art, where it develops from and the changes that have taken place in the industry overtime. Learning about the history of art and the theories that come with it may actually lead to potential breakthroughs in terms of new inventions and creativity that would be widely accepted. Like any other industry, art has been developing at a very high rate, and continues to grow as time goes by. In this sense, its history forms a very important part of the future changes that would be made.
When it comes to theories, they are actually many and diverse, with focus being made on the various aspects that describe the art industry. Most of them describe how the artist should focus on the various things he or she does. However, other theories are not factual or based on any evidence as such (Leong, 2000). They can best be described as an attitude by the society towards artists. They are actually more of themes and misconceptions than theories. One such myth is the argument that all artists are poor and do not take a bath or shave. One thing that the society should realize is that art is a well-paying industry. As long as you are unique and hardworking in whatever you do, success would follow you wherever you go. I have been able to establish this fact in the many years that I have been in the industry. The perception that artists are dirty is misguided, and basically an attitude. Most people have this attitude due to the nature of some forms of art like wood carving that involve a lot of manual work. This does not mean that whoever practices it is dirty.
Relationship to Australia, Oceanic art analysis
Oceanic art on the other hand, describes artworks by natives of a huge geographical area (6,000 miles north to south and 9,000miles east to west) of the Pacific Ocean. This includes Australia, New Guinea and other smaller islands. The art here is vast and diverse for geographical and ethnic reasons. The creators of oceanic art were descendants of immigrants of mixed origins.
Researcher
There are three areas in Oceania, Melanesia, Polynesia and Micronesia. Oceanic painting, wood-carving and sculpture came about as part of the daily religious and social ceremony of life on the island (Hung, 1999). They were features of the different forms of ancestor and spirit worship. Occasionally, they practiced headhunting and ritual cannibalism. Ornamented skulls, masks and ancestor statues were abundant. Traditional motifs were painted on vessels, stools, pottery, shields and canoes. Objects designed often depicted supernatural power. Living art such as body painting, face- painting and tattooing was also practiced. There was little of rock art since materials used were not long-lasting. Curved wood, vegetable fiber, feathers and bones were kept as treasures.
Similar to Chinese art, Oceanic artists were imaginative in curving of unique forms and shapes. Mostly, they expressed themselves through sculpture and occasionally through drawing. Their objects were decorated through chiseling. Melanesians used color. Oceanic drawing is most evident in tattooing which was a Polynesian art and figures chiseled on wood carvings. A least known oceanic art is sand drawing practiced by the Vanuatu in South Pacific.
Unity of style in Oceanic Arts
Primitives: to the oceanic people, anxiety about the life after was a key factor. The Melanesians believed in a world where the living, the dead and the supernatural coexisted in harmony. Magical charms were also used for precaution, decoration of houses and as masks for secret society dancers.
Polynesian artworks had head figures that were extremely large. The Oceania’s preserved the heads of their parents by modeling them over with wax and resin and eventually painting them. In New Guinea, flat faces were contained in a rectangle and sometimes in triangles especially in Polynesia. Melanesia is known for its aesthetic art. Wood carvings with color, the ancestor figure and human head were the most common themes whether woven or carved. There also were painted masks (Leong, 2000). In the Admiralty Islands, large wooden cups depicting elegance were used by chiefs. The Polynesians were the masters of stone carving used for sacred closures of the altars. Tiny wooden images were used as ritual objects to adorn canoes. The Polynesian religion also represented its gods using the images. At Tahiti these are simple symbols. The god of war, Oro, was a piece of wood covered with fine coconut-fiber strings. Tattooing in Polynesia was in it best form. There is surface carving touching lightly on the original shape. Open-air sanctuaries had both large and small images in stone or wood.
Theorist
With that in mind, as a promoter/facilitator of the Chinese art, I work hand in hand with other artists in art centers, schools as well as other organizing events for public demonstration through art exhibition. Being a researcher on the other hand requires collaboration with other cross media artists in order to understand better the world of art. Though sometimes the roles can be overwhelming, they bring with them a sense of gratification.
Literati painting are ideal for the Chinese scholar –painter interested in personal expression more than in an immediate attractive surface beauty (Hung, 1999). Literati seek satisfaction of the heart most. The mode of expression adopted by an artist is what defines whether they are literati or not. Starting out, my garage doubled up as the studio. With time however I have managed to acquire space in an art gallery where exhibition of my art works is easier. As a beginner, it is difficult to sell your artworks. However, as time goes by, one learns to look at things with an artist’s eye and the end product is priceless. With my studio in a gallery, it’s now possible to sell some of my artworks.
Conclusion
Just like any other profession, being a good artist requires an understanding of art history and theory. Without these, our artworks would lack in depth and sometimes inspiration too. For a hardworking artist, the profession is rewarding, contrary to popular belief that artists are poor. To be able to balance between the Chinese and Australian cultures, appreciation of both in the world of art is important. That artists in both cultures are equally good only that they are diverse. Australia for instance boasts of artists such as Jeffrey smart and Grace Cossington Smith as being few of the finest in history. Being an artist is a fulfilling profession to say the least. With a brush in hand and a canvas an artist can tell a story that words alone cannot. That we can expressively relay our experiences and imaginations to the world as we see it with no boundaries whatsoever.
References
Leong, G. (2000). Remembering Chinese… Journal of Australian Studies, 24(65), 58-68.
Hung, W., & Hung, W. (1999). Transience: Chinese experimental art at the end of the twentieth century. David and Alfred Smart Museum of Art, University of Chicago.
Hung, W. (1995). Monumentality in early Chinese art and architecture. Stanford University Press.
Piper, N., & Roces, M. (Eds.). (2004). Wife or worker?: Asian women and migration. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers.
Wardwell, A. (1994). Island Ancestors: Oceanic Art from the Masco Collection. University of Washington Press.
https://www.google.com/search?q=chinese+art&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&channel=sb
Book list
1. Oceanic art; Kaeppler, A. L., Kaufmann, C., & Newton, D. (1999), Oxford publishers.
2. Contemporary Chinese Art: Primary Documents; Wu Hung. (2006). The Museum of Modern Art
3. Museums and Galleries, Friedman, K. (2005). The Museum of Modern Art
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