tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7640856319716274736.post738772629424728507..comments2023-10-30T08:05:18.013-07:00Comments on Union Gallery: LET THE DUST SETTLE!Union Galleryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07588261170416952178noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7640856319716274736.post-45209757930713837202010-10-19T08:17:16.735-07:002010-10-19T08:17:16.735-07:00@ Gin. Thanks for your encouragement and support! ...@ Gin. Thanks for your encouragement and support! There is now talk of a bare footed protest at the Tate....perhaps you would like to join us? Will keep you posted.<br /><br />@ Exit. What lovely words...reminds us why we are here. It's fascinating to think that all the beautiful paintings currently hanging in the gallery will still be around long after we've gone. Many thanks.Union Galleryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07588261170416952178noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7640856319716274736.post-59006809683805941802010-10-19T03:11:51.207-07:002010-10-19T03:11:51.207-07:00We speak of going to the countryside to “re-charge...We speak of going to the countryside to “re-charge our batteries” or gaining inspiration from “being near the sea.” Nature is a common denominator to us all. Cities are man-made, divide us, yet in the harmony of nature we have a common heritage.<br /><br />One of the paintings in the current exhibition is "Winter Solstice in the Strath" by Hazel Cashmore. The Solstices and Equinoxes, far from being a pagan rite, are a simple scientific observation – the sun’s turning point – when the earth and the sun’s heat, on which we depend so much, reaches a point of change. Our awareness of nature strengthens our awareness of belonging. We belong to the earth, like it or not. Even if we conquer it, it becomes the tools we forge and through which we express ourselves. <br /><br />So why painting? Is a painting of nature a mere substitute? An unfulfilled longing? But a good painting is more than a copy or semblance. “A pretty picture” may have little value. But a great painting rises above photographic remembrance. Actual places may be tainted with memories. Or associations. Incursions of unwanted thought. Yet a painter can capture and remind us of pure essence. The thrill of water rushing through a gorge. A calm lake. Dark clouds hovering. The beauty of the unspoilt beach or the open ocean. Landmarks II invites me to experience. And then use those emotions to forge my day. A rush to get things done. A calm peace behind the frantic energy. A knowledge that there is unfinished business on my desk even if things seems OK. And the enjoyment, running through it all, that life is more than the sum of its parts. My day becomes a canvas. There is a difference. Recall the ancient Egyptians toiling away. Ask him what he is doing. One might say, “I have to carry all these stones across the sand, move them into position until my back aches, and get little thanks except the king’s wine at the end of the shift. Another might say, “I am building a monument that will stand through generations, one of the greatest feats ever accomplished by man, one that will be admired throughout the ages – I am building the Pyramid of Giza, and it will inspire all that come after me.”<br /><br />That’s what art can do. It can let us feel the essence. And when that happens, we have wings.93chrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07811852955246029001noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7640856319716274736.post-91849536932423070722010-10-18T07:25:13.847-07:002010-10-18T07:25:13.847-07:00Hear Hear! Here's to a much more more informed...Hear Hear! Here's to a much more more informed and sensible approach. Health and safety has no place in art. Come to think of it, health and safety has no place anywhere, if you ask me. <br /><br />Free us from insipid pen-pushers and let's all get our hands dirty again.<br /><br />You should stage a protest. You could all turn up wearing hand-painted particle masks! Do it!ginandbitterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15293901050698961525noreply@blogger.com