a thoughtful web.
Good ideas and conversation. No ads, no tracking.   Login or Take a Tour!
comment by mk
mk  ·  2920 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Pubski: March 30, 2016

Painting updated.

Very happy about that tree in front of the building.

I'm still finishing our taxes. This is our most complicated year yet. :/ I have a long day. But we are going to Chicago this weekend, and while my wife visits and old friend, I'll be taking my daughter to the Shedd Aquarium. That'll be fun.





thenewgreen  ·  2920 days ago  ·  link  ·  

I'm impressed with the painting. I'm also intrigued by your choices of scenes. They're usually really normal. Nothing fanciful about them. I'd like to see you paint a car accident.

Edit: to be clear, I think they're wonderful and really calming.

mk  ·  2920 days ago  ·  link  ·  

Thanks, I appreciate it. But, I feel that art has been saturated with sex, violence, and politics for the last century. It definitely has its place, and I don't fault anyone that has a real desire to do it, but IMHO a lion's share of it is a result of expectations. What's worse, is that exploration of the subtle parts of our nature/condition are so often ironic or lathered in sincere affectation.

I mean, to be honest my life hasn't been much defined by violence, and to the extent that it has, I'm not keen on painting it.

That's not to say that I am not making an effort to infuse them with something personal. I am. I know the things that I paint, and to the extent that they aren't literal, that's the thing that I am working on. I feel that my latitude there expands a bit with each painting, and that's part of what excites me about starting the next one.

goobster  ·  2920 days ago  ·  link  ·  

What do you think of Edward Hopper's work?

I see his love of the simple, the quiet, the calmness, in your painting.

mk  ·  2920 days ago  ·  link  ·  

Interesting. I have never really looked at Hopper's work aside from Nighthawks. He uses geometry in a way that reminds me of M.C. Escher. I can see what you are saying about the calmness.

My first paintings were far more geometric and abstract, done with house paint on metal:

In those paintings I was interested in getting at the essence of a scene while restricting the color and the lines. Almost as if you were creating a commercial label for something non-commercial. I think a thread of emotion has remained constant, even though the technique I am using is so different now.

goobster  ·  2920 days ago  ·  link  ·  

Hopper is one of my most favorite artists. Many people see melancholy and sadness in his paintings. I don't. I see strength in simplicity.

Automat from 1927 is one of those. Some people see a lonely woman in an empty diner. I see a strong, empowered woman, out on her own at night (at a time when things like that Were Not Done), fulfilling her desire for ... coffee? a piece of pie? dinner? And not needing anyone else to be there.

So yeah. I see Hopper in your painting.

As far as your earlier work - like the one you posted - it feels very experimental... like the early modern illustrators around the time of Mondrian...

Very cool!

mk  ·  2920 days ago  ·  link  ·  

Thanks. That's an interesting take on Hopper. I am going to Chicago this weekend. Maybe I'll get a chance to take another look at Nighthawks in person.

I can see what you are saying about Automat. It does look like she is taking the time to think on things alone. She could be thinking about something sad, but she could be weighing a decision, or just taking a moment.

thenewgreen  ·  2920 days ago  ·  link  ·  

I agree with you, there is no shortage of these types of paintings. I really like the calming aesthetic of what you are making. I just thought it would be ironic to have that aesthetic show something like a simple fender bender or perhaps a traffic jam. -Also something pretty common in most peoples lives but not ever considered serene or pastoral. But there is probably too much irony, too much juxtaposition in art these days, no doubt.

Have you considered painting someone's portrait? That would seem the ultimate challenge.

mk  ·  2920 days ago  ·  link  ·  

Yeah, if I did a fender bender, it would probably just be me doing it for the irony. I'd like to avoid that. Also, who wants a fender bender on their wall? A traffic jam is a bit more interesting. I suppose both will be historical curiosities in time.

    Have you considered painting someone's portrait? That would seem the ultimate challenge.

Yes, I probably will. Although I am not there yet.

arguewithatree  ·  2920 days ago  ·  link  ·  

I think you could make a serene fender bender though. Capture that moment right before you exchange information and you're both kinda staring at the damage like welp :/

thenewgreen  ·  2920 days ago  ·  link  ·  

    I suppose both will be historical curiosities in time.
That would make for an interesting show -- all paintings of every day scenes that will one day be historical curiosities.

    who wants a fender bender on their wall?
I would if it was painted in a way that made it seem calm and non-violent. An occurrence, a moment, perhaps a tease of a narrative.
mk  ·  2920 days ago  ·  link  ·  

    That would make for an interesting show -- all paintings of every day scenes that will one day be historical curiosities.

But what wouldn't qualify? I think the only exclusion might be nudes, and even there, probably not.

thenewgreen  ·  2920 days ago  ·  link  ·  

Good point. Still, maybe one could dedicate it to scenes that will be antiquated in 20 years time.

oyster  ·  2920 days ago  ·  link  ·  

There are many historical paintings of nude people. In fact there are entire Instagram accounts dedicated to the oddest of the paintings. I think they are very interesting because they show a different side of our ancestors from the narrative we are normally fed.

mk  ·  2920 days ago  ·  link  ·  

Yes, that's what I was getting at. Only our form has stayed more or less constant over time, everything else around us has changed. I expect that will change as well before too long.

user-inactivated  ·  2920 days ago  ·  link  ·  

    I'd like to see you paint a car accident.

    . . .

    to be clear, I think they're wonderful and really calming.

Taken out of context and put side by side, you're making a heck of a statement.

_refugee_  ·  2920 days ago  ·  link  ·  

That tree looks great!

mk  ·  2920 days ago  ·  link  ·  

Thanks! Super pleased with it. You can kinda feel a light breeze. :)

kleinbl00  ·  2920 days ago  ·  link  ·  

Hire an accountant, mofo. I haven't done my taxes since 2008. I still have to keep shit updated in Quicken and quickbooks but that whole massive form thing? Yeah, I don't miss it.

mk  ·  2920 days ago  ·  link  ·  

Turbotax makes it pretty easy. I just have to undo a IRA contribution, which made it a mess. The one time I used HR block, the next year I found that they made a mistake.

But yeah, as things get more complicated, I'd rather have an accountant as a part of an audit rather than suffering it alone.

blackbootz  ·  2920 days ago  ·  link  ·  

I'm the first one to admit that TurboTax is an incredibly useful product. But can I point out that Intuit, the makers of the software, spend millions of dollars a year lobbying Capitol Hill to stall legislation that would streamline the tax filing process, enable the IRS to send people pre-populated forms, and even create a return-free filing system?

Accountants, while just as dependent on the opacity of the system for their business, don't then as effectively lobby Congress. But Intuit's software helped 33 million people file their returns last year. H&R Block? 20 more million. Those two companies try their damndest to preserve the mess.

ButterflyEffect  ·  2920 days ago  ·  link  ·  

TaxAct! It's similar to TurboTax, they try to upsell you on everything but it's easy enough to avoid that, and I don't think they lobby to prevent changes to tax codes.

blackbootz  ·  2920 days ago  ·  link  ·  

I've heard of it, though have never tried it myself. Arguably any free version of tax preparation software, including TurboTax's free versions, would be better than giving Intuit money. Although there's the whole "if you're not paying for anything when using a service, then you are the product" so TaxAct is probably better than TurboTax in that regard.

kleinbl00  ·  2920 days ago  ·  link  ·  

Perhaps you aren't quite to our level of fuckupitude. We have two corporations (three this year), student loans, between 50-100 1099s and a rental.

_refugee_  ·  2920 days ago  ·  link  ·  

That's a big load of woof.

mk  ·  2920 days ago  ·  link  ·  

Yeah, not there yet, thankfully.