The Junk Drawer

My Top Ten Favorite Paintings by fleur_de_lis

It was brutal, but I chopped, axed, hewed, whittled, and cut down my list of favorite paintings to 10. You have seen a few of them on my blog, and you will see some additions to those that may be topics for future posts. Enjoy, or scratch your head and say 'Why in the heck did she pick that one?' and please let me know if you have a favorite artist or painting that is not in my top 10! I would like to do a top 10 reader's choice post eventually! Here they are, in no particular order (except for Starry Night which is my favorite). Starry Night--Vincent Van Gogh Rouen Cathedral--Claude Monet Nightwatch--Rembrandt van Rijn Guernica--Pablo Picasso The Persistence of Memory--Salvador Dali Raft of the Medusa--Theodore Gericault Whose Meat--Charley Russell Green Stripe, Madame Matisse--Henri Matisse Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte--Georges Seurat The Sistine Chapel--Michelangelo Buonarroti There you have it. After thinking it over, I can't say I have a single...

Radiant Babies and Flying Saucers by fleur_de_lis

Keith Haring (1958-1992)--you may not be too familiar with his name, but I am sure you have seen some of his work. Keith rose to fame in NYC by creating his drawings in the New York subway system on black paper panels with white chalk. He was a graffiti artist! His style of 'art with a message' has a system of symbols much like many of the famous works of the past, some of which I have blogged on already (Vanitas painters, and Bosch). The images he developed are his ironic, yet sincere, commentary on modern society--be it cruel and tragic, or playful and happy. Here is a small list of the meanings for some of his images: Radiating lines--empowerment Radiant Baby--threatened childhood Dolphins--peace and love Pyramids--eternity Holes in figures--the soul Three eyes in a smiling face--greed or joy Computers, robots, TVs--technology Flying saucers--God forces, zapping figures to empower them This painting was done on a wall-sized piece of plastic tarp of the type frequently used by...

Favorite 'Yoda' Quotes! by fleur_de_lis

Yoda is one of my all time favorite movie characters. I just love the way he talks, I love his advice, and I love his moral fiber! Here is a list of quotes and I just MAY comment like Yoda on the blogs this week! Please feel free to add your own favorites, as usual. (When you spend a lot of time with 11 year old boys, it just seems to rub off on you--that's my excuse anyway!) Mmm. Lost a planet, Master Obi-Wan has. How embarrassing. How embarrassing. Always two there are, a master and an apprentice. Down here I am, find a ladder, I must. Clear your mind must be, if you are to find the villains behind this plot. Size matters not. Look at me. Judge me by my size, do you? When 900 years old you reach, look as good you will not. Hmmmm?

Fish Reflections by fleur_de_lis

At the end of the 19th century, photography replaced most realistic painting. Artists still painted portraits, landscapes, and still lives, but they began to use abstract and non-representational styles to do so. In the 1970's, a few artists began to work in a style called Photo Realism. They used paints and brushes, but they saw their world through the eye of a camera lens. Many of their works are easily mistaken for photos. Summer is the perfect time to showcase my next artist, Janet Fish. Janet is a Photo Realist that became fascinated with the way light played on the surfaces of her objects, reflected, and broke up into dozens of separate shapes. Her paintings seem to shimmer and glitter with an inner light. Her colors are vibrant and glowing, and the mirrored surfaces she paints seem to bounce the eye back and forth creating the illusions of movement in a static still life. But Janet doesn't paint 'ordinary' still lives as you can see: Green Glass From Alexis Janet...

'Blending' Library by fleur_de_lis

I thought you would enjoy this artist I came across. Her name is Desiree Palmen, and she is known for her camouflage art. Desiree takes photos of either interior or exterior areas, paints them on cotton suits to match the background, and then poses and photographs them. Here are a few more for you to admire: Camouflage art is so fun to look at! And there is so much of it out there. Do you have any favorites?