STRANGLED NO MORE

    Artists first became able to make a living by producing art when civilizations came to the point where there were those who had obtained so much power and goods that they wanted to show off to and intimidated their competition by appearing in luxurious apparel, and living in pretentious abodes filled with lavish items. Like it or not, it was the war lords, kings, and religious powerhouses who were the first patrons of the arts.

    As more of the world's populace eventually became relatively prosperous, artists were able to produce art that interested themselves personally. Beginning around the late 18th century, along came many more portraits of ordinary people, scenes of everyday life, and works that were simply abstractions.

    But even with this shift in the purpose of art, there still was for the most part a stranglehold on the art market. Along with the wealthy, the power players became the galleries and museums. Right up until this past decade, a handful of people at museums, and those who owned high end galleries held a tight grip on the decisions of whose art was to be seen publicly in any meaningful way. Artists had to ingratiate themselves to these people, if they could even get their attention at all. This was also true for the music, film, and literary worlds.

    Thank God for the digital age! Artists in all of these venues can now easily get their works seen by many thousands and even millions of people. Any artist can reproduce their work with ease so that they have the possibility of actually making a living by their talent. The worlds of curators, producers, editors, and critics are forever changed, and I'm sure they are grieving that loss of power.

  Most artists today are using digital methods for superior reproduction of their works. Featured above is photographer Lance Kuehne of Riverfront Gallery in Petaluma. 

    Painter Susan Ratkey Ball shows at Graton Gallery. 

A drawing by designer/architect Obie G. Bowman of Cloverdale.

    I've heard it said several times in the past few years, "Never have so many fantastic tools been put into the hands of so many untalented people". Well, I feel that the overall outcome of digital imaging for our culture will be a growth of creativity and expression for many more people than was possible before, and that is a really good thing.