BORN THIS WAY

    Or not.
    I can't figure out why my brain does not allow me to enjoy most abstract art. There is no reason not to admire it as much as any other style of art. Is it just something in my brain, or lack thereof?
    Abstract art is daring and challenging. In the late 19th century some kind of cultural twerking happened. What allowed some artists to think that they could get away with breaking down representational images? Why did they no longer care if they "colored inside the lines"? Were they simply bored?
    Henri Matisse (1869-1954) turned portraiture upside down with this "Green Stripe", and then went even further in blocking out details, in "The Dance".

    Piet Mondrian (1872-1944) of the Netherlands created straight line color field studies which still influence design today.

Constantin Brancusi (1876-1957), a Romanian turned Frenchman, dared to create this sculpture, "The Kiss". 

    Spaniard Pablo Picasso (1881-1973) portrayed "Jacqueline" in 1960, in a way probably none of us would have seen her.

    Marcel Duchamp (1887-1968) described this "Nude Descending Stairs", breaking up the figure and movement in the cubist style.

The dinner table after too much to drink? George Braque (1882-1963) of France saw it this way.

    Giorgio de Chirico (1888-1978) took it outside with his "Melancholy and Mystery of a Street" in 1914.

    British Henry Moore (1898-1986) created monumental sized sculptures all over the world.

    American Alexander Calder (1898-1976) became best known for his simple mobiles, but he also threw his hat into the abstract monumental sculpture ring.

    Did Willem de Kooning (1904-1997) not like Spring? Here is his "Easter Monday".

    My brain does allow me to enjoy what I call organic abstracts. A print of this painting by Georgia O'Keeffe (1887-1986) called "Music, Pink and Blue, No.2" hung in my family room for years.

    The only time I have ever painted like this piece done by Scottish artist Edwin G. Lucas (1911-1990), I had taken a psychedelic drug. Nonetheless I enjoy this piece.

    I love the simplicity of the pen and ink organic abstracts done by Northern California's architect/designer, Obie G. Bowman.

    The North Bay harbors some excellent abstract sculptors. Here is Archie Held of Richmond's "Entry".

    Petaluma is the home of a world renowned man of steel, Mark Di Suvero.

    Also of Petaluma, the late Peter Forakis (1927-2009) gave the town rail station this sculpture that he called "Dubull Eagull". Rest in peace Pete - you were a great character and artist.

    Laurie Reichek stands before a painting by her late husband Jesse, who chose to create a huge body of work in his Petaluma studio, and also chose to stay out of the limelight.

    Kudos to Petaluma's Kathryn Graham Wilson for her devotion to color abstraction.

Abstraction may not be my own artistic path, but society has and continues to embrace this form of expression, and rightly so.

SPRUNG

In Sonoma County, Spring has announced itself. A spirit lifting walk through town, and it is abundantly seen in the nurtured front yards of the streets and avenues. Hop in the car and in a mile or two be completely enveloped in its lushness.
Of course, artists cannot resist this beauty.

The trees bordering downtown's sidewalks shed a lovely rain of petals upon passers by.

by Josh Powell of Northern California



Vivid daffodils reach tall for the sun.

by Susan Stefanski of Pennsylvania

 

by Bobbie Burgers of Canada



 

Magnificent magnolia trees spot the neighborhoods.



by Mara Farnworth of Sonoma County

by Linny D. Vine of Canada

by Olive (Barbara) Harvie of Northern California

 

The rolling, oak studded hills shed Winter's dry brown.

by Ray Strong (1905-2006) of California

by Robin Purcell of California

 

Vast fields of mustard flowers blanket the horizon.

by Richard Clem of Ohio

by Barbara Newton of Washington state

 

The simple form of the California golden poppy transforms the landscapes.

by Karen Winters of California

by Lynne French of Florida

by Marcia Baldwin

 

The apple orchards advertise their bounties to come.

by Jeannie Vodden of Jackson, California

by Sterling Hoffman of Northern California

by John Joseph Enneking (1841-1916), American

 

And the little lambs cavort.

by Judy Warner of New England

a Photoshop painting by Mark Faulkner of UK

by John Reynolds of Indiana

All good for the heart and soul.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                                                

iEXTINCTION?

    Back in 1991, Los Angeles resident George Holliday, from his balcony video taped some Los Angeles police officers brutally beating Rodney King after a high speed car chase. Besides the social turmoil that ensued after these images were televised, Mr. Holliday was at the very forefront of a trend of regular citizens documenting news stories.

    Fast forward 16 years to 2007 when the iPhone was first released to the public, and suddenly thousands, millions of people were walking around with phone/cameras right in their pockets. People who would never have thought to lug around a still camera or video camera suddenly had both at the tips of their fingers.

    Millions and millions of photos were taken, mostly of special meaning only to the photographer. But then it became apparent that nothing could happen of consequence in the public arena without at least one person documenting it with their cell phone camera. It did not take long before professional news outlets had to concede that the general public was out there getting photographic stories that the professional photojournalists sometimes missed. These images from outside sources began showing up on broadcasts, and now today, publicly taken videos grace almost every newscast.

    My thoughts here are that if I had always dreamed of being a professional photographer, I would be worried today. Is this a profession that will be disappearing because of this fabulous technology that is in the hands of the masses?

    Still, very expensive SLR cameras and all their accompanying lenses and filters may have an advantage, though not as much as the camera makers would like.

    How can professional photographers compete with this trend? One way is that they must go where Joe or Jane Public doesn't usually go, such as is done by National Geographic photographers, or battlefield photographers.

by Dominic Brown

    Another way for a photographer to stand out is to manipulate his or her way into photographing public figures (not Paparazzi style!). There is a long and dignified history of this genre, and the public never tires of celebrity. The last one shown here would be the envy of any Vanity Fair photographer, but was taken using a cell phone by one of the participants.

by Mathew Brady

by Edward Curtis

by Margaret Bourke-White



by Richard Avedon

by Annie Leibovitz

    A third way to rise above as a professional photographer is to have a superb eye for composition. Most untrained photographers take simple snapshots. Not that these snapshots are not beloved, but fine composition rises above.

by Ansel Adams

by Robert Mapplethorpe

    To illustrate the challenges that professional photographers are facing, here are some award winning iPhone photos.

by Jon Resnick of Brooklyn, NY

by Brita Hershman of Virginia Beach, Virginia

by Kim Hanscamp of Barcelona, Spain

by Luyu Hung of Berkeley, CA

by Mohammed Radhi of Tubli, Bahrain

    I wish the best to locals who carry on the professional photography traditions in this evolving visual world.

Patagonia by Lance Kuehne of Petaluma, CA

Mt. Tam region by Patrick Smith of the San Francisco bay area