Spookishness of our Existence

I've been catching up on some reading this summer. I hope to teach a course in the fall on Modern and contemporary art so I've been reading through Volume II of History of Modern Art (seventh edition) by H.H. Arnason and Elizabeth C. Mansfield. Last night I was fascinated with the Surrealist Jean Arp's thoughts about tearing up his own works to make new collages. His ideas are eerily timely. 

“I began to tear my papers instead of curving them neatly with scissors. I tore up drawings and carelessly smeared paste over and under them. If the ink dissolved and ran, I was delighted... I had accepted the transience, the dribbling away, the brevity, the impermanence, the fading, the withering, the spookishness of our existence... These torn papers, these papiers déchirés brought me closer to a faith other than earthly.”

— Jean Arp

Jean Arp (1886-1966), Constellation According to the Laws of Chance c. 1930

From the Tate Collection

Monadnock Ledger-Transcript

In today's Monadnock Ledger-Transcript you can read more about my current show at the Sharon Arts Center in Peterborough, New Hampshire. 

"Making her Point" by Ben Conant

Everything old is new again, and nothing is permanent. Artist Jacquelyn Gleisner’s new exhibit at the Sharon Arts Gallery in Peterborough makes important statements about the fleeting nature of art and the importance of not letting things go to waste. Plus, it gets student artwork into a fine art gallery — in a manner of speaking, anyway.

Read more at the link below. 

http://www.ledgertranscript.com/brarSACInstall-ml-062917_-10959303

Staff photo by Ben Conant

Leonardo in Bloom

The 23rd Leonardo Challenge

The theme for the The Eli Whitney Museum's annual fundraiser is "Leonardo in Bloom." Artists are challenged to create a work of art inspired by the fullest expression of a flower, the bloom, and the quintessential "Renaissance man," Leonardo da Vinci.

Leonardo da Vinci

In his notebooks and sketchbooks, the Italian artist and scientist, Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519), explored botany, geology, geography, cartography, zoology, engineering, anatomy, as well as countless other topics. He adamantly believed that his scientific investigations helped him become a better artist. Indeed many of his scientific illustrations are appreciated as works of art. The artist also believed that reality was fathomable only through what could be observed through the eyes—the most vital organ according to Leonardo.

Lion's Tooth

Below are a few images of my submission for the event, a freestanding sculpture made from paper, glue, turf, glitter, and sand. The shape of the sculpture recalls both an explosion and a geometric interpretation of a dandelion flower. The title, Lion's Tooth, comes from the French name for this common weed, dent de lion.

Click on the image above to see detail shots.