The artists of Santa Fe are essential to the International Art Market recognized by collectors for their own unique flair; as contemporary art guides us into the twenty-first century redefining and creating itself once again, each sector of the art market will define art with its own value with Santa Fe making its own statement. This may have never been more evident, nor as boldly stated, than in current trends, now, when art is balancing in an ever-changing industry seeking its own definition in history to celebrate it as distinct.
What is art today? That is the question.
As camera technology came into existence in the late 19th century, artists were no longer required to record events with visual accuracy. For the first time, artists were free to create, thus many movements were born.
Today, some lament that every thing that can possibly be done, has been done. This is not true, not only do innovative styles emerge with new artists painting in their own hand, but something else is happening in the art world, the political theme of art has changed. Historically, artists painted what was governed by the church. Later, art progressed to reflect images of daily life for the bourgeois and the commoner – a vast difference between the two portrayed, one gaining from the exploits of the other. Fast forward and art reflected the deconstruction of society and the moral values thereof until we began to call trash art simply because it reflected the world around us, or so we thought. The question then arose, who is the artist, the creator of rubbish, or the person selling it?
Some think we call garbage art as the fast paced society we live in today demanded something new and we did not take the time to look for things adequate to satiate its appetite. In our haste to satisfy an eager market we missed the point of what was emerging before us in an effort to provide immediate satisfaction. However, amid all the chaos of the rapid search to redefine art, another form of art has emerged, art that tells stories, every kind possible. It laments what is gone in all aspects of life, and forewarns of what is to come. It celebrates moments of pleasure, of things pristine, quickly disappearing in today’s world. It discusses moral issues depicting what is and what should be.
Some messages are hard and in your face, while others are delicate and serene as though the world comes to rest in the disease we inflict upon it physically and emotionally to both our planet and the inhabits there of. Still others, the message emerges in latent imagery comprising an overt image. Look around in every direction and you will see something different everywhere you look, in every inch of space. Contemporary art, when well done, reflects this.
If you’ve lived a meager fifty years, you know the world suffers greatly as it is no longer what it was for it has lost its delicate balance. What affects the planet impacts us though we may not realize it. We are deluged, inundated by media, so that the world has become small enough to record the emotions that surround us – though the news may be across the sea, it is here in our back yards for in an international world where travel and commerce has made it small, nothing we do will affect only ourselves. The things that guide our thoughts, and either pull us together or tear us apart, are the things recognized in art today.
It has always been known throughout history that art has reflected the political values of the time. I think that is true now more than ever as is apparent in the messages our contemporary artists bring forth.
Santa Fe ArtWorld characterizes art as visual poetry. Our belief: if art has no message it has no meaning. If it is devoid of meaning, it has no significance. To view a message in art, one must examine a body of work, only then does it become evident. We encourage our artists to put their messages forth so the collector might see what they say through visual depiction. Thus we encourage the viewer to examine our artists closely. Only then will they see the message the artist has sacrificed so much to put forth.
I strongly believe history will herald those with a message in their work as the true artists of our time. Sometimes we make up what we think art is to satisfy consumer demands. We pretend there is political value when there is no significance at all. When we make these things up simply for the sake of the dollar gained, not only do we rob the consumer, but we push ourselves further away from the truth. Usually, in our haste, as has been proven throughout history, we overlook what is of value before us when it is apparent if you only look beyond what you initially see, or what you are told.
Yes, as it has always been, most are afraid to display art with truth for fear of the political impact. Who wants to offend one person and possibly suffer financially for putting something real up though it may prove to be of the greatest value of all later. Most find it not a risk worth taking and thus this moment of truth is often saved for the deceased artist when their voice can be altered, or purposely lost.
Why will most artists starve and make great sacrifice to put their art out? Because, if they have a message, it’s important. Although true art might appear to be a pretty picture on the wall, or a decorative piece that hopefully matches someone’s couch, or their curtains, it is far more as it reflects the values of our time in history. Sometimes it is an extension of something overlooked, forgotten, because the things that buried it in the past still exist.
I wonder how many people actually know what Leonardo da Vinci really painted, or Paul Gauguin, and the meaning of their work. I wonder how many people, if any, will ever figure out why I ask that question. . ..
People rarely see in an artist’s work that the artist rendered their soul – they mostly see the picture. It seems to always be about the brushwork with no innate knowledge of how that brush became what it is in its individual style. When an artist paints from their heart, all they have learned is forgotten as they are painting as though they draw breath to put life on canvas of the thoughts most dear to them. The plague of their mind is released and the hope, the knowledge, the recognition, of their heart comes forth and becomes the image.
It always amazes me as I look at other artists work, for if they have created, I can tell them their deepest thoughts, their fears, their hopes, their dreams. I know how their mind works, how they will respond to life, to stress, to me – I know them. This is creation not imitation, and that is the difference between art and imitation for that is where the message comes forth.
The mystery of art in the twenty-first century resolved by an artist once again.
Essay by Santa Fe artist, Denise Williams