John Murray classes week of Dec. 12, 2011

The last week of the term!

Please bring in any work for a crit and discussion session.

I've had a great time working with all of you and I hope you come back to a class to continue your work. Art is an investigation into itself. And you have be there when it happens. Coming to class and struggling and playing is the key to making the ineffable icon.

Also anyone who wants to bring food for a small party will be my hero.

Love, john.

John Murray classes week of Dec. 5, 2011

Please see the Dec. 5 issue of the NewYorkermagazine and read the interview on page 64 with the sculptor, Carle Andre.
I've long been interested in his sculpture and the interview by Calvin Tomkins is a fascinating look into Andre's work and the strange workings of the international art world. if you can't find the piece I've made some copies you can read. I would very much like to have a discussion in class. This is the last class for deCordova supercharged painting this term, I hope you found it a stimulating experience. Please bring a few paintings that you did in class for a critque and discussion of the work and the experience.

see you next week, john.

John Murray classes week of Nov. 28, 2011

Barnet Newman made these paintings in 1960 and I still find them interesting and beautiful.

The simple and elegant use of tape to establish edges and the emphasis on the edge/vector in a time when painting was moving from the abstract expressionist emotionally-charged brush stroke and about to enter the ironic flatness of pop art is still fresh to my eye.

Try a piece using tape as the medium.

See you next week,john.

John Murray classes week of Nov. 21, 2011

National Day of Mourning, Coles Hill Plymouth Ma at noon Nov. 24, 2011, near the Massasoit statue overlooking plymouth rock monument.

Again this year I, my wife, Mary, her teenage niece Catherine and nephew, Garrett will attend the United Indians of New England memorial ceremony and parade on Thanksgiving Day.

It is a moving and educational counterpoint to the holiday season propaganda that bombards us in postmodern America. Maybe I'll see you there!

Hide/Seek: Difference and Desire in American Portraiture. An excellent show that I saw last summer in DC has moved to the Brooklyn Museum. If you have a chance to see when in NY you should. It is a very different take on the standard American idea of portraiture. When I saw it at the National Portrait Gallery it made a striking contrast to the rooms full of Colonial Fathers of America...I'm sure it will stand up well in Brooklyn, too. It includes this

homage to the suicide of the gay poet Hart Crane (he jumped from a ship in the Gulf of Mexico at the age of 32), by Marsden Hartley, as well as works by Warhol, Rauschenburg and Johns among others.

See you next week, john.

John Murray classes week of Nov. 14, 2011

When an artist has a block or dry spell.

When this happens to me I read Herman Melville and consider Frank Stella's "Moby Dick". On the afternoon of Dec. 1, 1850 Melville wrote how for millions of years whales had been filling the atmosphere over the waters of the Pacific with the haze of their spouts-"sprinkling and mystifying the the gardens of the deep". it was then that he made note of the exact time and date when he was writing these words: "fifteen and a quarter minutes past one o'clock pm of this sixteenth day of December, A.D. 1850". what a moment for the artist! What an opportunity for creativity! The Modernist concept of the self-conscious hand of the artist in full bloom and connected to that exquisite sentence of prose about the "...gardens of of the deep."

One hundred and forty years later Frank Stella took this language/concept and constructed 135 sculpture /paintings from this amazing book; one for each chapter. This brilliant sense of self and material is the true key to Modernist art as well as its biggest difficulty. How to record the moment of creation and depict some profound aspect of the world simultaneously.

Next week try working from a piece of writing that inspires you.

see you then. john.

John Murray classes week of Nov. 7, 2011

All Newart center classes:

I love this Warhol painting of knives, if you have an object that resonates and is somehow provocative bring it to class and use it as a model or in an assemblage...the choice of object is as crucial as the manner of execution you select for the art work.

If you have a chance, go on line and take a look at the work of Maurizio Cattelan at the Guggenheim...the NYTimes.com. Very interesting to discuss.

Decordova Supercharged painting:

We have a female model this week. If you are interested in experimenting, either come to class with a canvas covered with newspaper either/or bring some sticks to attach to (with a superglue or epoxy) the canvas as you work. You're the artist!

See you next week , john.

John Murray classes week of Oct. 31, 2011

All classes: this week please come to class with a canvas (or surface) covered in newspaper.

Picasso and Rauschenberg both used newspapers as a design (figure/ground concept) as well as a way to bring the world beyond the studio into their work.

See you next week, john.

John Murray Holliston open studios Oct. 22nd and 23rd 2011

My studio will be open this weekend the 22nd and 23rd during Holliston open studios please stop by if you have a chance, address is 924 Washington Street Holliston, and see some work and talk Art. My # is 508 488 7710.

If not see you next week at class. John.

John Murray classes week of Oct. 17, 2011

Two classes will have a model this week:
Oil and Acrylic Workshop and Postmodern Assemblage.

Supercharged Painting at deCordova and NewArt Center (Wed.) will not.

I found this Arthur Dove portrait in the NY Times Friday art section. I have never been aware of it before and find it an interesting American approach (almost an homage) to the French Modernists working in Cubism and collage at the time. Try a portrait using an attachment or collage element. If you can go online and see the work of Arthur Dove, an artist who worked a lot from nature, but always experimented and whose work was restless and often fresh and original.

See you next week, john.

Supercharged painting Tues.Oct. 11 and Wed. Oct. 12

We have a model this week for all Supercharged classes at the deCordova and the Newart Center.

Please bring a new canvas and your best deconstructivist attitude.

What do you get from the work of Lisa Yuskavage? Here are 2 examples, she has a new show opened through Nov. 5 at David Zwirner Gallery in Chelsea.

See you next week, john.

John Murray classes week of Oct. 3, 2011

Minimal beauty! a great architectual translation of Ellsworth Kelly's "Black over White".

The gallerist, Mattew Mark recently commissioned Ellsworth Kelly to design something for the facard of his new West Hollywood gallery. The 88 year old artist reached back to his 1966 painting, "Black over White" for the solution. Kelly considered hanging one of his signature curved or rectangual sculptures, but decided to keep the piece simple and referential. I love minimal painting with such reference to the world, room, building, life or any form of the quotidian.

Think about process: black over white applied to red over green under blue or any combination of color, lack of color, texture or tranlucent application. The most ephemeral art can have application in the concrete world or vice versa. I have a model booked for Tues. 11 at deCordova Supercharged and all day Wed. the 12th at Newart Center. I am doing another talk/discussion this tues. the 4th at Newton JCC at 1:30: "Isolation as an Art Strategy: the work of Michael Heizer, Bas Jan Ader and Ray Johnson. See you next week, john.

John Murray classes week of Sept. 26, 2011

This week on Tueday the 27th and the following week Tues. Oct. 4th I will be doing a talk/discussion at 1:30 at the Newton JCC. This week's topic is "Manet to Matisse; Painting's Leap of Imagination" on the 4th it is "Isolation as an Art Strategy: the work of Michael Heizer, Jan Bas Ader and Ray Johnson". I hope you will attend (there is a small fee for non-members of JCC).

I may have a model for deCordova classes this week or next (forgive my lack of record keeping so please come with whatever you feel you need to work from the figure. This is not the case for NewArt Center artists.

I noticed that Haim Steinbach (my favorite Israeli artist) is having a show at Tanya Bonakdar Gallery in Chelsea through Oct. 22. One of the first artists to take Duchamp's ready-made concept and run with it, his eye and taste in object selection and presentation is brillantly developed.

Try this yourself and bring an object to class from which to draw, paint and deconstruct. See you next week, john.

John Murray classes week of Sept. 19, 2011

Supercharged Painting New Art Center and deCordova Museum School, Acrylic and Oil Workshop and Postmodern Assemblage at New Art Center and Painting in the Abstract at the Newton JCC:

MOMA is having a de Kooning retrospective that opens this Sunday, if you are in New York or have a chance to get there don't miss it~!

On the 27th I am giving a talk and discussion at 1:30 at the Newton JCC "Manet to Matisse: Painting's Leap of Imagination" and the following week on the 27th at 1:30 also at the JCC I'm doing "Isolation as an Art Strategy" the work of Micheal Heizer, Jan Bas Ader and Ray Johnson. I hope you are able to attend and participate.

Anyone coming to any class for the first time please check the supply list and bring enough paint and canvas to work. I would like to see a response to de Kooning's deconstruction and disembowlment of the figure and/or a landscape that has been ravaged and distilled as he did in his Long Island paintings such as the red and purple painting at the top of this blog, "...Whose Name was Writ in Water". Thank you for your interest in and support of my classes. See you next week. john.

John Murray classes week of September 12, 2011

Welcome to the fall term of Oil and acrylic Workshop, Postmodern Assemblage and Supercharged Painting.

I just returned from a visit to Washington DC, where I saw some odd and interesting art. I was struck by the Pop Art feel and strangeness of the new Martin Luther King Memorial. Designed by Chinese nationalist sculptor, Lei Yixin, and carved in China the 30' high statue emerging from a rough-hewn block of granite is powerful in an almost comic book fashion. It is surronded by a dark granite wall that rises to a peak in the middle where it breaks to include a simply rendered mountain of white granite, before sweeping down again to enclose the 4 acre site that faces the Tidal Basin. The wall is inscribed with a number of king's statements, as is the side of the figure. The metaphor of a piece of granite moving forward from a mountain of the stuff and Dr. King's form emerging from this block is both clever and heavy-handed at the same time. There has been much controversy over this memorial: Chinese designed and manufactured, the choice of quotations for inscription, the expression and likeness of the face etc... but as I stood there I felt emotionally and artistically challenged by the piece and realized that this is the New World for America and Art, a Digital-Pop Cultural place where intrepretation is fragmented and the Old Art Elite are obsolete dinosaurs and the Crowd wins.

While in DC I visited the Hirshorn and saw a delicious show of Modernist paintings from their collection. Now that's Elite!

If you are new to my classes please bring some supplies from the lists provided so you can work. See you next week, john.

supercharged painting summer August 22, 24 and 29

The last 3 days of the summer session are upon us! Labor Day looms and my thoughts go to what makes a painting work for us. The Joan Brown image above is modest and kind of silly, but powerful and painterly at the same time. Why do i find it successful i wonder? And can only think that its humor and sexual suggestiveness are the main features i respond to, but more than that its eccentricity and choice of subject matter, modest size and richness of creamy whites, blues and pinks all attract my eye and mind. The picture is part of a show in NY at George Adams Gallery called "Circle of Friends" and shows work of the S.F. Bay Area figurative painters of the 1960's and 70's. Some of my favorite modernist figurative painters were in that circle. See you next week (22nd and 24th) and the following Mon (29th). john.

Supercharged Painting Summer session week of August 15, 2011

"Art history is a paralyzing daydream from which today's artists cannot wakeup."

-Ken Johnson

What do you make of this statement by NYTimes art reviewer, Ken Johnson? Do you agree? Do you feel the 2 pieces above either illustrate that concept or disprove it. Lets have a discussion in class next week. Whose work have i used above? See you next week...john.

Supercharged painting Summer session week of August 8

A poetic sense of place.

John Marin's "Grey Sea" is a good example of that concept.

Try making a painting that conjures a place that you feel connected to. From your past or present, abstract or figurative.

Marin was a mid-20th century painter who often worked in New England.

There is currently a show at the Portland Museum of Art called "John Marin: Modernism at Mid-century" that runs until October 10.

See you next week..john.

Supercharged painting Summer session week of August 1

Ai Weiwei at Asia Society.
I love a creative and fresh way to make an image and this Chinese artist, just released from jail in Beijing for his political blogs and tweets has a fresh perspective on Western culture.
There a review of him and his work by Roberta Smith in the Weekend Arts section of the New York Times today(Friday, July 29). When I see a piece like his "Profile of Marcel Duchamp" which consists of a bent coathanger and sunflower seeds I am delighted and inspired to clear my mind, strip down and seek a fresh new vision with every painting or drawing I attempt. See you next week, don't forget to signup for the next session which starts on Wednesday. john.

supercharged Painting Summer session week of july 25

Lucian Freud is dead at 88.
Raw and real Freud's work repositioned figuration. On this last week of this session, try a portrait or self-portrait in an honest warts and all style...also consider taking the next session that starts the first week of August 8 and goes until the 29th of August. Keep your work moving and vital this Summer! See you next week. john.

Supercharged painting summer session July 18 and 20

The sweet joys of Summer!

These two Matisse paintings are a perfect inspiration for the best time of year. The

paler one on the left was painted in 1909 and was considered by the artist to be one of his most exceptional works; a luminous and pure work of high-art and is hanging in New York at MOMA. The second was painted in 1910 for a Russian collector and is viseral with bolder color and a brilliant and earthy energy; it is hanging in the Hermitage in Russia. Which do you prefer? My favorite Matisse is a dead-heat between his "Violinist at a Window" and his spare and minimal "View of Notre Dame",both from 1913, i believe. But these two are such great high-summer ideas! Try a painting that connects with the spirit of July, the sky, a high grassy hill and the eternal now. See you next week. john.

John Murray Summer classes July 6, 11 and 13

Just got back from Provincetown.

Saw an excellent show at the Fine Art Work Center Gallery, which included Ken Morgan, (above left) and Robert Beauchamp (right) among others, also heard Marie Howe read her superb Narrative/Language poetry one night at the Work Center. Biked and swam in the Sun and ate some good food under the Moon. Mary, Sandy and i had a good short vacation. Thank you for joining my Summer Supercharged Painting session, Let's start by attempting a "Joy of The Sun and Dark of the Moon" painting, any size and any media to get the classes flowing. See next week, john.

John Murray classes week of June 13, 2011

All Classes end of term has arrived, please bring to class any work you want critqued. See you next week. john.

John Murray classes week of June 6, 2011

End of term for deCordova Supercharged painting class. Bring any work you want for a critque, it's been a short but powerful class for me. If you have a chance go on line and take a look at Robert Smithson's piece "Spiral Jetty".
Newart Center classes: Last 2 weeks, please continue with any work you are doing and bring in any paintings you want critqued. The student/faculty show looks very strong this year.
If you have a chance thank Kathleen Smith, the curator, for her creative installation work. See you next week. john.

John Murray Classes week of May 30, 2011

Supercharged painting deCordova and Newart Center:

Try a portrait or self portrait, above is an Elizabeth Peyton Portrait she is

a painter who works in a smooth, thin method...slightly jaded and lost-generation feeling to the work. Go on line and take a look. Matisse is the master of modernist portraiture to my eye. See you next week. john.

John Murray classes week of May 23, 2011

deCordova Supercharged Painting: we have a model on Tuesday, please bring a slightly larger canvas, 18"x24" at least.

Newart Center classes: Picasso once said in an interview, 'A painting is a horde of destructions".

The poet Wallace Stevens was so struck by the quote that he wrote a poem, "The Man with the Blue Guitar" and wondered, "If this made painting a picture of ourselves, an image of our society".

What do you think? please go online and read the Steven's poem if you have a chance. See you next week, john.

John Murray classes week of May 16, 2011

Manet started all the trouble.

When Edouard Manet painted these irreverent and loosely-brushed images in the 1860's the seeds of not only Impressionism, but the modernist movement itself began. The powerful and unblended use of paint that rivaled the content of the painting as well as the secular and non-traditional choice of subject matter showed the way for painting to stay relevant and potent during the industrial and photographic revolution.

How do we stay relevant today?

Newton Open Studios is this weekend, take a look and see what your peers are doing. I have 2 new paintings at the JCC on Nahanton Street.

See you next week. john.

John Murray classes week of May 9, 2011

John Chamberlain is having a show at Gagosian Gallery in New York.

I met Chamberlain many years ago in Venice California at a time when he was traveling back and forth across the country and couldn't decide which Coast to settle on...his work was very much decided at that time however...the three dimensional abstract expressionist meets minimalist use of bent and folded automobile components. What a great metaphor for 20th century art expansion and a unique expression of our time. He has worked in this fashion for 50 years and continually finds fresh opportunities today in his 80's. Go to Gagosian website and see what he is now doing.

All classes: Find a scrap of automotive scrap and use it as a stencil from which to assemble a composition and develope a painting.

Sculptors: use a few of these pieces (catalytic convertor shields, pieces of rusted body panels) to build a standing or wall-hanging figure or composition. Monday classes will also have a model all day available for reference if you want to work that idea in as well.

See next week, john.

John Murray classes week of May 2, 2011

Oil and Acrylic Workshop and Postmodern Assemblage will have a model this week.

Painters please bring canvas, charcoal and paint...

sculptors please bring cardboard, twine, paint and plaster.

Supercharged Painting (Newart Center painters).

Since I have been unable to get a model for wednesdays if you want to work with the figure consider trading days and coming Monday...otherwise continue with your ideas for the deconstructed landscape, or your own painting concepts.

deCordova Supercharged painting artists (Tues a.m.). Continue with your deconstructed landscape paintings. For those who want a new assignment I will set up a simple still life from which to abstact and distill. See you next week....john.