Sunday, August 8, 2010

Neo neo expressionist?

In the search for my own intrinsic artistic voice, I've noticed some consistent themes throughout my life. 

In particular, the figure and drawing the figure has been primary for me since I first began drawing. Since college, the work of Egon Schiele has been something I have constantly referred to and been drawn back to. I've studied and been enamored of many other artists, but I always goes back to Schiele.

I'd never really thought of his work in context though. It was always timeless to me and always seemed contemporary, even though most of it's a hundred years old. Though, I've taken an interest in digging deeper and it seems to be the consensus that Schiele was considered an Expressionist. Which somehow seems to be in tune with my own sensibilities.

But can I be relevant as an expressionist? A movement long since considered avante garde? Well, perhaps so given the revival during the '80s with Neo Expressionism (New Painting). This revival would seem to indicate that it is a strain of art that may continue to live. So, does that make me a neo neo expressionist? I don't think I have enough clout or a significant enough body of work for anyone to start a movement, but it seems like an interesting direction to go in. 

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