Archive for category Craft

The Super Hero Culture

Posted by admin in Article, Craft, Culture on November 2, 2011

Among the notable attributes of American Society is the prevalence of the “Superhero Culture”. This is manifested in the affinity for fictitious characters with superhuman abilities. This socio – cultural constructs found in comics, video games and other like material go on adventures and fight those who are against what is good, just, noble and humanistic. They are not just of a uniform mold but are as varied as a society itself. Like any community these personas, though imaginary are an important externality in terms of Social Interaction.

In Social Interaction, an externality must be shared by several individuals in society. This may be a tangible or intangible so long as it facilitates the socio – personal interchange. These characters are a manifestation of a shared experience, value or beliefs. Any American knows and can identify with Superman, Batman, Spider Man, Iron Man and the like. Their affinity for these individuals is as culturally deep as the Greeks and their pantheon of mythological deities.

The American society in whole or in part share attributes with this non – real persons. These fictional individuals served as tangible modes through which Social Interaction could viably happen. However, this important cultural phenomenon is not purely founded on affinity for them as an externality. They also are significant repositories of values. Fighting for justice, using individual ingenuity to solve problems and defending the oppressed are some of these ideals.

Some argue that the “Superhero Culture” as an integral part of social dynamics, such as social interaction. Its detractors contend that this becomes the source of radical American war bravado. Some say that the warmongering of this society is brought about by a society interacting through these imaginary personas. However, this cannot be validly appreciated. Cultural nuances such as having externalities of heroes fighting evil and these evils are the enemies of the United States. Every culture has their own idea of what is evil and what they stand for. Read the rest of this entry »

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Contemporary Indian Art

Posted by admin in Abstract, Craft, Culture, Gallery on October 2, 2011

A genuine avant-garde movement in visual art is no longer possible today in the true sense of the term. It happened last time with POP and not any more afterwards. Not that new thoughts have stopped emerging since POP but these are based on the ‘isms’ developed earlier and are more like Beethoven’s twelve variation of a theme, innovative as one listens to the movements but are easily identifiable with links to the central theme. Since the days of classical modernism in the West, it appears in retrospect, that all significantly original ideas in art are like a panoramic spread with peaks appearing in predictable intervals. Interestingly, the heights of the peaks vary little with one another signifying no art movement is more or less important from other art movements and all contributing to the mainstream of modernism in art – the way a major river gains in volume of flow by its tributaries and loses depth as it reaches its end-point of meeting with the ocean.

That is to say Conceptual Art of the comparatively recent era with its associated ‘happenings’ and ‘performances’ is not better, or less in significance, to movements like, for instance, ‘Bad Arts’ – the exponents of which proudly exclaim their singular devotion and obsession on deliberately created stylistic crudity. In between the two extremes of art today, with the emotional charades of ‘no-expressionism (and neo-Dada) on one end and the cerebral permutations of the ‘conceptual art’ on the other, lies a near-endless variety of artists who wish to consciously avoid such extremes. Read the rest of this entry »

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Digital Painting Vs Traditional Painting

Posted by admin in Abstract, Craft, Culture on September 2, 2011

Digital painting, for those who are still unaware, is an art form in which traditional painting techniques are demonstrated using digital tools in computer software, or a digitizing tablet and stylus. The “artist” uses painting techniques to create the digital painting on the computer. Included in the programs are brushes that are digitally styled to portray the traditional style of painting as with oils, acrylics, and water paint.

Creating with the effect of charcoal, pen, and pastels is also an available tool. In most programs, the user can even create their own brush style using both shape and texture, which is important in bringing traditional and digital painting together as an authentic looking product.

Although digital painting has always been a fascinating subject to me, and I think it’s amazing how a technique is executed in minutes when it normally takes days to get the same effect by hand, I can’t help but think it takes away the integrity of a real painting done by a truly skilled artist. With “digital” painting there is no real artistic talent used in applying the techniques that are mimicked by digital painting programs. They are applied by using digital tools in the computer software. It’s hard for a traditional artist to think of a person using this kind of software as authentic. Not to say they don’t have an “eye” for color or have a lack of vision, but what about the skill of actually using physical mediums and tools? Not to mention the feeling of accomplishment that comes with finishing a painting that has been lovingly worked on for a while, mixing paint to get the perfect color, and, by trial and error, getting that effect you’ve been striving to achieve. The whole style of the artist is different. Read the rest of this entry »

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