Art

lizzard_nyc

Does it work for you?

aquaticvideographer

At first I was having trouble "reading" it and getting my orientation. But I like it now that I've figured out how to read it. It's intriguing, and ambiguous in a sending-many-messages-at-once kind of way.

I think my favorite part is the couple in the upper left hand corner, who are a bit out of focus. They have great facial expressions.

swifteye

Life is Art. Art is Life. Two artist at work.

Richard

I like it. IMO, it would work better if you cropped off the bottom row of paintings. Fun shot.

swifteye

Richard wrote: »

I like it. IMO, it would work better if you cropped off the bottom row of paintings. Fun shot.

I didn't see that before. I agree Richard.

chrisjohnson

lizzard_nyc wrote: »

Does it work for you?

It does not really work for me yet, although the ideas and the technique are great.

There is a bit too much happening - but then I always feel this in New York.

I actually like the bottom row. It implies that more is possible, which I guess is a meaning here.

sara505

Too busy and disjointed for me.

Juano

I'm torn. I like the idea, but also think it's too busy.

damonff

I love it Liz. It's a new kind of look for me. So much to look at and digest. I especially like the top right corner area.

swifteye

Liz, I keep coming back to this image. I really like it. It is your interpretation of another person's art (the guy reaching in on the upper right?). First, the art work (paintings) here are very powerful and a very nihilistic view of his world. Second, your very clever framing to integrate the "real" background of the upper left and right. What is interesting about this image is the link the guy (artist) reaching into the paintings provides to the scene. He could be a character within those paintings. The rest of the people in the background represent a passive unengaged sense of society. It is a contrast of combative (nihilism) versus a feeling of apathy. Your picture is saying to me we live in a world of opposites or polarity. The guy reaching in, is reaching in to grab the elements of angst to bring into his real world and shake things up in the surrounding apathetic society (perhaps the capital of the USA). Yeah, a bit grim. But sometimes I feel that way! The utility of your photograph makes me think about the balance between anarchy and apathy. What actions we can take to move us forward without falling into the worlds of opposites?

lizzard_nyc

aquaticvideographer wrote: »

At first I was having trouble "reading" it and getting my orientation. But I like it now that I've figured out how to read it. It's intriguing, and ambiguous in a sending-many-messages-at-once kind of way.

I think my favorite part is the couple in the upper left hand corner, who are a bit out of focus. They have great facial expressions.

Thank you for commenting. I can see how it would take a bit to read the shot. You should of seen it in person!

lizzard_nyc

Richard wrote: »

I like it. IMO, it would work better if you cropped off the bottom row of paintings. Fun shot.

I think for the shot it might work for some because it's less to look at, it is quite busy. So here is the cropped version, in pano.
I don't really want to crop any of his art though, specially my favorite of his paintings the bottom left with the two girls, but I had to give it a go. Thanks Richard.

lizzard_nyc

goldenballs wrote: »

It does not really work for me yet, although the ideas and the technique are great.

There is a bit too much happening - but then I always feel this in New York.

I actually like the bottom row. It implies that more is possible, which I guess is a meaning here.

Hi there,
There was too much happening. I know it won't work for all I was wondering if it worked for anyone. It's a bit different then what I normally post.
Thanks for commenting.

lizzard_nyc

sara505 wrote: »

Too busy and disjointed for me.

Thanks Sara. I appreciate the comment.

lizzard_nyc

Juano wrote: »

I'm torn. I like the idea, but also think it's too busy.

lol--it was very busy--that was the scene before my eyes I was trying to capture.
Thanks Juano.

lizzard_nyc

damonff wrote: »

I love it Liz. It's a new kind of look for me. So much to look at and digest. I especially like the top right corner area.

Thanks Damon. I tried a few different shots but this one was the most pleasing to me.

lizzard_nyc

swifteye wrote: »

Liz, I keep coming back to this image. I really like it. It is your interpretation of another person's art (the guy reaching in on the upper right?). First, the art work (paintings) here are very powerful and a very nihilistic view of his world. Second, your very clever framing to integrate the "real" background of the upper left and right. What is interesting about this image is the link the guy (artist) reaching into the paintings provides to the scene. He could be a character within those paintings. The rest of the people in the background represent a passive unengaged sense of society. It is a contrast of combative (nihilism) versus a feeling of apathy. Your picture is saying to me we live in a world of opposites or polarity. The guy reaching in, is reaching in to grab the elements of angst to bring into his real world and shake things up in the surrounding apathetic society (perhaps the capital of the USA). Yeah, a bit grim. But sometimes I feel that way! The utility of your photograph makes me think about the balance between anarchy and apathy. What actions we can take to move us forward without falling into the worlds of opposites?

Jamie,
What a deep/thoughtful comment.
I was hoping to convey some of what you said. I also had other shots of the artist with his art, but this is the one that worked for me.
The drawings were black and white, but I wanted to process everything in that jarring high contrast black and white to make it all part of the same scene. I wanted to show a contrast between what the artists work conveyed and the people (the very people the artist mocks) around him, enjoying the beautiful day and pretty much being oblivious to all.

But you said it way better than I did and you said even more than anything I thought I captured.

Thank you.

rainbow

Interesting concept, but did not come off for me. Probably because I did not get quite a sense that the photographed people were similar in any manner to the characters in the drawing. Would have needed high contrast and edgy people.

DsrtVW

I like it very much, the cropped version works just for the fact that it fits the screen of my computer. The original if hanging full size on a wall where you did not have to scroll around would really draw you in.
It did get into the shot looking at the art before I noticed the artist and other in the screen. Then the perspective changed.
Did I say I liked it

billseye

If whether it works is measured by the chatter it creates, the answer is a resounding yes. It has generated a wide range of comment and (it appears) return viewing. So beyond that, here's my 2 cents:

I was initially caught off guard by its complexity (avoiding calling it busy), but have found that repeated viewing and framing my perceptions with some of the comments has brought me to a deep appreciation of not only the art you've depicted, but also to the context in which you present it.

When I read the suggestion to crop the bottom third, I thought it might be a good idea... after seeing the cropped version, I'd say that (counter-intuitively) it makes the scene busier (avoiding "more complex").

In the end, it works quite well for me - I'd love to see it in a very large print!

swifteye

Either way that crop does not matter to me. What matters to me is what the image communicates to me. That I have already stated upstream.

Juano

swifteye wrote: »

Liz, I keep coming back to this image. I really like it. It is your interpretation of another person's art (the guy reaching in on the upper right?). First, the art work (paintings) here are very powerful and a very nihilistic view of his world. Second, your very clever framing to integrate the "real" background of the upper left and right. What is interesting about this image is the link the guy (artist) reaching into the paintings provides to the scene. He could be a character within those paintings. The rest of the people in the background represent a passive unengaged sense of society. It is a contrast of combative (nihilism) versus a feeling of apathy. Your picture is saying to me we live in a world of opposites or polarity. The guy reaching in, is reaching in to grab the elements of angst to bring into his real world and shake things up in the surrounding apathetic society (perhaps the capital of the USA). Yeah, a bit grim. But sometimes I feel that way! The utility of your photograph makes me think about the balance between anarchy and apathy. What actions we can take to move us forward without falling into the worlds of opposites?

Like Swifteye I keep coming back to this, which means it stirs something inside me. I admit I had to google nihilism and found out that more than combative it may mean pessimistic, skeptic or destructive. In any case the artist's work conveys all of the above. Something I found said that nihilism could be interpreted as if "some aspect of reality does not exist as such", I think your photo captures just that (I'm a believer in many realities). So, once again specially on one that I didn't think much of at first glance.

Still, this is a photo that I find disturbing. Coming back to your original question does it work? you bet it does, just look at how it got us all in a reactive mode.

Congrats

Cristóbal