Peter Max sells paintings that are photocopies pasted on canvas then painted over. Some people consider this art, some people don’t.

As an artist I see this as a ‘doss’ – northern English expression for something very easy (walkover) to do. Also known as ‘Nice work if you can get it.’.

I don’t think this art is particularly cheaper than art you paint all of – if you know what I mean. I’ve just seen one of Peter Max’s ‘paintings’ in this style in the Wentworth Gallery in Boca Raton Town Centre, Florida. ? It’s perhaps 12″ x 18″ as I recall, a photocopy of Obama’s face glued on a canvas with a few slops of happy looking (coloured) paint around his face. Not even painted up the 1.5″ in depth sides of the painting. When you paint up the sides of a painting like that it’s called ‘gallery ready’. It means you don’t have to bother getting a frame for the painting.

$17,000 for this non-effort.

Awesome or what?

PS It’s not that I’m totally against this ’style’. I’m just observing… I may even do it! I think I’d reduce the price of efforts like that though. My preference is that art happies-up-your-day, and for me this type of art does. Despite everything.

Portrait of a Musician

I’m now available to do portraits and paintings of the happy couple at weddings – I’m a romantic at heart so I’d like to capture the look of love between people. It’ll be very inspiring to look at and remember over the years.

If you have a query about getting your/someone else’s portrait done, just contact me at lauranchilds@yahoo.com .

PS I used to do portraits in oils in London, I’ll be doing portraits in acrylic here (Miami).

My Lapdancer painting was too large to get in the van, it’ll have to wait, the above is now in the Red Bar instead… (www.RedBarGallery.com )

There was a very interesting article yesterday in the Financial Times Weekend Section about groups of people who band together to buy art which they then share on a regular basis – change the paintings around in all their houses every 6 months for example.

Apparently this has been happening a while and even through established art institutions such as Webb’s Auction House, Auckland, New Zealand and galleries in England.

I like the idea, art collectives can buy my paintings anytime!

Teddy Pendergrass died today. The black radio station I listen to noted how the tragedy of Haiti and Martin Luther King Day are eclipsing the death of this great singer and musician.

If you haven’t heard about him, Teddy Pendergrass was a hugely successful soul singer in the 80s and 90s. Tragically at the age of 32 he was in a car crash in his Rolls and was paralyzed below the waist. He still kept making fine, successful, beautiful music, supported by his wife and inspiration Karen.

Deaths of greats like Teddy Pendergrass remind me that we really have to shine our lights when we’re here, we won’t be around forever.

RIP

Interesting article; http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/24/arts/design/24study.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=artists%20recession&st=cse

Happy Xmas or what?!

Yesterday evening I was invited to dinner at the house of an art dealer whose gallery I really like. I knew that it would be a lovely event but my expectations were surpassed by the wonderful Xmas decorations laid out, and the quality of the food and our hosts.

I went with a now ex-friend and what transpired was that my addict friend went crazy for a fix when we were still eating. I’d taken her drug off the table – cigarettes – before we’d eaten, and personally it disgusts me that someone would ever put a pack of cigarettes next to food. That was bad enough, but she started jonesing (spelling?) and wanted a fix next to the table whilst we were eating. I told her to wait until we were finished and just leave it. She continued to pollute the occasion with her very vehement cravings and insults.

I basically walked out of the dinner rather than get any more furious than I already was, and it was such a shame for the hosts and myself. The addict, of course, didn’t care.

It’s sad that people who know about this occasion say ‘Well, she’s French.’. It’s become such a synonym that certain types of bad manners are synonomous with being French. What a shame.

Personally I really look forward to the day when smoking is not allowed to intrude so easily into other people’s lives, when people sneak off to do it in private like they would a heroin fix.

I  just sold another painting (very similar to the above, which disappeared/got stolen during a house move) and of course it’s a good thing, but I always feel sad about giving up my babies. I wonder if other artists tend to feel the same way?