Elections, Images and History

The last few months have been home to some stunning events in this country. The results of the presidential election were unexpected and have created a lot of concern and anxiety. There seems to be some possibility a foreign country has tried to unduly influence the election. The Dakota Pipeline protest has pitted peaceful water-protectors against public law enforcement that have decided to protect a large company that does not have permission to dig the land they are on. Sometimes it seems like the world is going, as they used to say, "to Hell in a hand basket."  As I sit in my studio painting, I am aware of a world around me crumbling. I am aware of my privilege to be able to sit in my studio and paint while these events unfold.

Part of the craziness that people feel is the way in which words and symbols are now twisted and used to hurt people instead of to help them. Politicians and media take images and words that used to be positive and sow doubt about their meaning, about their value.  As I research the early Modernist movement in art, I can't help but think about similarities. After all, it was the greedy and political actions of the upper-class in the late 1800's that eventually led to the Great Depression - much like our recent Great Recession.  The early- to mid-1800's, with the rise of the Industrial Age and the middle-class, and the subsequent rise to wealth and power for a few families, were very tumultuous times. The Modernist movement in art, before there was mass media or an internet, was one manner in which the days' problems could be framed and discussed. From its inception, the Modernist movement was a struggle against institutionalized parameters of success which used idiomatic symbols to express a conceited sense of the common. Modernism was seeking something more. The true Modernist sought authenticity through presenting a personal individual view of the world, as opposed to the institutionally accepted view of the world.

We are trying to do the same these days, but those who dictate images and words to the masses seem to have upped their game and gotten ahead of us. It won't be easy to reclaim a societal perspective that is based on the personal experience of millions - after all, how do you do that?  There are certainly lessons to be learned from Trump, Clinton and Sanders and how they galvanized large segments of our population. The fight is there -- a fight to make a country that works for all of its citizens, not just a few.

A New Year and a New Website

There's a new look to my website: www.markgranlund.com. Easier navigation! Bigger images!
Check it out!

Gull Island Rise: Oil Paint

Gull Island Rise

Oil Paint on Canvas

12" x 14"
$175

Although I have been busy learning my new job, I have also been busy painting in my studio. This painting is of a rocky rise on Gull Island on Rainy Lake. In it I continue to explore early Modernist techniques for expressing nature.

This last summer, while painting at Mallard Island on Rainy Lake, I found myself going back to the same old way I had been painting landscapes for years. I recognized this soon after beginning and then consciously started working in a more geometric manner to represent the water. Although this technique is not about being realistic, it captures the experience of how water reflects many colors and creates many patterns -- capturing the essence and energy of the scene in front of my eyes.

Job Change - Hurray!

My big art news for me is that after twenty-two years working as the Arts and Gardens Coordinator for the City of Saint Paul I have a new job as the Public Art Administrator with Metro Transit. I have been at the new job for about eight weeks and am enjoying it very much. With this big change I decided to put off teaching classes this fall (and generally put off some responsibilities like writing blog entries) until I became comfortable in the new position. I am very excited to work with the new people and new environment at Metro Transit, along with working with more artists and overseeing a growing public art collection. Since you are reading this blog entry, you might assume that I am becoming comfortable in this new position and am starting to begin some art activities again. This is true! I will be posting some new paintings and announcing a couple of shows in 2017 soon. Until then, please check out the watercolor class I am offering in January at Jack-in-the-Pulpit Studio.