diptych inspiration 2.

Matt Siber

Matt Siber’s main appeal is the way he brings attention to themes that people pass by daily and rarely consider. His work has strong potential in connotations of culture and branding that are too easily overlooked (under-considered). Denotatively there is a haunting appeal in his work that again takes innocuous signage and pulls back its innocent existence in an over-saturated visual environment.

Cola, 2006-7

Siber’s work informs the way I am thinking about how to draw attention to what is easily overlooked--nature. Unless one makes a practice of considering their environment, they most likely will not give a second thought to the construction, whether “miraculous” or “base,” which gives it shape.

McDonald's, 2003

Many of his projects are extremely simple and this provides a clear focus on the subject matter. I wonder at times at the potential vapidness of his work, but with enough time I expect most would be able to discern the message he is communicating. The personal takeaway for me is the clarity. I tend to be verbose and while I wouldn’t attribute that tendency to the field of art, it is possible to be unclear both in too little and too much information.

Untitled #13, 2003

diptych inspiration 1.

Leonardo da Vinci

+3 images

da Vinci’s place in art history is remarkable by itself. The personal appeal lies in the thought and calculation da Vinci employed behind his genius. Many historians and critiques observe the mathematical precision inherent in his works. With immense skill and immense care he drafts precise works of art which generally are relegated to a discipline apart from intense calculation in my mind. Looking beneath the surface reveals to me that I am ignorant of the process some artists undergo in their craft.

Vitruvian Man.

For my big idea of Randomness vs. Specificity in nature, it was da Vinci’s Vesuvius Man which particularly caught my attention. He took a natural form (the human male) and subjected it to further mathematical examination. In so doing he speeds my thinking along the same lines as I consider the foundation of nature and in what ways (if any) it can be reduced and understood.

Womb (anatomical drawings)

I was further inspired to think deeply about my project, and the ways in which the seemingly covert theme of specificity could be shown. I fear being too overt in this attempt but understand too that I am in process. There is a fundamental simplicity in da Vinci, and this forces me to consider the building blocks and how I can incorporate them, directly or indirectly, to achieve my final goal.

The Last Supper