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Stuart Bush Studio Blog, Henry Moore, Appreciation of form

Henry Moore’s appreciation of form

Henry Moore’s appreciation of form In my previous blog post, I mentioned Michael Craig-Martin’s interest as a child in the shape and form of American cars. From a very young age, Michael Craig-Martin had the ability to identify every make and model of an American car. I found this profound because as a child I also had this ability, but with British cars in the 80s and 90s.  This foundational understanding and appreciation of form is clearly something that many artists unconsciously encounter from a young age. This week l stumbled on a black and white BBC documentary about Henry Moore (1898 – 1986) and my appreciation of form was enhanced.… Read More »Henry Moore’s appreciation of form

Stuart Bush Studio Blog, Michael Craig Martin Sculpture

Michael Craig-Martin: Sculpture

Michael Craig-Martin: Sculpture review It is hard to understand the incongruities between a successful artist and the work of mere mortals like the rest of us. I want to put into words how can a simple drawing of an object can be turned into a world-class sculptural form. Michael Craig-Martin, the once significant tutor of the YBAs at Goldsmith between 1974-1998, is now showing his latest sculpture at the Gagosian Gallery on Britannia Street in London. Is it the snap at the moment of impact when seeing his work, where he is best in the game? Is it the skill of his placement that no one else comes close to?… Read More »Michael Craig-Martin: Sculpture

the war of art, stuart bush studio notes, book review

War of Art book review

‘The War of Art’ by Steven Pressfield – book review At some point, most creative people realise that something needs to change.  The book  ‘The Art of War’ by Steven Pressfield, essentially it is a self-help book for amateur artists and writers battling with inner self-doubt and fear, to help them understand what is holding them back.   The highlight of the book for me was about learning to overcome resistance and ‘turning pro’ as the book inquires, “Are you a writer who doesn’t write, a painter who doesn’t paint, an entrepreneur who never starts a venture? Then you know what “Resistance” is.”   When I tried to read ‘The Art of… Read More »War of Art book review

What I learnt from Philip Guston, Stuart Bush Studio Blog

What I learnt from Philip Guston

What I learnt from Philip Guston, Stuart Bush: Studio Notes It is well known that during Philip Guston’s career and throughout his life’s work, he toyed with two opposing forms of art. There was the figurative cartoon style of his earlier work in the 1930s and abstract expressionism in the 1950s. Philip Guston’s career highlights what he believed to be the central concern in the career of an artist. No matter what anyone else says or does, Guston believed that “A painters first duty is to be free.” Free to make their own choice, that is said, “unless you’re the kind of an artist that gnaws on one bone all… Read More »What I learnt from Philip Guston

Stuart Bush Studio Blog, Elizabeth Peyton review, A love story between a painter and the subject

Elizabeth Peyton review

A love story between a painter and the subject It is perhaps not surprising that the first thing I am drawn to as I enter Elizabeth Peyton’s new show at Sadie Coles in London is the few abbreviated spontaneous strokes.  The marks capture feelings sending the paintings beyond just physical aspects in her lush romantic paintings.  Over the years the configurations, I have noticed Peyton’s paintings have become more and more involved. However, the subject matter is still the same.  Peyton’s use of light, colour and poignancy has compounded.  The watercolour brushwork is pure and clean like freshly fallen snow.  Through her use of bristles of her brush, Peyton has… Read More »Elizabeth Peyton review

Dreaming about success

Dreaming about success Often when I turn on the shower and step in, I turn on a shower of thoughts and start dreaming. I’m not sure why it happens in the shower, but I think it is a favourable place to be flooded with thoughts and ideas. My mind also, unfortunately, wanders when I am painting. Over time, I have realised I have become a professional daydreamer. This is the wrong time and the wrong place to be dreaming about success and imagining the future. I feel the need to gain some self-mastery of my busy creative mind. I used to think dreaming about the future was my reward for… Read More »Dreaming about success

Leonardo Da Vinci Vitruvian Man

Leonardo Da Vinci book review

Leonardo Da Vinci by Walter Isaacson book review If you have ever wondered about the life and mind of a voracious creative genius, then this is undoubtedly a satisfying read.  Leonardo Da Vinci left 7200 pages of notebooks after his death, filled with anatomical and scientific drawings, detailed designs for new machines and weapons, military strategies, maps, sketches, and observations, as well as 15 paintings.  He was interested in art, engineering, biology, medicine and geology amongst many other subjects.  Walter Isaacson’s book is an interpretation and analysis of those notebooks and paintings.  The six hundreds pages of the book, ‘Leonardo Da Vinci’ by Walter Isaacson it is an immensely impressive undertaking.   Author… Read More »Leonardo Da Vinci book review

Stuart Bush Studio Blog, Adrian Ghenie, Nickelodeon, Adrian Ghenie: The fuel of failure

Adrian Ghenie: The fuel of failure

Adrian Ghenie: The fuel of failure It’s no wonder many people see failure as the most painful moment in their lives, school wrongly teaches us we need to do everything we can to avoid failure.  However, Adrian Ghenie makes it a central power source. Having to face humiliation and shame by returning to home to Cluj, Romania, after trying to start a new life in Vienna drove his artistic ambitions.  Returning to live back at his parents home at age 27 in 2005 he had no future to look forward to. However, Ghenie used his difficult set-back as fuel rather than limitation.   The fuel of failure is a common element… Read More »Adrian Ghenie: The fuel of failure

Chantal Joffe, Stuart Bush Studio Blog

Chantal Joffe – Being Somebody Else

Chantal Joffe asks; What is it like to be somebody else? The first thing I noticed about Chantal Joffe’s paintings at Victoria Miro, in London, is that they challenge the concept of beauty.  Joffe paints the female figure, often in unstinting and frank disclosure.  There is a directness that is fascinating, every blemish and every wort is on show.  From the gradual decay of the sitters through to the triumph of their existence, Joffe paintings depict and embodies her muses.  By portraying the intensity of the moment, she gives the viewer passage to understand how they feel.  The gritty truth of life is there for all to see as it comes slapped down… Read More »Chantal Joffe – Being Somebody Else

Stuart Bush Studio notes, francis bacon

What to paint – The recipe for failure

What to paint – The recipe for failure I remember just starting out as an artist, and I didn’t know what to paint. The choice seems so vast and momentous. I was often lost in thought as I was worried about making the wrong decision. I wasted a lot of time and energy when l should have just got started. Recently I heard this advice from Herbert Swope (b 1958) the editor and journalist, “I can’t give you a sure-fire formula for success, but I can give you a formula for failure: ‘trying to please everyone all the time.” Although these words of wisdom do not come from an artist, it… Read More »What to paint – The recipe for failure