Expecting Rain

^ In His Own Words: Why Bob Dylan Paints

"I believe that the key to the future is in the remnants of the past. That you have to master the idioms of your own time before you can have any identity in the present tense. Your past begins the day you were born and to disregard it is cheating yourself of who you really are."

This is absolutely fantastic. Bob is such a great prose writer. He should do it more often. I can't wait to see the exhibition.

Oh, Lord. Thank you for this. I can't even begin to explain what this means to me, on so many levels. Caravaggio - the camera obscura - he deserves not only a Nobel prize in literature, but also for his art work and for the effort that he has always put into anything that he does. He does his homework. Thank you once again, Bob.
"In every picture the viewer doesn’t have to wonder whether it’s an actual object or a delusional one. If the viewer visited where the picture actually existed, he or she would see the same thing. It is what unites us all."

Wow what a wonderful surprise! Incredible read

Yes, great read, indeed! I assume that this is the Foreword to the catalogue of Beaten Path images.

At one time, I was told that these were not sketches to which color was then added, as in Drawn Blank images. In the gallery view, however, it looks like we have two colorways for the same Endless Highway work, which would presume a similar method as Drawn Blank. Am I seeing that correctly?....grave

Do we know if this is prose? It might be an edited interview. It's very similar in tone to his previous art interviews, and he's given quotes on many of his previous artworks and exhibitions. But yes, it is good.

When he says, "It would have to be that way. Absolutely." it sure does sound like an interview. That's why I wondered if this is the Foreword, or if we should expect something else in the catalogue of Beaten Path works....grave

Nice how he admits, in so many words, that he is painting from photos. As if we didn't know!

from scottw's Twitter:
[url]https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CwTvc31VEAAkkrv.jpg
[/url]

So is he taking pictures, enlarging them, printing them, and then just working from those pictures (along with his basic sketches that will also be displayed at the exhibit) to create the paintings? And do we think he is still just starting with sketches from the photos, adding the paint later to allow for new colorways? Sorry for my lack of knowledge; while I loved my art history class, it was a long time ago and did not engage quite so much with technique. And my interest in these works is largely aesthetic rather than technical....grave

Oh no, he's not taking the photos himself. So far, he's always used existing images, and often by famous photographers. I suppose that's where his camera obscura comes in, whether that is real or imagined - but he traces the image and it comes out very close to the respective photo. The Drawn Blank Series seem to be an exception, in that the pencil sketches were made from life. As for the sketches in this new show, it remains to be seen where they come from.

Here's one of many examples, from The Asia Series:
https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/564x/98/9a/be/989abe7a4715e22ab40726af4fb4d416.jpg

That's right...I remember the Asia Series photos. In this interview/essay, he seems to say that he is taking the pictures himself by naming the exact lens/camera, right? Are you just questioning the veracity of his claim, given the earlier discoveries about the Asia Series?

Either way, do we assume that he then traces the image from the photo (which, as he says, can now be printed in whatever size he chooses...thereby avoiding the fill-in tracing method of earlier camera obscura work), giving the basic sketch that can then be completed with the various colorways?....grave

The article does state that this is "the introduction to a new exhibition of his landscapes opening Saturday at London’s Halcyon Gallery."

In 2011, I suggested that Dylan was likely using camera obscura when creating come some of his paintings. He writes about using that method in this article.

He's also using a lot of cut and paste from this glossary of art terms: https://noma.org/uploads/Glossary_with_ ... 286964.pdf

"In His Own "Words" is not the best title. "In His Chronicles: Volume One Voice" would have been more apropos.

Yes, that would be it - not necessarily to create different colorways, but just to fill in colors for that one painting he wants to do. I don't think he is talking about taking photos, but rather about creating a projecting device to trace the desired image onto paper or canvas. It's a lot of real fancy talk, but remember it's Dylan, he works like that, so questioning his claims is not so much doubting his sincerity but a necessity in evaluating his modern work.

Not to criticise your regularly brilliant work, but isn't that like criticising Bob for borrowing words from the dictionary? That looks like a pretty extensive glossary, so every art term Bob uses is going to be in it. Or is he using whole phrases from the definitions of the terms?

Dylan:
Flowing or curved lines form another visual vehicle, suggesting a far distance in a landscape painting. Architecture itself is always a vital source of ideas and inspiration, but, always, "The Beaten Path" tries to return to the traditional methods of perceptions-things that are perceived in the visible world-taking the three dimensional into a two dimensional format using contrast, location, isolation, and convergence.

Glossary of Art Terms:

Aerial Perspective: Also referred to as atmospheric perspective. A method utilized by artists to suggest a far distance in a landscape painting. As the distance between an object and the viewer increases, outlines become less precise and colors become less pronounced and bluer.

Classical: Referring to the art of ancient Greece and Rome. The Greeks created art based on the ideals of perfect proportion and logic instead of emotion. The Romans adapted Greek art and spread it throughout the civilized world which ensured that it remained a vital source of ideas and inspiration. Classical art possesses formal, finished, and polished qualities.

Fauvism: Derived from the French word fauve meaning “wild beast,” fauvism was the first of the avant-garde movements that flourished in France in the early years of the 20th century. Fauve painters broke from Impressionism as well as traditional methods of perception. The style is defined by a use of bright, vivid colors directly from the tube often applied in broad flat areas with undisguised brushstrokes. Artists associated with the Fauve movement include Henri Matisse and George Braque.

Figurative: Representative art which portrays things perceived in the visible world such as the human figure or nature however altered or distorted it may be.

Cubism: Influential 20th century art movement that first appeared in 1907 and was spearheaded by Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque. Cubism is an analytic study in form and an attempt to represent three-dimensions on a two-dimensional format. Objects are represented from many different points of view simultaneously using overlapping facets. Followers of Picasso and Braque include Ferdinand Leger, Jacques Lipchitz and Jean Metzinger.

Focal point: The first part of a work to attract the attention of the viewer and to which the eye returns most naturally. Focal points are created by contrast, location, isolation, convergence, and use of the unusual.

https://noma.org/uploads/Glossary_with_ ... 286964.pdf

Thanks for the longer reply, Scott. Looks like Bob's up to his old tricks!

GREAT SCOTT! (I finally found out your moniker, Scott )

so- quote, Bob Dylan -

"Appearances can be deceiving."

+

"If the viewer visited where the picture actually existed, he or she would see the same thing. It is what unites us all."

=

'man deceives, Out There Abides.'


love how he uses the academic definitions as 'deceptions' of 'not his words' to describe what his paintings are not.

'to be academic=use the jargon deceiving its proscriptions.'




love your Neon Signs page, very inspiring brilliant, Scott, great job





"Great Scott!" - says Bob Superman

That is a very interresting text, and I assume that much of what he says of his approach to painting can be said of his approach to portray reality in song. I will come back to that later.

As for the rather stuffy part of him describing painting and name dropping.... I am glad to hear he copy/pasted some, I was getting worried of the Nobel Prize having it's deathening effect on him.

Blimey, glad you're not marking my Uni homework Scott!

It would be difficult to discuss these techniques without referring to the precise technical terms. Your analysis shows that Dylan has read this particular glossary, and had it open whilst composing this piece, as you would expect from such a viracious autodidact as Bob. But like Gibsona says it's a reference book so I don't see any foul or 'old tricks'.

So Bob does use a Camera Obscura!

an ancient technique
to show us the present,
or show us pieces of the past in the present,
there was a lot of talk about *time* in that article,
camera obscura seems perfect,
makes it almost more rich than the ones he just draws freehanded

I think his cut and paste technique is more successful here than in a lot of his songs, possibly because the borrowing is more germane. It does make the exhibition seem very appealing.