On Monday night I was walking home just before dusk and was caught up with how magical everything looked, especially the clouds. Lately I’ve been sketching whenever I can - it balances out my Web Analytics work and keeps me rooted in what I fundamentally aim, an artist.
In fact, I’d challenge anyone tell me that eyes of an artist aren’t needed in almost any field. I was at my doctor’s office on a routine visit and I noticed how many people were calling for advice and consultation. I asked the doctor how he managed to deal with so many people on know what to say over the phone. The doctor replied: I like to talking to people over the phone, I get to know them and I can pick up things about how they’re doing and what they need just by talking to them.
Especially today, with so much data, so many inputs, so much information hitting us from all sides and even though time and space …. the ability to synthesize, to filter out, to abstract and get the essential meaning ….. it vital in Medicine, as is in Art.
That’s why, when I visited France last month, and stood in front of Cezanne’s mountain in Aix-en-Provence, I remembered how he took in all the data - all that information -and made it his own.  Slavish imitation is not Art…any more than a Doctor rattling off a bunch of medical tests and diagnosis ….. what you want for Doctors and Artists …. is the story….the synthesis … the meaning of what you there for.
Fundamentally, Art is about “seeing” - it always was and it always will be; everything else grafted on it may be valid, or not, but it’s the vision thing….the Artist “sees”…..and that’s where the synthesis arises.
Also, after reading The World Vision of Paul Cezanne and Delacroix’s Journal, I can say that Art about feelings that can’t be verbalized - the images are but heliographs into the feelings of the Artist.
It’s getting harder to figure out what is and is not allowed in museums, since, more and more, they don’t want people to photograph anything and want to sell post cards and movies to make a profit themselves.
The quality of the Clark Collection, for many of the pictures - are unparalleled, and there are some excellent Corot and Renoir paintings. Renoir is an uneven artist for me…most of his work reminds me of sicken sweet cough syrup - and yet, there are some superb portraits along with banal paintings of Renoir that I, personally, dislike.
There were also some Matisse paintings, that I don’t commonly see and a fantastic Van Gogh, I think it’s called the Red Room.
I’ve been meaning to write this down but I keep forgetting to - like I can’t quite grasp the thought.
Why is some artwork better than others (I’m also thinking of my own work); I believe it has to do with the “confrontational” nature of art. The more art is “surprising” the more powerful it is.
Example: a couple of weeks ago I painted a still life of a plant - and it was more powerful because I felt as if I “faced” the plant - connected.   I often think of Van Gogh’s drawings of “hands” - it’s as if he’s seeing a hand or his face, for the first time, and drawing it - it’s the power of discovery - the act of confronting - of seeing the world as if you’ve never set sight on it before.
I could not find a digital copy to the hand drawings I’m looking for - the portrait of Van Gogh does the same thing.
This is what I’m going after - the power to shock and arrest your attention by the sheer beauty, something your discovering as your coming in contact with the subject of your work.
I’d like to think that’s also true of Web Analytics - the power of assembling data - can somethings create “ah ha” type of insights - at least, that’s what I’m going after.
Because, at the heart of it all, art is, I believe, a quest for knowing - for learning about something, and for capturing the essence of it in some form.
BTW, it’s also helpful for me to imagine what it was like to paint, to create a work of art, when viewing it. Sometimes, the innovation that art is, is not as apparent until you imagine yourself as the artist - then it all falls into place.
