I've had some feedback from post #10, about railing against the conceptualists.
Far from it, I think the conceptual movement has been a vitalising and challenging force in the art world, and some of my favourite art is 'conceptual' in nature.
I just find it both upsetting and annoying: the way that artists demean their work by the things they write about it … and the fact that contemporary courses encourage this stuff.
Write about your process … write about your techniques … write about interesting things you found along the way … but please, do we have to write rubbish as well?
Remember, the best art stands on its own, moves us at a deep level, and requires no explanation of what it represents, no details of references.
Sometimes when I exhibit, I write a little story or poem for each painting. But the stories that get read most avidly go with the paintings that people like most: the art must stand on its own, if it needs propping up with a heap of junk, then it is a heap of junk.
