Degas, Hockney and the freeze frame

I went to a free lunchtime lecture at the Royal Academy today on Degas and the Freeze Frame given Professor Katherine Adler, art historian.  She used to be Director of Education at the National Gallery and used examples of paintings she was familiar with in that gallery to provide context for points she was making about Degas and movement.

Interestingly, her view of Degas relationship with photography is very much closer to the one I'd always assumed - although not the one suggested by the exhibition Degas and the Ballet: Picturing Movement.

Here's a summary of some of the points she made:

New Books about Drawing and Sketching in 2011 (and 2012)

Every month when I update The Best New Art Books for the latest new art books, I really hate losing the last month's references to excellent new books.

So I've started a new resource which will certainly help me with my shopaholic habit relating to new books about drawing.

I'm pleased to present to you my new "resources for artists" squidoo site - 2011: New Books about Drawing.  This lists all:

• the new books about drawing and sketching published in 2011 - in hardback, paperback and ebook editions. 
• listed on a month by month basis. 
• Each book highlights the type of format, nature of the book and the reception and reviews it has had to date.

The site focuses on fine art and art instruction books about drawing and sketching for adults.
It INCLUDES:

• books designed specifically for pencils artists 
• books for those keeping sketchbooks and illustrated journals.
• academic books about drawing and catalogues of exhibitions about drawings

It EXCLUDES:

• any reference to specialist books about cartooning, manga and drawing books for children.

New books about Drawing in 2012

I've also published 2012: New Books About Drawing.  Mainly because when I started to look forward I realised there were three very important books about drawing being published next year - all of which I am happy to recommend sight unseen!  Click the link to check out what these are.

It will work on the same principles as the 2011 site - but will update more slowly initially.

Both of these will be bookmarked within my ever popular site about The Best Books about Drawing and Sketching

NEXT WEEK:  I've got some special posts about The Big Draw for the Drawing Month of October.  Which includes an invite for YOU!

In the meantime I'm still trying to finish the updates for:

• The Best NEW Art Books
• Makingamark's Top 10 Fine Art Books

I'll signal here and on twitter when I've done the updates.

I'm late posting - partly because of my brief respite to take advantage of the Indian Summer and partly my freezer failed recently and I've been spending DAYS trying to find a new fridge freezer which will fit in a very precise space and still allow me to open adjacent doors as well as the doors on the fridge freezer!  Do you think manufacturers realise that fitted kitchens last for rather longer than some appliances?

Henriette Simson wins Threadneedle Prize 2011

Henriette Simson - winner of the Threadneedle Prize 2011

Threadneedle Prize 2011

Henrietta Simson has won the £25,000 Threadneedle Prize 2011 for her work Bad Government (After Lorenzetti).  Her win means that a woman artist has now won the prize every year in the four years since it started in 2008.

Each of the six runners-up receives £1,000.  Prizes were awarded by Simon Davies, Executive Chairman of Threadneedle Investments at an awards ceremony on Wednesday 5 October.

Bad Government (After Lorenzetti) by Henriette Simson
Oil and pigment on gesso board, 70x90cms

For those not familiar with Lorenzetti's work - see my post Ambrogio Lorenzetti - the first panorama on The Art of the Landscape.

You can also read more about the background to Henriette's work on her website - and in my interview with her at the preview to the exhibition (Review: Threadneedle Prize Exhibition 2011 - see relevant extract below).  As you can see I spotted she was a serious contender for the prize!

POLL: Do you sign and date your artwork?

Artists have a variety of practices in relation to signing and dating their artwork.  This month's Making A Mark Poll invites you to comment on what your own personal practice is!

The question you're being asked in October is Do you sign and date your artwork?  The options in the poll differentiate between all artwork and artwork for sale and between signing and initialing.  They also allow you to indicate whether you also date your artwork

• yes - always sign all artwork
• yes - always sign and date all artwork
• yes - sign all artwork "for sale"
• yes - sign and date all artwork "for sale"
• yes - initial artwork
• yes - initial and date all artwork
• yes - but only when I remember!
• I neither sign nor date my artwork

I've also created a new website How to Sign a Painting to provide a resource which offers a structured introduction to artists signatures for:

• ARTISTS who want to know more about the best way to sign and date a work of art
• ARTISTS who want help with signatures for specific media (this needs some more work!)
• ART LOVERS AND COLLECTORS who want to know more the signatures of artists from the past and present

It also includes three slightly different polls which expand on this topic:

• POLL: Do you plan your signature?
• POLL: Size and location of the Artist's Signature
• POLL: Do you date your artwork?

Do let me know what your own thoughts are on this topic.  Also I'd be very pleased to hear about any websites which you think are a useful resource.

I aim to summarise best practice after analysing the results of the poll.

You have until 30th October to complete the poll - which you can find in the side column just above "For Your Information". The analysis of the results will be posted on 31st October.

I'm just wondering how many of you are going to 'fess up to not always remembering to sign your artwork before you frame it! ;)

For the record my own personal practice in general is to:

• use small and clear initials on the front of all artwork for sale (when I don't forget!)
• also sign and date all artwork for sale on the reverse

So - what do you do?

What makes somebody buy a painting? (Poll results)

Subject matter, colour and composition are the three most important factors influencing people buying paintings according to the September Making A Mark Poll " Which 3 factors make somebody buy a painting?"

The main reason people tend to buy a painting is "because they like it".  However that needed unpacking as to WHY people like paintings - hence that's the reason why this phrase was not included as an option in the poll.  The poll was also set up so as to see how much weight was accorded to:

• choice of what to paint 
• the manner of its execution
• marketing and selling the painting

Hence in the rest of this post I unpack what that all means in terms of your responses.

153 people responded and I'd like to thank all those who did.  I guess you're interested to see how all the different factors rank!  It's a poll with a large set of possible responses - so to see how the various factors ranked in order of your perceived importance:

• right click the chart below 
• open it in a new tab or window to see a much larger chart

right click to open a much larger version in a new tab

Now for a bit more comment and analysis of the responses - some of which were distinctly odd!