Scott Anderson: Contemporary Painter

 Scott Anderson

            When starting a painting, Scott finds that he often follows a pattern of a process. He usually works from a photo that he has taken or a found photo as a blueprint.  However, he does not copy the photo, he uses it as the base idea only;  often times he says that he even pushes himself away from that original blueprint anyway.  His main example of this was a painting he did of a boar’s head, which he ended up turning on its side and made it into a sort of geometric landscape. 

            He sometimes finds inspiration from things that are found in his life.  Wunderkammer is a German word that means collection of small things to represent curiosities or rarities in worldly items.  You see the influence of Wunderkammer in his works along with interior design (the interior design influence comes from his mother and his wife).  Another influence of his is Mythology.  He finds the progression/change through time to be intriguing.  An example of this change in history is how the ancient god Odin translated to Norwegian gnomes and then to Santa Clause.  An example of a work of his that shows this progression is Funeral (not shown) which depicts a Viking Funeral that looks futuristic but historical simultaneously.  He also finds influence from little shops in his town that sell folk art.  A way that he translated those ideas into his works was the painting Under Earth (not shown). Finally, he has an interest in utopia/dystopia society in relation to the future and world fairs.  This is clearly shown in his painting that depicts the Heliport building.

            He also draws influence from historical famous artists, in particular: Robert Rauschenberg.  Anderson spoke of his person connection to Robert Rauschenberg’s works from the 50s and 60s.  He had a special interest in Rauschenberg’s ability to take images that by themselves can imply strong narratives but Rauschenberg places them in a way that they lose that meaning and just become part of the painting.  This is something that Anderson, too, has mastered in his own works.  His identifiable imagery gets well mixed into a confusion of interior/exterior spaces and geometric patterns.  Anderson’s works seem chaotic, but really they are quite compositionally masterful. 

Alexandra Levasseur: One Drawing a Day

Alexandra Levasseur

Let Me Sleep, acrylic & colored pencils on paper, 14x11"

Alexandra Levasseur, who lives and works in Quebec, challenged herself to a "therapeutic investigation" by completing one drawing a day from 2011 - 2012. The final project consists of 35 pieces, each 11x14", each made with acrylic painting and colored pencils on paper.

"My objective is to explore the spontaneity and inspiration that every morning gives me, either by environmental or emotional circumstances - states of mind, energy, desires, etc." Because this project began in the fall, Levasseur found herself gravitating towards the impressions and perceptions she finds of autumn and winter in Quebec: the increasing tendency toward hibernation and laziness is a common phenomenon and mood during the dark and cold months.


This need for comfort and warmth is illustrated through the physical comfort of the blankets, pillows, and wool clothes that surround her figures.

Winter Bed, acrylic & colored pencils on paper, 14x11"

 In contrast, the walls and coverings often feature flowers and bright colors, elements of spring in which the figure can hide.

Couverture, acrylic & colored pencils on paper, 11x14"

Levasseur's figures encapsulate the difficulty of waking and getting up, the tendency to oversleep, the anxiety, the irritability that comes hand in hand with the cold and the dark winter. Whether these figures are still in bed or are going about their day, these feelings linger.

In her statement, written before the final completion of the project, Levasseur states that she hopes to bring the "diary of seasonal emotional transmutations" through to the spring and summer as the irritability and anxiety of winter disappears.

Not only does this subject matter pertain to my own experiences, but also I find myself drawn to these pieces in general. What I really seem to respond to is the obvious marriage of illustration as an art form and the overt need for telling a story. Each piece does tell its own story. Levasseur's style in general seems to include the fragmentation of the form itself apparent in the samples shown here; I think this only adds to the narrative aspect of these pieces. It sets up a continuous narrative of sorts. At the very least, it establishes movement through the piece, further adding to the anxiety and the irritability she discusses.

Insightful at a Young Age

Dieter Roth: Artist 1930-1988

At the age of ten in 1940, Roth was put into membership with a paramilitary organization of the Hitler Youth,the Pimpfe (Cubs).  He was removed from Germany for a period of time in 1943, and he began writing and drawing frequently commenting on the society’s anxiety from war being a burden on the individual. In 1945 he wrote:

“And as long as this war is raging-it is probably my inner war too - one of development - I will not have personality for the world outside. The war has to be over first, the big one for the development and ultimately the peace of mankind, and the same, small one inside me, then mankind will be mankind, then I will be Dieter.”

Lee Price: American Figurative Realist Oil Painter

Lee Price

Working out of New York this contemporary oil painter focuses on overhead self-portraits.  The viewer is positioned directly above the subject, forcing a literal play-on-words of the viewer looking down on the figure.  The figure's posture responds to this overhead view sometimes with tight-crouching shoulders that hide the body or sometimes with a more relaxed but heavy pose.  Figurative heaviness is apparent in all of her works exemplified by the presence of weighty foods.  The food in combination with settings of bathtubs, beds, and comfy chairs suggests the figure is fetishizing lethargic activities.

Full, Oil on Linen, 44” X 54”

Lemon Meringue, Oil on Linen, 32" x 72"

Price has commented that her works are a comment on "body image, feminism, and our cultural relationship to food."

Butter, Oil on Linen, 66" x 44"

What sparks questions for me in her work is the process.  To capture self-portraits that feature the full body from an overhead angle she must work either with a large-mirror (most obviously) or photographs.  (Or she very adequately renders figures without looking at any reference)  So if she does work from a photograph (to be able to render the proportions of her back, such as in the piece above) why paint it? She can many these works using photography.  Contemporary artists must continuously be conscious of the effects of technologies on the appreciation of art.  These are immensely impressive realist paintings show off her skill as a painter, but what about painting is important for the viewer to understand this piece?

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