English painting also produced two men of genius: Turner and Constable. Kenneth Clark, Civilisation 11/13: The Worship of Nature
Turner – he was a genius of the first order; far the greatest painter that England has ever produced. ibid.
At that time the Impressionists had no idea they were following up a philosophical theory. ibid.
Finally he [Monet] turned to the water lily garden which he had made in his grounds ... Total immersion ... I feel therefore I am. ibid.
They swore an oath to establish a constitution. David, the painter of Republican virtue, was commissioned to record the scene. Kenneth Clark, Civilisation 12/13: The Fallacies of Hope
The first picture in which Delacroix is entirely himself is The Massacre at Chios. ibid.
Some of his greatest pictures were inspired by Byron. ibid.
Rodin – he was the last great romantic artist ... What an artist he was. ibid.
In France there emerged two painters whose social realism was in the centre of the European tradition: Jean-Francios Millais and Gustave Courbet. They were both revolutionaries. ibid.
Courbet painted an even more impressive example of his sympathy with ordinary people – his enormous picture of a funeral ... Courbet achieves a feeling of equality in the presence of death. ibid.
Among its most beautiful productions are these paintings by Renoir ... Just a group of ordinary human beings enjoying themselves. ibid.
The Impressionists didn’t set out to be popular. The only great painter ... in the widest possible sense was ironically enough the only one who achieved absolutely no success in his lifetime: Vincent van Gogh. ibid.
His unconquerable need to paint. ibid.
At this point I reveal myself in my true colours as a stick-in-the-mud. I hold a number of beliefs that have been repudiated by the liveliest intellects of our time. I believe that order is better than chaos. Creation better than destruction. I prefer gentleness to violence. Forgiveness to vendetta. On the whole I think that knowledge is preferable to ignorance. And I am sure that human sympathy is more valuable than an ideology. I believe that in spite of recent triumphs of science men haven’t changed much in the last two thousand years. And in consequence we must still try to learn from history: history is ourselves ... I believe in courtesy ... And I think we should remember that we are part of a great whole, which for convenience we call nature. All living things are our brothers and sisters. Above all, I believe in the god-given genius of certain individuals. And I value a society that makes their existence possible. Kenneth Clark, Civilisation 13/13: Heroic Materialism
Art is not a matter of taste, but involves the whole man. Whether in making or perceiving a work of art, we bring to bear on it feeling, intellect, morals, knowledge, memory, and every other human capacity, all focused in a flash on a single point. Aesthetic man is a concept as false and dehumanizing as economic man.
Even the most superior mind and the most powerful imagination must found itself on facts, which must be recognized for what they are. The imagination will often reshape them in a way which the prosaic mind cannot understand; but this recreation will be based on facts, not on formulas or illusions.
These facts must be perceived by the senses, or felt; not learnt.
The greatest artists and schools of art have believed it their duty to impart vital truths, not only about the facts of vision, but about religion and the conduct of life.
Beauty of form is revealed in organisms which have developed perfectly according to their laws of growth, and so give, in his own words, ‘the appearance of felicitous fulfilment of function.’
This fulfilment of function depends on all parts of an organism cohering and cooperating. This was what he called the ‘Law of Help’, one of Ruskin’s fundamental beliefs, extending from nature and art to society.
Good art is done with enjoyment. The artist must feel that, within certain reasonable limits, he is free, that he is wanted by society, and that the ideas he is asked to express are true and important.
Great art is the expression of epochs where people are united by a common faith and a common purpose, accept their laws, believe in their leaders, and take a serious view of human destiny. Kenneth Clark, A Note on Ruskin’s Writings on Art and Architecture cited Ruskin Today (John Murray, 1964) (reissued as Selected Writings pp. 133-34)
cf.
The process of seeing paintings or anything else is less spontaneous and natural than we tend to believe. It isn’t so much the paintings themselves I want to consider as the way we now see them. John Berger, Ways of Seeing
A lot more is possible, but only if art is stripped of the false mystery and the false religiosity that surrounds it. ibid.
The Shock of the New: Seven Historic Exhibitions of Modern Art. Ian Dunlop, title of book
Find that piece, Charlie. The piece that doesn’t belong here. Bronson 2009 starring Tom Hardy & Matt King & James Lance & Amanda Burton & Kelly Adams & Juliet Oldfield & Jonathan Phillips & Mark Powley & Hugh Ross & Joe Tucker & Gordon Brown & Charlie Whyman et al, director Nicolas Winding Refn, art teacher to Bronson
You’re a brilliant artist ... You’re a star. ibid.
the way to create art is to burn and destroy
ordinary concepts and to substitute them
with new truths that run down from the top of the head
and out of the heart. Charles Bukowski
Style is the answer to everything.
A fresh way to approach a dull or dangerous thing
To do a dull thing with style is preferable to doing a dangerous thing without it
To do a dangerous thing with style is what I call art. Charles Bukowski
I’m painting an idea not an ideal. Basically, I’m trying to paint a structured painting full of controlled, and therefore potent, emotion. Euan Uglow
He was an artist when he saw society: it never crossed his mind that society had to be like this; had any right, had any business being like this. A car in the street. Why? Why cars? This is what an artist has to be: harassed to the point of insanity or stupefaction by first principles. Martin Amis
So that was ten years ago. This building sent out an unmistakable signal about contemporary art’s new valued position in mainstream culture. Tate Modern’s monumental size reflected Art’s new confidence. Tate Modern is Ten! A Culture Show Special 2/7, BBC 2010
Fifteen years ago Tate Modern was a derelict power station filled with the old turbines that gave the great hall its name. The decision to leave the Turbine Hall as one vast space has given Tate Modern a particular look and feel. Unique among modern art museums. ibid.
There have been ten Turbine Hall installations over the years. Sometimes they were very simple – you slid down giant slides ... Sometimes they were very bodily ... Another time there was an unsettling crack in the floor by Doris Salcedo [Shibboleth, 2007] ibid.
They’re going to build Tate Modern all over again ... Tate Modern II will rise above. ibid.
The most popular and successful art museum in the world. ibid.
Only at this juncture of my professional life can I state my worth as a human being. Because I see that in Art is man’s striving for the truth, for order, for the sense that has evaded him in the stupidity of existence. Only in recognition of this truth in Art can my respect be commanded. Kenneth Williams, Fantabulosa! BBC 2006
Some law enforcement agencies suggest 40 or 50% of the art market could be forgeries. Detective Sergeant Vernon Rapley, Scotland Yard Art & Antiquities
Oil billionaire and art collector J Paul Getty … The Getty Centre museum – it has a priceless collection of art, and it’s one of the wealthiest institutions of its kind in the world. Gettys: The World’s Richest Art Dynasty, BBC 2018
Three generations of Gettys have used art and wealth to change the art world and British culture for ever. ibid.
Mark is a passionate collection of contemporary art. ibid.
The offer from oil giant Texaco would ultimately be successful. The sale of Getty Oil for $10 billion would be the biggest corporate take-over in history. ibid.
Across two decades Paul Getty donated over £15m to the BFI. The film and television heritage of Britain received a new lease of life. ibid.