Art Alphabet: G - Esther

G! G is for good, gruesome, great, glamorous & grievous. Hopefully this Art Alphabet entry falls nearer to glorious than grotty, but there are no guarantees.

G

1. An Animal (goat): Lithograph of Mountain Goat by Harrison Weir (1824-1906)

I do love a goat & as they go, Weir’s is a magnificent specimen. Weir himself was a great defender of animal protections & portrayed all kinds of animals, including birds. He is said to have founded cat shows & contributed greatly to the positive, changing attitudes towards animals in Victorian times. His illustrations were considered among the best of this era & his compassion can be seen in the observant & careful renderings of a wide range of creatures.

2. Art Movement (Gothic Art): International Gothic Mary Magdalene, 14th Century, St John Cathedral, Toruń, Poland

The artist may not be identified, but it’s very obvious who the subject is & I feel compelled to say it – this is a Hairy Mary. Mary Magdalene is believed by some to have become an ascetic & lived in the desert. As her clothes became tatty & fell off (of course), she miraculously developed a hairy pelt to cover her embarrassment (although if she’s in the desert, who’s going to know, but never mind…) At least this Mary’s hair is relatively attractive & looks more a big wavy frock. In some she’s depicted more as if she is growing the hair from every part of her body, which frankly looks horrific.

3. An Artist (Gober): Untitled Leg by Robert Gober (b. 1954)

Gober is best known for his realistic sculptures of every day objects, in this case, a leg. He used beeswax in casts with real human hair (as well as clothing) to create the leg sculptures. It was sold as part of an auction to support the ACT UP (AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power) movement. ACT UP was formed in response to government inaction at the spread of AIDS. 

4. A Medium (gum): Chewing Gum Art by Ben Wilson (b. 1963)

Wilson’s art is a clear rejection of the build up of waste & litter. He paints pieces of gum that have been stuck onto the pavements & has sculptures all over Europe. It must be incredibly uncomfortable to lie on cold, wet European pavements in the first place & then also to create such minuscule paintings. 

5. A Body Part (goatee): Charles I in Three Positions by Anthony van Dyck (1599-1641)

Perhaps the most famous goatee in all of Art History? & not one, but three of them. Dated c. 1635, it was painted with the king wearing three different coloured outfits & lace collars. It was originally made as a reference picture for a bust, which was said to be an excellent likeness. Van Dyck himself was the top court painter in England, was a hugely influential artist & packed in a lot, despite his death at 42.

6. An Emotion (grief): Inconsolable Grief by Ivan Kramskoi (1837-1887)

Like many artists in their own time, Kramskoi rejected the academic mores of the art establishment & was part of “The Wanderers” movement, a dissenting co-operative dedicated to disputing these restrictions. To our eyes, Kramskoi’s beautiful works nevertheless seem quite traditional, but at the time, his work portrayed interpretations of the subjects’ personalities & psychological states. This work suggests a reflection of the woman’s long road ahead without her loved one, a depiction of the long term suffering caused by grief rather than an obvious outpouring of emotion.

7. A Bird (grebe): Drifting (Great Crested Grebe) by Sanneke Griepink 

Griepink is an Amsterdam artist & I do associate the Great Crested Grebe with the Botanical Gardens there. With its many canals, Amsterdam is a great spot to see various hardy water birds, who will as cheerfully nest on a pile of collected rubbish beside a moored boat as on a reed bed.

8. An Item of Clothing (glove): A Mixture of Frailties by Susie MacMurray (b. 1959)

This 2004 dress (or is it sculpture or installation?) has been created using 1400 rubber gloves, stuck (somehow) to a dressmaker’s mannequin. They’ve been turned inside out to look white & perhaps suggest a wedding dress. The most obvious interpretation would be that it examines the role of women in society & in the home, that this particular woman is being buried under what is expected of her. 

9. A Country (Ghana):  Yellow is the Colour of Water series by Jeremiah Quarshie (b. 1985)

Quarshie cleverly uses the yellow “kufuor” containers as backgrounds to his Yellow is the Colour of Water series in order to raise awareness of water scarcityin his country. These containers are for the collecting & storage of clean water. He has used diverse subjects from different walks of life for this series & it forces us to think of the historical & geographical significance of water. We reflect on how we use it or waste it in different societies & how difficult it is to obtain in others. Using people from different social backgrounds, the series is also a comment on the failure of the government to provide access to safe drinking water & sanitation to all Ghanaians.

10. A Religious Figure (Ganesh): Ganesha by Anita Inverartity

I’m fortunate to count Anita as a friend & something of an art guru. If not for her, I doubt I’d be exhibiting any of my own artworks. I’m also lucky enough to have several of her wonderful originals & prints, including a reproduction of her beautiful Ganesha. Her characteristic use of pattern & small details work especially well with the subject. Ganesh is found in different Hindu traditions & the story goes that he was the son of Parvati & Shiva, a boy made from the earth by his mother. Not realising who he was Shiva chopped off the boy’s head. After Parvati rages at him, the repentant Shiva has to find another head & the nearest creature is an elephant. There are lots of stories about Ganesh’s abilities to overcome any problems & as a result, he’s linked with intelligence.