ISOM SYMBOLIC ART

Saturday, August 16, 2014

The garden.

Garden of serenity. Sharpie pen drawing. 8"X10" 2014

"What I dream of is an art of balance, of purity and serenity devoid of troubling or depressing subject matter - a soothing, calming influence on the mind, rather like a good armchair which provides relaxation from physical fatigue."
Henri Matisse

Thursday, August 14, 2014

Humming of the strings.

Geometry and mathematical rations

harmonics and proportionality

Ink drawing 14"X17"

"There is geometry in the humming of the strings,
there is music in the spacing of the spheres." Pythagoras

Tuesday, August 5, 2014

Viral exploration.

Viral exploration. Ink drawing 14"X17".

An artistic mind can find beauty anywhere - but what about the world's most deadly viruses and bacteria? They can spark interesting cognitive dissonance in viewers as they are both attractive and repulsive.

Sunday, July 27, 2014

Mind oscillations.

“The pendulum of the mind oscillates between sense and nonsense, not between right and wrong.”
― C.G. Jung

"Things hidden in my head" Copyright 2014 © Ronald D. Isom, Sr.

Sunday, July 20, 2014

Metropolis

Saturday, July 19, 2014

Dog catalog 11"X17" Sharpie pen drawing.

Monday, July 7, 2014

A friend reminded me to today of the lack of original thought and the excessive use of memes on Facebook. I have preached the gospel of creativity for many years but I have fallen prey to meaningless meme postings. This posting could be a meme. It is not original thought; countless articles and research papers are available on the internet. At least my art is original. Hold on a minute! My work contains elements and ideas from other artists. There are entire internet sites dedicated to Sharpie art. I am certainly not the first person to doodle. I use quotes from books to explain my art. It is an age old story we fool ourselves into thinking we came up with an "original" idea. I guess I am just trapped in my minds meme.

“Many myths and religions have some kind of threat of retribution from their god or gods, and their doctrines warn of the dangers of doing various forbidden things. Why? Because memes involving danger are the ones we pay attention to! As oral traditions developed, our brains were set up to amplify the dangers and give them greater significance than the rest.”
― Richard Brodie, Virus of the Mind: The New Science of the Meme

Thursday, July 3, 2014

Hobby Lobby culture...

Long before Hobby Lobby became involve in moral issues many "artsy-fartsy" stores were forcing their cultural views on the public. They always purported to have the answer of how to make art and provided their customers with "easy to follow instructions". Back when I started teaching in 1961, the "craft store" concept was limited to a few hobby stores that specialize in car, plane and train kits. Art teachers generally ordered their supplies from industrial sources and a few art supply houses. Most purchases were limited to bulk paint, paper, clay etc. Craftsmen worked materials by hand and had an intimate knowledge of manipulation of materials. "Crafty creep" soon set in and more and more kits and stencils found their way into the world of fine art. Today, big box art stores are filled with pre-made items that stifle creativity and they have become the arbiters of taste. Perhaps, it is a stretch to compare abortion issues to crafty items but I think the " I have all the answers" philosophy can be a slippery slope. Personal freedom to choose and control our moral beliefs and our artistic expression is a fundamental right.