ISOM SYMBOLIC ART: symbols

Showing posts with label symbols. Show all posts

Tuesday, March 29, 2022

Sunday, February 27, 2022

Bees are the connectors between the spiritual and material realms. ... The fertilization of flowers requires the work of pollinators, which is the role that many types of bees fill. Because of this, in many contexts, bees can spiritually represent fertility, birth, growth, new beginnings, and new life.

Friday, February 18, 2022

Plays at Belleville East.

I began my twenty-eight year teaching career at Belleville East High School in 1966. It was a new school and several of the campus style buildings were still unfinished and the art room was not equipped and ready for use. Art classes were held in a regular classroom without art tables or supplies. We were told that everything should be ready in a few months; t was about three months before we move to the new art building. Those three months help form my teaching philosophy at Belleville East. My mantra became manipulation of materials at hand and creative problems solving. We made projects out of building scraps and and found objects. We used copy paper and number two pencils to created our art work on typical school desks. Those early exploration into creativity continued even after all the equipment and supplies arrived.

In addition to teaching art I began to work on school plays. I was the faculty technical director for over fifty productions. My skills manipulating materials was really challenged. The beautiful new school did not have an auditorium or theater. There was a building used as a lecture hall that could be divided into three separate areas and it was used primarily for study halls and meetings. It had a few theater type seats and a raised lecture are made of concrete. The space was about twenty by thirty feet with no wing space, curtain or back stage areas. It also had to wall on each side that narrowed the space even more. This remained as the only performance are until after I retired when a new theater was built. A few plays were put on in the gym until the principle asked me if I could use the lecture space for productions. That first play was a challenge. No lights, no curtains, no dressing rooms, no tools just a bare concrete area. I purchase a portable light dimmer and had it wires to a small utility room. The dimmer had to sit in isle and was operated without a booth. We bought a few lights and the custodian attached a pipe to the ceiling and we had minimal lighting. We also bought a follow spot and positioned in the back of the room. I built flats in the hallway and made a few sandbags to support them. It was lucky that the first play was “A midsummer nights dream” and we got by with a few flats and some platforms. The student bathrooms in the hallway served as dressing rooms. I owe a lot to that first play and it taught me the value of creative problem solving. For the next thirty years I technical directed over fifty plays. Each play added more creative additions to that lecture center. The wall were removed a wood floor was added a light booth was build. I watch a small unusable space become an intimate proformance area. My only regret is that I did not get the opportunity to use a real theater.

Thursday, February 17, 2022

Painting experiment.

Painting experiment circa 1990's. Acrylic/enamel paint, found objects, old brushes. Sheet of masonite 4'X4'. Governor French Academy Studio.

Sunday, February 13, 2022

From the expanse of space to the microscopic view of structures.

The primary influence on my work is the natural world, from the expanse of space to the microscopic view of structures. I am not interested in reproducing what I see. Instead I am seeking a way to go beyond the world of nature and into the place between what we can see and what we cannot.

My interest, at either end of this spectrum of this reality, continues to feed my imagination.

Thursday, February 10, 2022

Watercolor technique with Pixelmator app and I Pad pro.

Friday, January 28, 2022

Altered book

What sets art apart from other technological endeavors is not the innovative use of technology, but a creative misuse of it. To use a tool as it was intended, whether a screwdriver or spreadsheet, is simply to fulfill its potential. Misusing a tool by peeling off its ideological wrapper and applying it to a purpose or effect that was not its maker's intention-artists can exploit a technology's hidden potential in an intelligent and revelatory way.

Tuesday, January 25, 2022

The desire for repetition and order, forms an inherent part of my psyche. My recent work considers the creative application of repetitive processes, motifs and meticulous order. I am exploring and trying to understand why I am drawn to repeated, ritualized actions and to motifs which have become increasingly more obsessive.

“The creative habit is like a drug. The particular obsession changes, but the excitement, the thrill of your creation lasts.”(Henry Moore)

Wednesday, January 19, 2022

Acrylic marker drawings.

Acrylic markers on black canvas paper 9" X 12"

Monday, January 17, 2022

Natural world

My interest, at either end of this spectrum of this reality, continues to feed my imagination.

Isom Symbolic Art prints

Prints of art work posted on this blog are available for purchase. Please email if you are interested.

The prints offered for sale are printed on a HP Envy 5420 in house on 8-1/2” X 11” paper. For all practical purposes the prints are artist proof’s and printed in limited numbers. The prints are not archival prints but printed on good quality bond or photographic paper. The prints are signed/dated and make my work available to a wider audience and serve as an introduction to my work.

What is important to note is that the artist proof prints are of the same quality, type, media etc as the regular edition (unless of course the artist declares otherwise). The only difference between them is the restricted quantity of prints bearing the A/P designation. Traditionally, the artist was very involved in the printmaking process. As the first “proofs” were either pulled or printed, the artist would work out the color and quality issues as they came out of the press.

Note: Signed and numbered digital prints on archival paper are available at my gallery. They are generally printed in editions of ten.

Definition:

Modern printing methods such as laser and ink-jet printing are known as digital printing. In digital printing, an image is sent directly to the printer using digital files such as PDFs and those from graphics software such as Illustrator and InDesign. This eliminates the need for a printing plate, which is used in offset printing, which can save money and time.

Without the need to create a plate, digital printing has brought about fast turnaround times and printing on demand.

Instead of having to print large, pre-determined runs, requests can be made for as little as one print. While traditional printing techniques result in slightly better quality prints, digital methods are being worked on at a fast rate to improve quality and lower costs.

Sunday, January 16, 2022

Earth poem

The Isom Asemic Code Cipher is a cryptogram code system. This form of cipher embodies geometric and organic shapes. Because it use basic shapes it is an economical and effective method of transmitting confidential information. These devices were often employed by the ancients or by the Medieval philosophers and alchemists. The mystics of the Middle Ages used a system of cryptography which concealed the secrets of the human soul. The Isom Asemic Code Cipher can only be decoded by individuals versed in the deep philosophic principles upon which many mystics based their theories of life. Much information relating to the invisible nature of man is hidden under what seems to be mere scribbles and unrecognizable organic shapes. Every student of symbolism and philosophy should be acquainted with the underlying principles of cryptography. This art furnishes a fascinating method of developing an acute mental awareness. Discrimination and observation are indispensable to the person seeking knowledge, and no study is equal to cryptography as a means of invigorating these powers

Sunday, January 9, 2022

CODEX ISOM stickers.

Wednesday, January 5, 2022

Still life just like real life

Painting is from the Governor French Academy permanent collection circa 1970.

Acrylic, ink collage. 4' X 4' on paperboard.

Monday, December 27, 2021

Enlightenment.

“A choir is made up of many voices, including yours and mine. If one by one all go silent then all that will be left are the soloists.

Don’t let a loud few determine the nature of the sound. It makes for poor harmony and diminishes the song.”

― Vera Nazarian, The Perpetual Calendar of Inspiration

There is a lot of hand wringing and whining on the internet regarding gun violence, police brutality, bullying, torture, religious violence, prejudice and in general the brutal nature of society. I am not a scholar or a social scientist but it is evident to me that all of these things have been part of human experience for some time. My introduction to this behavior was subtle a first and it just became part of my life. Early on my father used teasing, spanking and bullying as a way to disciple me and “teach me a lesson.” His techniques were not unique, many of my friends during the nineteen forties and fifties had the same experience and few were “spared the rod”. In Catholic school we were told of the horrors of hell and that we would be tortured for eternity if we did not shape up and “fly right”. We also were served a daily dose of quilt and the need for repentance. Our playground was a hot bed of teasing and bulling. We also all played cowboys and indians and killed a lot of “redskins” and played with cap guns, our weapon of choice. We had lot of violent toys, bb guns, tomahawks, slingshots and many of my friends killed birds and some use their bb guns on animals and humans. Saturday theater matinee’s were filled with good old western justice with shoot outs and an occasional hanging. Before I had a family, I witnessed two wars and saw scores of war movies that glorified killing. My children were brought into the world during the Vietnam war and a new batch of war toys was given to the public. As I write this I can hear that old refrain that the good old days produced strong adults with a good sense of right and wrong and the kids of today are coddled and spoiled. We complain that video games are making them violent and they have no respect for authority. If your parents were raising you now, vs. decades ago, they’d be subject to these influences, too.

It is evident to me that most Americans like or tolerate violence in some form. You might enjoy the quarterback throwing a “bomb” or a great tackle rings a players bell. Perhaps you like secret agents dispatching a few bad guys with explosives. Watching a boxer get his “brain rotated” might be something you enjoy. A vengeful pitcher “beaning” a player to get even might be your cup of tea. You may also get your fix of violence and bigotry from soap operas, reality shows, or police dramas. Some simply enjoy bad behavior over and over on U tube. I can’t forget about videos of racing accidents that are often slowed down so we can see someone die in slow motions.

What a surprise. Everyone is now decrying the violence of society. At seventy-five, I am becoming resigned to the fact that we cannot overcome the propensity for violence,

revenge, and prejudice. I do not believe marches, committees, religion, as it is practice today, or science will help us climb out of our prehistoric cave into the light of knowledge. We are already serving time in Dante's hell. Allegorically, the Divine Comedy represents the journey of the soul towards God, with the Inferno describing the recognition and rejection of sin.

Our journey of of the dark cave of despair and toward our god and the rejection of violence, will only happen with enlightenment and leadership. Like the enlightenment or Age of Reason, from the 1650s to the 1780s, the cultural and intellectual forces in Western Europe emphasized reason, analysis and individualism rather than traditional lines of authority. It was promoted by philosophers and thinkers and it challenged the authority of institutions and practices that were deeply rooted in society; there was discussion of ways to reform society with tolerance, creativity, cooperation and reason.

Human cooperation, even more necessary than violence for survival, has evolutionary roots as deep as those of human conflict. Groups may fight because of environmental pressures or resource scarcity, they may also have strong incentives to expand trade relations and build alliances that benefit both parties. The capacity for peaceful and cooperative relationships was surely more essential for the survival and success of the species than bellicosity. Violent resource competition and population density certainly influenced human evolution, predisposing us to competition and violence. But those same pressures can predispose us to cooperation as well.

Competition and Resource Scarcity

And NUH is the letter I use to spell Nutches,
Who live in small caves, known as Niches, for hutches.
These Nutches have troubles, the biggest of which is
The fact there are many more Nutches than Niches.
Each Nutch in a Nich knows that some other Nutch
Would like to move into his Nich very much.
So each Nutch in a Nich has to watch that small Nich
Or Nutches who haven't got Niches will snitch.

Dr. Seuss - On Beyond Zebra (1955)

The total cost of violence to the U.S. was conservatively calculated to be over $460 billion while the lost productivity from violence amounted to $318 billion. California was found to have the highest state burden of violence at over $22 billion per year while Vermont has the lowest at $188 million. For each state taxpayer, the total economic cost of violence varies greatly, from $7,166 per taxpayer in Washington D.C. to $1,281 for Maine taxpayers. [2012 US Peace Index, Institute for Economics and Peace] - See more at: http://peacealliance.org/tools-education/statistics-on-violence/#sthash.pbVoLVs9.dpuf