Scared of the nothing

With Halloween right around the corner I started to think about what really is scary? When I see all the gore and destruction of a big blockbuster action or horror movie my typical response is to laugh. The bigger the spectacle, the more fantastic it becomes for the audience and no one can connect this spectacle with reality so instead of horror we have a laughable light show. Unless the spectacle is tied to a historic event so people can form the conscious connection with an event they know occurred.

What really scares is the eerie noise creating the anticipation as the actor wanders down that hallway even though everyone in the theater is screaming at the top of their lungs "Don't do it, girl!". What really scares is the whisper of an unfamiliar noise in the shadows of your room at night. The hooting of an owl. What scares are feelings of isolation, hearing or seeing something that is unexpected, or strange, a sense of chaos or doom creating an unstable psyche.

What really scares is The Nothing. Not the "bad guy" from the Never Ending Story, if The Nothing Can be really called a bad guy. But the sense that you have nothing, are nothing or are about to become nothing. The Nothing is a sense that everything you have done up to this point is nothing. The is the time to look into the Nothing and make your decision. This is the time to become something.

New Original Art Prints

I just posted some new designs to www.imagekind.com
I have started to work on a series of beach inspired designs and digital paintings.

surfer girl paintings series 1
-Dan

Art prints for sale

I recently started using this service called imagekind.com for selling prints of my artwork. Check it out and let me know what you think. Be sure to investigate the paper and framing options.
www.danmasc.imagekind.com

purchase a print of "Escaping mental bondage" by Dan Mascari

Great Ads of the world

Outdoor advertisement highlighting Leica camera's zoom feature



What makes a great advertisement? For this particular example (above) for Leica cameras highlighting the 12x optical zoom feature the unique use of environment by extending the footprint of the ad, and essential the impact of the ad to the entire wall makes the ad great.

Is it foolish to think that you can distill anything great down to one essential element? Some ads are great because of the use of comedy, some because of the serious nature and somber attitude they convey. Others are great because they treat a topic in a unique manner, or play with the context of the ad.


Here are a few gathered together for your amusement.

Painting Techniques

I have been trying to paint again recently and figured I should probably consult the mighty internet. I have received little formal education on painting and figured a little instructional support couldn't hurt. The first video I found via Google was short and quick and offered several simple and effective techniques by Nancy Reyner courtesy of HGTV.

Follow the link here for a glimpse.

Evil Conch - D.Mascari - Digital Abstraction

I had some conch fritters last night and started to think about the form of the conch shell and spiral, the golden ratio and decided to make something in homage to the perfection that can be found in nature. I am not certain why the title is "evil" its just that the final image looks rather menacing with the rotating axis of pyramids.

Agnes Martin

I just saw this amazing documentary on Agnes Martin, a Canadian born artist who passed away in 2004. She uses the grid and horizontal lines, typically rendered in watercolor, to convey the mystery and beauty of life. One of the best quotes from Martin went something like this, " there are plenty of people painting about painting, so I don't need to. I try to convey complex emotions through my painting." This quote is not verbatim but conveys her philosophy, or lack of one, on art and really forced me to examine my own work in abstraction in a new light.

Her work is sublime and innocent in the best possible way and her viewpoints on topics from truth to beauty are truly unique and inspirational.

Check out these links for more info about her work.

http://www.moma.org/collection/artist.php?artist_id=3787

http://www.artcyclopedia.com/artists/martin_agnes.html

http://www.ndoylefineart.com/martin.html

Waterfall another work in Digital Abstraction

This is another piece in my catalog of digital abstraction I call "Waterfall". Original work by Dan Mascari.

O' Magic where art thou?

The Orlando Magic have been truly resilient throughout this years playoffs, until the Finals that is. Is it the Laker's coaching, the star's brilliant play, the tenacity of the team and depth of the bench? Or is it the Magic's lack of experience, coaching missteps and inability to maintain focus during crunch time? All of the above.

One of the biggest mistakes that the Orlando coaching staff has made is trying to bring back Jameer Nelson during the Finals. The team that was playing up to this point under the direction of Rafer "Skip-to-my-lou" Alston has had little trouble overcoming deficits and seemingly unstoppable superstars. You don't mess with the cure for cancer because it doesn't taste good and you don't mix up the chemistry of a winning team because so and so is back. Unless that so-and so is God or M.J. and then, maybe, you make an exception.

Every time the Magic choke late at the free throw line I can see a glimpse of the the ghost of Nick Anderson's free throw shot in the lights at the Orlando Arena. Maybe we need a certain type of magic that can only come from with powerful youth from the north, I believe the source is somewhere in Ohio currently.

Here is a good article from ESPN that sums up one of the greatest chokes in sports history.

Digital Abstraction - Hyperbola tips - dan mascari 2009

A new piece I call Hyperbola tips.
Click for larger image.

Digital Abstraction - pt 2

Here are some of my recent works in Digital Abstraction. Click image to view larger version.

Digital Abstraction is not a new art form I have just created the name to classify art completely generated in non-physical form and space. Artwork that has never existed as a completed work in any form other than digital and which is abstract in its representation of the subject matter.

The genesis of Digital Abstraction came from an analysis of modernity and the concept that all of our most important information, in every medium, is currently stored and transmitted as pieces of digital information. To address the ever widening gap between our persons and our personal information I developed the concept of Digital Abstraction.

If you are interested in using my work for commercial or non-commercial purposes contact me dan@mascarimedia.com
cc some rights reserved



Sunspots



cosine massacre




Rasta wing

What is Digital Abstraction?

Blackwing - Dan Mascari - 2009

Abstraction is open to interpretation. The better question: What is art? There are numerous books devoted to this topic but none professes to have the answer. Every art critic and historian will tell you that this period, or that technique exemplifies the best of art. And they will all be right, at least in their own minds, within their own personal definition of what art is. Are the missing arms of Michelangelo's David more or less mysterious than Mona Lisa's smile or the Latrine as Art. Today art is interpretation and reinterpretation. Every great rock song has already been written, the parts are just being rearranged and the lyrics changed.

Any attempt at understanding art today will lead one to try and create their personal art by showing that they are connected to the world through this or that social network. Life today is performance art. Check out what I am doing on this site...Look at my bands photos here...Buy my t-shirt here. Our own lives have to some extent become a visual art where photos and videos chronograph the progression of our existence, and a written art through the use of blogs and social networks. All made possible through the digitization of our lives and communication developments enabled by the internet.

Any true catalog of the progression of art will lead one to believe that the next movement in art cannot be possible. Postmodernism has killed the possibility of a next step because it has chewed up and spit out all the previous possible combinations of content. Where do you progress from a thought that art can be a blatant rip-off and/or nonsense. In a time where the most famous art outsider and vandal (Banksy) has also become the prized collectible for our most influential media darlings (Brangelina) can you really say that there is any authenticity to contemporary art. I love Banksy so I will stop giving him crap for his fanbase and trendlike influence. What about Marla Olmstead, the little 4 year old who sells her "abstract art" for thousands. Not to discount the emotional authenticity of her work but what does the recognition of her work say about art as more of a fashion manipulated by marketing and positioning?

At the other end of the spectrum, hyperrealism has extended far beyond the early paintings of Chuck Close, 3-d graphics have evolved to a point that you really cannot tell if that is a person on your screen. Increases in digital realism will only be incremental over the next ten years. A possible next step is to take the tools of digital image manipulation and create a new type of art where we abstract reality through completely digital means. No sampling, completely original digital material creating abstract compositions: DIGITAL ABSTRACTION.

Blending Modes in Photoshop

One of my students asked me for a list of how the blending modes each function in Photoshop. I found a pretty good one (with visual examples):

http://www.freetimefoto.com/photoshop_blending_mode#vivid_light

I typically use the drop down selctor at the top of the layers palate in Photoshop to scroll through blending modes. The most often used blending modes (for me personally) are multiply, screen, overlay, color and luminosity. Multiply can really be usefull in creating realisitc shadows and lighing effects.

My least often used blending modes are dissolve, color dodge and color burn. The effect that each of these usually create is very harsh and intense.

Just like any other tool in Photoshop, blending modes should be seen as a means to accomplish your vision. Expecting to find the magic plug in, filter, or special effect that will make your work great is not really possible and is not what a real designer or artist does. First, solidify your vision, by researching your subject. Once you have a deep understanding of the problem attack the design issues using the resources and tools at your disposal. Without clarity of vision even the most special of effects fail to satisfy.

DESIGN RESOURCE
Here is a link to the Graphic Design Dictionary a resource for designers looking for clarification on a term. The list is certainly not complete but has most of the core terms defined.
http://www.graphicdesigndictionary.com/

Japanese Robots Rule

The Japanese are making some of the most advanced robots in the world. If this is where they are at now how long until we are living in a society where robots assist us in our everyday lives? Ghost in the Shell as a template for the near future - maybe?

Click here to view video.
Check the video out after the jump.