Tuesday, July 28, 2009

"power of suggestion is greater than the statement of reality"

"Even though he met with opposition,...
he proved that the power of suggestion
is greater than the statement of reality
"
- C. W. Mundy about Monet

For folks who just don't see why

  • -it's not the best "preaching" strategy to only state..and restate (three points) reality expositorally
  • the primacy of senses in communication and worship
  • - culture/atmosphere/surroundings/context are so important in the current reformissionemergence shift

it may help to study the great impressionists...classics like Monet (=Luther), and comtemporaries like Mundy (=Wolfgang Simson) . Articles about them can be found in a magazine now out of print, but findable on my mother-in-law's bathroom reading rack
Don't forget that the Reformation started in the bathroom):

"Monet said, 'For me, a landscape does not exist in its own right..the surrounding atmosphere brings it to light.'

He painted what he sensed, rather than what he saw. 'I want the unobtainable..I want to paint the beauty of the air, and that is nothing short of impossible.'

'Monet stepped out of the box, ' Mundy said, 'painting in the way he felt about the subject, and that started one of the greatest revolutions in the history of art. He influenced his contemporaries to see the beauty and truth in the 'impressionistic' style, even though he first met with opposition. He proved that the power of suggestion is greater than the statement of reality"
-Plein Air Magazine, July 2005, p, 61




Since I don't visit the toilet at my mother-in law's often enough (at least to peruse the art magazines, I didn't know who Mundy was until today. A googled interview was telling:

If you could give an up and coming artist only ONE piece of advice, what would it be?

CWM:
It’s one thing to launch a career; it’s another thing to sustain it.



How did you know you were ready to go full time?

CWM:
After working as an illustrator for 30 years.

..Who do you consider to be your biggest influences and why?

CWM:
The Lord is my biggest influence. Psalms 32:8 (
" I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you.") is my life verse.

Great answer, we sincerely appreciate that, who do you consider to be your biggest ARTISTIC influences and why?

CWM:
Monet, Turner, and Van Gogh re-wrote the look of art. They were the first modernists and they weren't concerned with art history's definition of art. To them, necessity was the mother of invention. Far more with much less.


..What is your favorite artwork you ever created? Why?

CWM:
The next one!! I want to improve!!!
link

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Hey, thanks for engaging the conversation!