Anatomy and Art

So I just stumbled on to the works of Richard Tennant Cooper.  It’s strange, there doesn’t seem to be a lot of information on the artist out there, but his images seem to be carrying on, on their own right.  So here’s me, propagating that circumstance by putting up a couple images here as well.

I’m not sure if he’s playing to the frightening nature of medical work, or perhaps the idea of riding that line between life and death.  Maybe he just likes things that are spooky.  But it’s interesting work.

You can find more images by searching under his name, just very little information about the guy.

And the job hunt is on! Been getting a lot of flattering feedback about my work lately, but I’m still trying to figure out the big step into gainful employment. And in the meantime, I’ve started another painting again. I’m still sorting out exactly where this is going, but it’s a start that I can work with.

Actually, it occurs to me that being between grad school and work right now, maybe I should be promoting some of my previous paintings for sale a little bit more.  So here are a few that I have around presently that are available for purchase, and if you ever care to peruse the full collection, I keep a record of every one I make over at http://snapshotgenius.com/paint Any image you click on there will tell you if it is available for purchase, has been sold, or was made as a gift there.  But for now, here are a few of my paintings that are presently available for sale.  And if you should ever care to inquire about pricing, I can be reached here, or via direct email Sara(at)anatomyandart(dot)com.

Yesterday I finished a new painting.

This tree has been keeping me sane throughout my last weeks of grad school.  Thank you tree!  And yesterday I finally had time to finish it.

Ooooh, so here’s a really fun artist find. Chek out the work of Heidi Taillefer!

I must say I’m impressed.  What a fun combination of the anatomical and the mechanical all mixed together in these positively romantic sort of settings.  Neat!

“Illumine”
Just finished today.
I’ll give her a coat of gloss when I get back to Chicago.

Now that the internship is done, it’s about time to head back North to Chicago.  There was something at the end of the week here that I wanted to stick around for, so I decided to take a few days to get my things in order, and take advantage of an empty house to work on my paper for graduation.  That was the plan anyways, but last night I fell into a painting, and well, it’s really coming along.

I always think it’s neat, the progression on these things.  So in case you think that sort of thing is neat too, here are a couple of cell phone shots.  The first is an early image followed by how far it had come by around 4am this morning, when I finally went to bed already.

I’m excited.  Despite the terrible distraction from my paper, I think this is going to be a nice piece.

I guess it was a couple of weeks ago I found myself looking at this picture, and rather than remarking at the beautiful sense of lighting and form, and all of that warmth that Rembrandt is so deservedly known for, all I could think about was my goodness, can you imagine being dressed like that for a class dissection?!?  Don’t get me wrong, it is a beautiful painting, and a fine example of chiaroscuro.  I also love that he actually bothered to paint specific identifiable anatomy within this portrait of anatomy students.  But just, man, we generally wore scrubs in the anatomy lab, sometimes a lab coat.  But look at them! Dark, heavy, absorbent looking fabrics, and white crisp cuffs!  The 1600s were different times indeed.

And yes, having said all that, Rembrandt really was one of the greats.  This scene, a bunch of overdressed guys standing over a cadaver, would never have had nearly the warmth or softness in the hands of any other artist.

Just wanted to remind everyone about the upcoming First Friday show, this Friday, featuring We Burn.  This is looking to be a great show, and my only lament is not being able to be there in person to see it all go down.  Some of my work will be though, alongside many other talented artists.  If you’re in the Chicago area, you’ve really got to check it out.

The Flat Iron Building is at 1579 N. Milwaukee Ave, Chicago, IL.  No April foolin’!

The opening will run from 6-10pm this Friday, April 1st, and there will be a party at the closing on the 16th as well.  You don’t want to miss this.

Of my own work, I am featuring six paintings this time.

Others will be showing not only paintings, but also photography, sculpture, I believe we’re even going to have a Chiditerod shopping cart in the mix.  I can’t recommend enough that you come out.

Chicago art lovers, the Flat Iron Group’s First Fridays event is featuring Chicago Burner Art, on Friday, April 1st, and on throughout the 16th when there will be a big closing reception.  Yours truly will be featuring six paintings on the walls alongside a number of other talented artists.  I do recommend that you come out and take a look.  Press release details are as follows…

An Exhibition of Art by Chicago Burners
We Burn: Chicago Burning Man Art

WHAT: The closing party features an artists’ reception, live music & video, performance art, and other spontaneous creative fun. A $10 suggested donation at the door goes to BURN NFP.

WHY: Come explore, play, learn, smile, and take home a little Burning Man! We Burn: Chicago Burning Man Art is a multimedia exploration of the impact the Burning Man festival has on Chicago artist-participants.

WHERE: The Flat Iron Arts Building, 1579 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago, IL

WHEN: The show opens as part of Flat Iron First Fridays on April 1, 2011 from 6pm – 10pm. The closing party and artists’ reception is April 16 from 6pm – 10pm.  The show runs from April 1 – 16.

HOW: Through photography, sculpture, video, works on paper, paintings, mixed media, installations, and performances, the community will get a feel for what it means to define oneself as a “burner,” and how the Burning Man principles of radical inclusion, self-expression, civic responsibility, leave no (environmental) trace, radical self-reliance, and active participation are carried over into art works and daily life in Chicago.

This show is made possible with generous support from Bold Urban Renaissance Network.

WHO: We Burn: Chicago Burning Man Art is curated by Elysia Lock and will feature works by
Zac Franzoni
Phillip Solomonson
Marci Rubin
Maria Scileppi
Tim Krueger
Nichelle Lawrence
Gabriel Garcia- Fraire
Jeff Austin
Sara Egner
Michael Schiele
Pat Hilander
Sally Sachs
Elysia Lock
Chiditarod Art Carts
Monster Wheels
Richard Bennett
Ellie Sorokin
April Randall
Lera Gershevich
Leo Spektor
Alexa Razma
Sloan

Ok, my clothes are packed, and I’m about to unplug this computer and set it aside with the various hard drives and cables needed to make this journey happen.  And, just this morning I dropped off six paintings with a woman out here, Elysia Lock, who runs the We Burn: Chicago art showings.  So even though I’ll be gone, I’ll still have some work in the show.  I decided to go with the following collection for this show…

Fire Walk

Tom Tips His Hat

Swirl
(the painting that is somewhat responsible for my journey to Chicago in the first place)

Blue Man

&, Phoenix Rising

I’m excited that my work will be up and being seen even if I can’t be there myself.  I have been really wanting to paint lately, and positively swamped for time.  Speaking of which, I’d better get a move on, if I’m going to finish packing up tonight as planned.  This is officially my last Chicago post for a little while.