Wednesday, November 21, 2007

Jody Bergsma good cute art

I always loved the work of Jody Bergsma it is so fun, I mean really fun, bright and cheerul worlds filled with magical dragons, unicorns and happy little critters. Seeing one of her paintings I had always seen in my grandmas room as a child helped inspire this article.

“Lest we forget just a little light finds the darkness filled with friends.” Written in the corner of one of the great but little known works of art by Jody Bergsma this phrase is as captivating as the picture it is written on. A gentle warm water color with wide eyed and incredibly cute characters holding a candle in the darkness and surrounded by little creatures that could have come straight out of a fairy realm. Bergsma is a true master artist her warm images tell stories all there own, often times such stories are fantastic in nature with worlds filled with dragons and unicorns. The greatest works however are often those that are the simplest. Great Moments in Life are Usually in the Vicinity of the Kitchen for example is a simple picture with a mother a child having a tea party together with some dolls and cute animals. Such cute works of art though often spurned by elitists are true strokes of genius. The image in question is a compositional master piece, spilling out of the edges of a square in the background and into the surrounding frame.
One of the things that makes Bergsma’s works of art so good is here ability to utilize less saturated colors in a way that makes them look bright, warm, and inviting. This could be a result of living in the Northwest where the leading school of artists in the past have been called masters of iridescent light. Such lighting though rarely associated with fantasy themes and even less commonly used in them is none the less perfect for such themes, as it is the lighting we often imagine and dream in. And so it is with Bergsma’s pictures, which seem somewhat as a dream, yet have a solidness emanating like a glow from the characters that sucks the viewer in.
While truly a master of soft and warm scenes Bergsma is no less a master at creating very iconic and graphical works of art. She has a unique tendency to place native and cultural symbology within her works of art and so gives them a unique sort of meaning that is all its own. Such symbols normally blend with the rest of the picture rather then dominating its structure. There are however exceptions to this, for example in the picture “Believe in a Beautiful Tomorrow” Bergsma off centers the entire composition of her piece with an encircled symbol backing a dragonfly. This symbology or allusion to the symbology of the world’s cultures along with the overall watery depth of the picture helps to give this work of art a peaceful feeling. Such serenity is rarely found in art and is evidence of Bergsma’s intelligence and skill as an artist, making solid color choices that are not overly saturated for images that are emotionally saturated. The truth of this powerful imagery and artistic choices is exemplified by the work of art “Affections.” “Affection” is a picture of a mother and daughter, seeming to flow into each other with their hair, done in a near grey scale and earth tones and surrounded by black. This work of art shows emotion like few other paintings are able to. It is through pictures such as this that Bergsma shows us with every paint stroke how art can be used both as a form of symbology and as a way to warm and decorate our lives, so that great works of art like hers make the world a little bit brighter.

Tuesday, November 20, 2007

The brilliance that was the Dark Fairy Tales and Sesame Street

So I was reading a blog by Heffernan of the New York Times about the old Sesame Street and how un sterial it was. It got me to thinking of my old school days studying child psychology, art for children, and so forth. The article eventually came around to show that perhaps the grittiness of Sesame Street is good, and so perhaps it is. After all Sesame Street was designed to relate and help children who's lives where not necessarly happy, those who didn't have a leg up in society.
Like fairy tales, think about when fairytales where made, the dark ages, and earlier not happy times, especially for children and parents. If you think that Hansel and Gretal where unique for being left in the woods think again.
In modern times of course we are often told that we can do anything, and so we are fed repeatedly that we will be great. But most of us won't be, as a hard working A student I always thought I would be able to do anything, but I'm not in truth able. Not of course that I am somehow special or unique but thats the point isn't it not everyone is, we must all continue to strive for happiness toward goals regardless, I create this art on the side because I want to create something, I want to contribute something both to myself and to others.

In any case the Sesame Street thing was very inspiring and so I wrote the below article

The original “ Sesame Street ” is a dark and often gritty show, with mentally depressed homeless creatures like Oscar the Grouch, and poor people living in run down apartments. Heffernan (2007) writes that “These early ‘Sesame Street’ episodes are intended for grown-ups, and may not suit the needs of today’s preschool child.” The reasons forwarded that they would not suit the needs of today’s children is that as gritty dark shows they do not show the happiness nor the sterile environment handed to children today, so the show was changed, giving us an Oscar who is more annoyed then upset, an overly energetic and giggly Elmo, and an overall cleaner look. This has occurred many times with many stories and art intended for children, Little Red Riding Hood is saved at the last minute, all three of the three little pigs now survive, and in general the fairy tales are so happy now that one of the most feared creatures of the past the fairy is now cute and cuddly.
Its important to understand that such fairy tales and Sesame Street sprung into being not to connect with a happy world but to connect with a sad and horrifying reality, dark and dingy ghettos where children had to talk with grouches, where people lived in run down apartments and children played in filthy streets. Just as with many of the early children’s stories the purpose was both to amuse but also to help children deal with the harsh reality of life, because no matter what we do this harsh reality exists. Our stories can ignore death but life does not, children’s dogs die, their grandparents will often die when they are still young, and sometimes their best friends can pass away. By sugar coating everything for them perhaps we are making them less able to deal with life later on. Just as many doctors now think that the rise in Asthma is due to the sterile environment where kids are exposed to fewer bacteria any number of problems could occur from the sterile emotional environment in which many children live.
I have of course stated before that art for children, is intended to bring joy to people, that the emotions of love and happiness are the most powerful and important emotions there are. At the same time however such stories and art that exists should on occasion just as life does offer something sadder and darker. This is because no matter how much we wish it where so not everybody can be as happy or as fulfilled as they want to be, they must be happy and must survive regardless of this however. However its important to remember at all times that life is not about being sad and most emotions are not sad, nor even if they where should such emotions be a focus especially with nursery wall art as this is the art your child will look at every day. It is true after all that we create our feelings in part with our surroundings.
This is what was so brilliant about many of the fairy tales and about Sesame Street, because while gritty they did allow children to see joy and happiness in every situation, so that the world in which they live is not so bleak but is rather a happy place where no matter what happens people love them, and they have people to love. Where there are games and fun, success and heroics, and where there is always potential, potential to find some type of happiness and love no matter the circumstances.

Heffernan, Virginia (2007, Nov 18th) Sweeping the Clouds Away. New York Times retrieve on Nov 20th, 2007 from http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/18/magazine/18wwln-medium-t.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1
Ty Hulse is a children’s artist and psychologists who runs the web site http://www.kayart.net where you can browse new and interesting art for children, nursery decor or get custom works designed for your child’s room.

Nursery art and art for children are some of the greatest arts

If you examine the last centruy of art closely you will see that many of the great artists of the had the simple goal of trying to discover what art was. Guess what they found out. They found that art is what society and artists believe is art, simple right. In addition to this the artists of the last century spend much of their time searching for emotions, as many tried various style for various purposes sometimes to draw as a child draws. Indeed it can be said that many of the works of art in the last century where works that searched for a meaning, for a purpose, and which communicated this search to others. For this reason it can be said that the last century’s art was in many ways an attempt to discover the philosophy of art.
It can also be said that in many ways art for children follows many of these same goals, however rather then an attempt to understand art, the art created for children often attempts to understand something much more meaningful that is the children it is created for. In this way children’s art is an attempt to understand life, happiness, joy, love and family. This is why I create wall art for kids as it where, to understand the higher emtoions becuase I need little help understanding pain. It is important to have creation of nursery art cute art as an attempt to communicate the high emotions of happiness and joy. Such lofty goals may not be fully achievable for any adult, they certainly are often a stretch for me. It is always a great personal struggle to create meaningful art, to not enter into some little formula of emotionaless and sterial figures. It is becuase of this difficulty along with the pleasure my creations have been able to give to children and adults that I create. It is also for this reason that I feel that of all the forms of art I could do nursery wall art, that thing you hang in your kids room is one of the highest forms of art there is. Make no mistake, nursery art no matter how cute or seemingly trivial is still art, great art in fact, as was proven in the last century art is what artists and society feels is art. So if children and parents feel that something is art then it truly is art as surely as if the top art critiques in the world gave it rave reviews.
Yet despite the fact that the last century was in essence an attempt to prove that many things are art the art created for children was somehow left out of arts lofty world. It is perhaps because people think of art for children as wall art, décor that people grow out of, that so many within the art world look down on even the greatest works of children’s art. It is important to note however the last thousand years of art have been building towards the goal of understanding composition, not only to discover the way pictures move, but to understand what art looks good. What purpose was all this effort if not to help make art better, and so more decorative? Children’s art is merely the descendent of a long chain of great art from the Renaissance to the Deco period attempting to grace the places we live.
Further while it is true that some people grow out of cute and warm works of art not all people do, from the works of Precious Moments to those of Bergsma there have been works of cute art that many adults have found delight in. In addition should any work of art appeal strongly only to one segment it is still great art, and should be defended as such. In the case of art intended for children and in many ways their parents as well the target segment of the population is perhaps the most important because this art will shape the future rather then simply communicate the present.

Monday, November 12, 2007

Technorati Profile

Nursery Decor for Your New Baby

Congratulations your going to be a have a baby!
Now that your going to be a parent its time to have fun reentering childhood, so when you feel the rush of aww from something cute savior that feeling as you give out a little squeal of delight. Always remember your having a new child is about joy, joy for all of you involved in the new childs life. Pick what makes you happy and this will in turn make your baby happy.
In trying to determine how to decorate your nursery think about the new life you are creating and how you want it to be. You after all must live with what you decide for quite a while and it may be possible that the images and colors you choose could be related to the images your child likes for years to come.
It is perhaps best if you begin by thinking of what makes you happy, not only normally, but when you are wondering through baby stores what makes you go awww cute, and in your own childhood what images did you like the most. Remember you don't have to settle on one idea, its important to keep in mind that there are more themes then just simple one image nursery decor of ducks, trucks, or fairies. Themes can be more complex so long as the images go together having a theme of imagery that reminds you of childhood of the warmth of a loving parent can be just as good or better then a standard themed room.
Remember as the parent you are decorating the nursery in part to help you feel happy and comfterable in there, this means that the rooms design should reflect this, for this reason a piece of high art of a parent and a child from the renesounce could fit in to a nurseries décor just as well as an image of a dancing piglet. Art and décor after all are not only a way of creating beauty they are a way of communicating, both to other people and to yourself.
As a new parent you are called to ware many hats, and as the decorator of your nursery you become an artist, and like all artists you are creating something to communicate to yourself as will as the child you are raising.
Colors and Babies
Nurseries are a place to comfort and energize your baby and you. On long nights after a baby nightmare or on bright days filled with laughter, play, and that warm closeness this room will be a sanctuary, a land of wonder for you and your baby.
Choosing colors for the nursery then is important because it sets the atmosphere and mood, colors after all have many effects on us.
Warm colors are normally best for a baby and for your mood as well. Its important to keep in mind however that color’s often effect you as you feel they do. So if you like a cool color say blue for example then this can be a good color for the room, what’s important is that the nursery be a sactuary for you, because your happiness their will effect the baby more then any color could.
This said strong or very bright colors can be overwhelming for a baby, this is especially true of bright yellow. Because yellow is the most fatiguing to the eyes making people and especially babies strain to see, for this reason babies will tend to cry more in a yellow room, so yellow is often a bad pick for a babies room décor. Often the best choice for the primary wall colors are mooted, near whites. Many psychologist have said that the best colors for learning are light near greys, because they are the easiest colors to process, this is why light blues and greens could make a good color choice despite their being cooler, as they are close to grey.
Remember though your baby sanctuary is not just one color. To get the warm and strong feel you want multi colored accents in varying amounts can be added to borders, parts of the crib and blankets in order to give the room more vibrance.

Discover more at www.kayart.net
The Girl and the Snail or a Morning Stroll


As a child I always loved snails they where kind of a weird little creature slow with eyes that stick way out and I could only really see them in the morning, plus theres that shell.

Who We Are

We are Creators of Warm and Joyous Images, Collectables, Children's Wall Art, and Nursery Decor to bring Joy into your new life.
our home page is http://www.kayart.net

There is something magical and electrifying about holding a baby, a puppy, or anything cute warm and full of cuddles.
When a baby puts their head against your shoulder or smiles at you there is a warmth there, a genuine truth of life, spanning back through generations. This is why I create warm art to capture the joy and happiness of a cute world, to help introduce new lives to the world and to keep people connected to the joy and warmth of that cute world. Because in the end no matter how dark things get what matters is the love we feel, the joy we have and the warmth of a new generations in our arms.
Many of the greatest artists of the past centery believed that the art of children was the highest form of art possable, so to do we believe that art for your new life is. For as you raise the future, and your hope and love, you are doing what is truely important.
It is for this reason that this art is for anyone, anyone who wishes to feel and experiance the emotions that make us truely human.
This site shows and sells both nursery Decor, Children's Wall Art, and beautiful modern images for anyone to enjoy. Ty Hulse one of the sites premier artists is a master of a new method of art, creating chibby and childlike characters, while utilizing lines to create interesting new shapes, and compositions within each image.