The opinions, impressions, and remarks expressed here are mine, and mine only. They are the opinions of a mostly self-taught artist who has traveled widely and has been living in the city of San Miguel de Allende, state of Guanajuato, Mexico, since 2008. That’s 5 years now. Plus one year in the extraordinary city of Zacatecas.
My opinions are sure to ruffle some feathers. That’s okay with me. Ruffling is better than stroking into self-contentment when it comes art. You don’t have to read my comments if they upset you. They are sure to be strongly tilted towards my personal interests. I offer no apologies on that score.
I’ve studied art history in college and have continued to study it on my own, rather intensely, since I took up painting again after a hiatus of several decades during which time I wrote a lot of fiction and poetry, got a master’s from Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut, taught at the college level for 20 years, and published 15 books. At the University of Hartford, I was privileged to be one of a team of three professors teaching a freshman cross-curriculum course in the Italian Renaissance. That was an eye-opener. Later on, I was an adjunct professor at the Lyme Academy College of Fine Arts in Old Lyme, Connecticut, and had many enlightening discussions with my gifted colleagues on the subject of art. When I lived in New Haven, I attended the Yale School of Art by osmosis, so to speak, but that’s another story.
So I am pretty well versed in the academic viewpoint of what makes art great. I have also been a keen observer of the art of my contemporaries as displayed in galleries and museums but also in private studios and homes. In short, I am a passionate partaker of visual art. You might say I feast on it rather indiscriminately. But then, I reflect, digest, and reject what I believe is inauthentic art (I shall have more to say on that particular subject), art of poor or mediocre quality, or art that is just plain boring, bad, or trite.
The most urgent and compelling question for me is, Why has contemporary art become so fixated on technique? Why has mechanical skill become more important than the artist’s vision, soulfulness, and expressiveness? A virtuoso violinist or pianist who has perfect technique but lacks soul and passion would not move the listener. Actors who have mastered every nuance of the Shakespearean method as taught by the National Theatre in England leave me cold. It is the same with art.
Please allow me to state the obvious: There is a good deal of excellent art in San Miguel. But there is also a lot of dubious art, art of questionable value. I hope to comment on both. I will NOT be offering critiques or reviews, per se, just comments which may be off the mark (or the wall) at times, but I hope will mostly strike the right note. You, the reader, may take them for what you think they are worth. And please keep in mind that this is a casual blog, not some formal essay.
The issue that I find most compelling is this: There is far too much indiscriminate enthusiasm, or HYPE, for the art of San Miguel, and I hope to put all of the ballyhoo into some sort of personal perspective. I like to think of myself as the voice of insight, balance, and moderation.
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