David Abse - Art

Tits and Bulls

2012-03-14T10:17:00.002-07:00

Here's some more recent work. Some Bull work - print-like but not prints - spray paint using hand-cut stencils on to some nice hand made paper, and a drawing especially for Niall, called "Tits sell"!

Spray Bulls 1

Spray Bulls 2

"Tits Sell"

Pining for the Fjords

2012-03-13T16:02:00.001-07:00

This is May - I am told she is a Fjord Pony. She looks like Limahl from Kajagoogoo.

Drawings scanned

2012-03-12T09:53:00.000-07:00

I have had scanner problems for quite a while so haven't scanned any drawings for ages. Anyway I have now so here's some - tomorrow I'll put lots more on the main website, but here's a few from the last few months - horses, cats, New York, Provence etc.

2 Horses at Réganel

Provence Alps - inks

(oh) Deer

Horses at le Réganel

Inky Cat

Statue of Liberty

Milo on the sofa

If Chagal had had an iPad ....

2012-03-10T06:03:00.000-08:00

Would he have come up with stuff like this?

Whaddya think of it so far?

2012-03-08T10:39:00.000-08:00

Sometimes (if I'm honest, quite a lot of the time) when you are painting you aren't sure about what you are doing. Later on, when you have developed a sufficient distance in time you can take a look back and decide whether things worked as you hoped or not. So half way through a painting it's very hard. Sometimes I think I make a mistake by painting on when I should stop. Sometimes I should just give up altogether and start again. Sometimes I carry on and it works. Sometimes it looks ok and like it might get somewhere, but I am just not sure what I need to do next. This is one of those cases. I have combined an unidentified nude female figure on the left with a much more difficult to identify jumble of shapes and colours on the right. Again this is about identity, beauty and the beast, and other things - marks on a flat surface that make shapes. So that a few blue lines painted on the left make a female form, but what do the marks on the right make? DoI stop? Do I carry on? Do I start again? I think I will have to put this to one side and come back some time later. I think i feel the same about my "Cave Painting" too - the more I see it in my studio, the less happy I am with it. I feel like I am at a turning point with my pictures right now, but not sure what's next.

Cave Painting

2012-03-03T09:29:00.001-08:00

So back in the atelier without it being ridiculously cold. I have been working on a big painting, 180x120cm, combining various thoughts about bulls, cave paintings and graffiti - they all link up in a weird kind of way. I like the idea of a wall covered in different types of paintings and writing, different types of graffiti, where it's impossible to tell what was done when. Maybe the primitive cave painting was done after the spray painting? Also, there's a kind of irony in that none of it is real: it's all painted by me, on a canvas, not a wall. Not sure if it works, but here you go:

Cave Painting

6x6

2012-02-29T09:29:00.001-08:00

Last year I send off some pictures to a show in Rochester New York called "6x6". the show was a fundraiser for the taller in Rochester New York. They accept images from artists all over the world that are 6x6 inches, and then sell them for 20$ a piece, with the artist's name on the back, so no one can see who their painting is by. So you could get a 6 inch painting by a famous artist or by a 5 year old or by me, even. Gratifyingly, the six pieces I sent in all sold. And the person who bought at least one of them turned out to be a writer and sent me their book, which was nice of them (they find out who you are AFTER they've parted with their 20 bucks!). Anyway, I never scanned or photographed what I sent, but just found them on the web on the 6x6 site - which I was looking at thinking about doing the same this year. Any way - here are my six entries from last year that I've just downloaded - hey, I still own the copyright!

To see more about this go to the 6x6 site at: http://www.roco6x6.org/

Layer upon layer

2012-01-28T01:22:00.000-08:00

I've spent the last week working on two paintings. Very different sizes: one 80x80cm and the other oily 27x22 cm. The first a canvas bought from my normal supplier, the second a piece of vintage canvas board given to me by my neighbour - she picked up two of them for 1€ at a market a while back. I used the first one for the "Flowers for Shakespeare" painting. Anyway, in both cases I started off with the intention of producing something abstract, but have ended up with two flower paintings - as you can see. To be honest I started the bigger one with spray painting only, and really should have stopped at that point (or at least photographed it so you could see what I mean) because I think what I did really worked at that point. Then I added some oil stick and it ruined it. Then I tried to add some acrylic, thickly painted and dripped. And that wasn't any good either. Next I tried some more oil sticks and paint, and tried scraping. But no. So I picked up the spray paints and started again. And then some more oil - and here we are:

Red flowers through the vortex

The smaller painting wasn't quite so tortuous: I painted a series of abstract shapes and colours in oil, and then started scraping away with a palette knifeL: but also didn't like the result: too boring. So whilst having a go at the above painted the flowers over the top using oil sticks. There you go.

Flowers through the window

New abstract work - Spiral Scratch Traffic Lights

2012-01-24T05:25:00.000-08:00

Here's a new painting, I've called "Spiral Scratch". Title is an obvious homage to the Buzzcocks, although my wife thinks "Traffic Lights" would be a better title. Perhaps both. Ok. Kind of an experimentation: still City-influenced, mixed media, 80x80cm, but main media is spray paint. But there's oils and acrylics in there too.

Spiral Scratch Traffic Lights

More iPad hijinks

2012-01-21T07:05:00.000-08:00

I regularly sketch now on my iPad. It's fun. I have uploaded more to my website here , and here's a couple of them just to whet your appetite - or make your decision not to bother, as the case may be.

Night lights

2012-01-20T09:39:00.000-08:00

Two new paintings. Both 50cm square on "3D" canvas, continuing the theme of dark/light - night/city - car headlights etc. When you drive light reflects on the glass windscreen making patterns you generally ignore as you drive. These effects are exacerbated by wearing glasses. Generally I don't like driving at night. I really loathe driving in the rain at night. Once I drove down country lanes in the snow with the wind against me and it was like the snow was stars and we were the starship enterprise.

Beam me up Scotty.

Night Driver

Night bus

Artists' websites revisited

2012-01-16T14:28:00.000-08:00

Last May 2011 I wrote a review of websites out there that artists can show off their work to the rest of the world, and published it here on this blog. And I added a short follow up a couple of months ago, particularly to report improvements - or otherwise. Recent events have provoked me into having another look.

New sites seem to be proliferating at the moment. Amongst these is glossom - a site that allows you to build things called "collections" that are sort of photomontages. It really is quite fun, and there are a lot of people using it - especially photographers it seems - although I'm not quite sure of the point, I think in some ways it is what it is for no other reason than to allow you to show off stuff to people - it doesn't have much of a commercial side that I can see, and I don't think I have received a single hit from it. Oh. I lie, I just checked, there have been a couple. But it is free, it's easy and it's a hell of a lot more fun than many other arts websites.

Another is World Artist Catalogue - which says about itself: "World Artist Catalogue offers all artists a means to present their works, providing potential purchasers, galleries and connoisseurs with useful information." Which is ok I guess. It seems alight, but not especially exciting. Since uploading stuff there I have had no referrals from the site, and I can't say it got me excited with the way it works - which is confusing. You get to upload three artworks for free, then pay for anything else you upload and then - here's its USP - you can auction your work online. This costs though - 5€ per work. I don't know how successful this approach is, I haven't go around to trying to auction something yet, but as a commitment to helping everyone reading this I'll invest 5€ soon and report back.

Artists Wanted is another animal altogether, and one I am not 100% comfortable with. It has absolutely nothing to do with ArtWanted (see the last review) which I like, and is, it seems, just limited to a series of online competitions. Endless emails keep coming from these guys asking me to enter into online competitions, of various sorts and credibility. Your work seems to disappear onto a site called see.me. Anyway, I find the whole thing very confusing and am less than convinced of its value.

Then there are a number of sites that have recently popped up charging significant amounts for uploading work. FineArtWorld.com wants a minimum 10$ a month (for up to 30 images), up to 30$ a month (unlimited images) for their site. I honestly cannot see the point: hosting your own website and having full control is cheaper than this (often free if you do it as a blog)and I cannot see what the return would be. To me this kind of site feels like the growing number of exploitative sites, galleries and organisations that have been set up to drain money from the banks of artists - a group of people not renowned for either their wealth or their financial acumen.

I have also recently received invitations to upload my work to a new french art websites: Pears Gallery - which seems a well designed site attempting to show work in a 3D kind of format. But again this seems like a site designed just to take money from artists. They want 19€ a month, and offer no more than many other gallery sites that do this stuff for nothing. I emailed them too, to ask why it would be worth my while compared to some international sites like FineArtAmerica or BlueCanvas - but got no reply. I can't say I'm impressed. But have tried a number of other french art sites and they are so universally bad it is no surprise that these Pears people can make a living from the non English-speaking world. I won't bother listing them - life's too short.

Another site I've recently come across (well, they emailed me) is FoundMyself which distinguishes itself by having a terrible name, at least. It seems ok, is free, and is currently being "redesigned" (so they say). There's nothing wrong with this site, but, er.. I don't think it's needed! But you never know, let's see how it improves. they currently have a button on their website asking for site improvement suggestions - so feel free to go there and give them some good ideas.

A new issue that I am dealing with amongst this is a vast array of sites that seem to have come into existence for artists that i am not sure what they are for -both in english and french. Forums, sites related to competitions, sites related to forums etc. I get SO MANY mailings, am spammed by so many different "arty" services and sites i wish I knew what they were all for and why. While on this subject i should mention Deviant Art which some people claim to like. I can't say I do myself - it's an ugly site that uses art to sell products. Most of which seem to be produced by teenage boys. I briefly had a space on Deviant Art a year or two ago and got SO spammed as a result I removed my listing. To be fair, I did get an apology.

As for updates to previous websites, I did that in November and can add only the following: ArtWanted continue to work to improve, while AbsoluteArts (who from now on will be known as "AbsoluteIdiots" and I'm so cross with them I'm not giving them a link) are so incompetent they can't take your money when you pay for a renewal, nor can be bothered to read your emails when you try to sort things out. I decided that any business that acted so incompetently was not worthy of my custom, and wasn't fit to sell my work.

My favourite sites

So after all this I have decided the thing to do is to list my top ten favourite artists' websites:

1. Art Break because it's simple and it works

2. Blue Canvas because it does more, and offers lots for free

3. Art Wanted because it does more, and offers lots more - but isn't free

4. Fine Art America as good as Blue Canvas in many ways

5. London Art an excellent London-focussed site that is free - but takes a healthy commission on sales

6. Saatchi's great except a little clunky, and too focussed on competitions - and slower than some other sites

7. Wooloo a great site for finding out about opportunities - the gallery bit sometimes feels like a sideline

8. Celeste Network focussed on the Celeste Prize, but it has a nice feel, and a busy community

9. Glossom as mentioned above, a fun new entrant

10. PicassoMio - a spanish site that functions well, but doing everything in two languages gets a bit tedious

Please feel free to add comments on any of these or other artists' sites I haven't mentioned.

Three new paintings - contrasting images

2012-01-14T09:06:00.000-08:00

I have today finished three paintings I have been working on for quite a while. They are very different from each other, and it's an interesting thing dealing with three such diverse paintings at the same time. The only thing they have in common is that they are all square. They aren't the same size, though, as shown here: the smallest is "Taureau 2012" (40x40cm) which is in response to a request for "another bull painting" from the landlord of the atelier. I hope he likes it. And buys it. Next up is a 50cmx50cm painting of "City Streets". Something I've been p[laying with for a while. I want to carry on from this. The largest is an 80cm square flower painting. Started a while back - it's the uncompleted painting I showed earlier on this blog, it has finally reached a point where I can stop.

Taureau 2012

City Streets

Flowers in round blue vase

Help make me "the people's champion"! and Flowers for Shakespeare

2012-01-12T09:10:00.000-08:00

Go to http://davidabse.artistswanted.org/yr2011 and click on the "vote" button and then "like"!!

Meanwhile another flower painting, small, only 16x22cm, for this:
http://www.shakespearesflowers.co.uk/

Please give your support.

Portrait model needed!!

2012-01-03T07:31:00.000-08:00

I am looking for someone to model for me for a portrait - I thought I'd have a crack at the 2012 Portrait award this year. Sorry I can't pay, but I will happily give whoever models a giclée print of the painting.

What's required of you: I reckon two sessions will do it - first one will be for I guess 3 hours one afternoon where I will start with sketches, photos and outline on canvas, second one a week or so later to follow up, finish off things I'm not sure about...

I don't mind where - I have a studio in Les Matelles, just north of Montpellier, and can travel an hour or so, or you can come to my freezing studio and be provided with as much coffee as you can drink. Any volunteers? I need to start in the next couple of weeks...

Let's see have I got a portrait I can post that'll encourage you... No. All I've got is this shit pastel self portrait I did a few months ago.

No Golf Allowed

davidabse.com

2011-12-21T10:29:00.000-08:00

Yes I have updated and redesigned my website - Matelles-Art is no more - it's all about me, me, me. My website now shows my artwork in an easy to follow format (I hope) and links directly with this blog, which effectively works as a page within the blog. I decided to leave the blog on blogger rather than move it within the site, for no particular reason other than I don't think losing the built in google stuff on this blog would be that sensible. But I hope the site is more useful than it was before. No t shirts for sale via the site - not enough sold to make it worthwhile. But every picture is for sale unless I have already sold it (or as in one or two instances, painted over it). Anyway I hope you like it. Tell your friends!

As for painting, it has been so cold in the atelier that I haven't done much. Started a painting which is sitting staring at me as I type - but more to do on it. In case you are interested this is what it looks like now:

Work in progress...

Another flower painting, so far it's spray paint and ink. I imagine they'll be some other things added shortly. One of the things I intend to put on thew site is a video of me painting. I know someone else did this and I found it fascinating - I probably won't be that fascinating, but I will learn the art of editing. Another idea is the process of an iPad painting - one of the iPad painting programmes I use allows you to record the process which I think I will be able to upload. Once I've worked that out. Anyway, it's all fun.

More flowers, more styles

2011-12-13T08:09:00.000-08:00

And so it goes on. Two more flower paintings,two more styles. One renoir-ish, one i'm not sure what-ish? Perhaps a touch hockney/pop art-ish but perhaps not. Definitely Ish. AS for the biscuits, they've all gone, and only the flowers remain. I'm sure I could make a country and western song out of that. Such a sad story.

Flowers in gold frame

Stylised flowers

Different flower styles

2011-12-10T08:26:00.001-08:00

Yeah I'm still on my flower kick. I blame the oil paints. And the flowers. It was either flowers or biscuits, and I decided to eat the biscuits and paint the flowers. What can I say?

Anyway two paintings to show off today - the way I am working at the moment is that there are more than one painting going on at the same time - it's these oils see - take so long to dry and it can be really frustrating waiting rather than painting - so 2 or 3 at the same time. As it happens it means that more than one can be finished more or less at the same time. Here are two, very different, flower paintings: One is some pinky/red flowers in a white vase - a bit less overflowing bouquet-wise than some of the previous paintings. The second painting is an imitation fauvist/Matisse effort. Why not? I love fauvism - I love Matisse and Dufy especially. I love the colours, the outlines and the deceptive simplicity of the images. Anyway here are my efforts. You may notice that I've slightly re-designed the blog template allowing me to show bigger versions of pictures - a good thing I think!

Red flowers, white vase

Fauvist flowers

Tulips from Hamsterdam

2011-12-09T08:27:00.001-08:00

Tulips from Hamsterdam

I have always liked tulips. They are a nice symbol of spring - along with daffodils as well. Tulips, daffodils, freesias, roses - those are my favourite flowers I think. I quite like lilies too, but not the smell - and spoke people seem to think Lilies=death for reasons that are beyond me - despite thew fact I could probably find out with a quick wikipedia search. Never mind. Anyway, another flower painting, oils and oil sticks, 40x50cm. I also loved "the Wire" obviously, and with serious neck pain I am slightly drugged up...

So HERE we are! Everyone find it ok?

2011-12-08T08:17:00.001-08:00

As warned I changed everything to reflect the move away from "Matelles-Art" towards "David Abse". Yes I am referring to myself in third person. I need to watch that. Meanwhile back in the atelier as usual I am writing this while i am waiting for paint to dry. Am still working on more flower paintings, nothing else seems to work at the moment, and I am getting a strange satisfaction from doing them. The (vaguely) interesting thing is that none of them, have been done from life - I haven't seen a real live bunch of flowers for ages. Flowers are ridiculously expensive here in France. Anyway, it doesn't reality matter: believe it or not none of my abstracts are done from life either. except this one, obviously:

More flowers - and blog title website title re-think

2011-12-07T08:34:00.001-08:00

I've been doing more flower painting. This time I have developed the picture slightly differently , layering an abstract background with spray paint, oil sticks and acrylics, before creating the flower image with oils/sticks. Also another one more like the others which I can't stick online yet as it's a present for someone, and I can't send it yet because bloody oil takes so long to dry! I don't actually think this photo does this painting any favours - I can't seem to quite reproduce digitally the richness of the colours.

Flowers in tall blue vase

In the meantime I have been rethinking this whole "Matelles-Art" thing. My gallery has gone, and I do very little in the way of giclée printing for others now, so perhaps I should just be "David Abse". A bit radical, I know. I have started the process on the matelles-art.com website - if you go to davidabse.com, or dabse.com you get to the same place - I'm going to redesign the site and remove all matelles-art mentions. Eventually I'll drop the matelles-art name altogether. Mind you I've got a stamp and a banner and a couple of t shirts with it on... so maybe not completely... In the meantime I have no idea how you change the name of a blog like this one hosted by blogger. I don't want to lose the history on here, the traffic is pretty good.

More iPad paintings

2011-11-29T00:52:00.001-08:00

Cat and Mouse

Flowers in Blue Vase

Flowers in Vase

Puffin

Skelly

Not getting much right on canvas at the moment - so am now faced with three blank canvases having painted white gesso over recent efforts (bye bye Millau Bridge). In the meantime, here's some more iPad sketches I've been doing.

The Millau bridge

2011-11-20T09:26:00.001-08:00

Widely regarded as one of the architectural and engineering masterpieces of the modern age, the Millau bridge is only an hour and a half from where I live. The bridge is part of the A75 motorway - which has to be the most pleasant motorway I have ever driven on, which goes from Beziers in the south to Clermont Ferrands in the..er..not quite so south. The views all the way along the motorway are stunning - a lot of the journey you are driving on a road over 1000 metres high, with amazing views across the Ardèche and south. At Millau bridge everyone stops and takes photos. Me included.

Anyway, here's a painting, done from one of my photos, not on site.

Millau Bridge

Oils on canvas, 80x60cm. Not too sure about this style - feels like I'm stepping back a few paces. Going to have to think about this. Not sure how long this painting will last (I've already painted over another one to do it).

Being able to see: a useful talent for painters and goalkeepers?

2011-11-19T09:23:00.001-08:00

How important is eyesight to painting? Seems like kind of a ridiculous question, I agree. But what do we actually mean by ‘seeing’ when it comes to painting, when it comes to appreciating things visual? When I was young my dad used to say that I would appreciate ‘views’ more when I was older. And by this I guess he meant that I would be less distracted by other things - I wouldn’t be more interested in whatever game I was playing, and would be able to give a ‘view’ the time and appreciation it deserved.

When I was at art school I remember one or two teachers telling us that we needed to learn how to ‘see’. What they meant was the ability to visually interpret what is before us - see all colours, shapes, light, shade, perspective, so that we would be able to turn all this into a 2 dimensional image on paper. I think broadly this is true: you can’t draw, you can’t paint, unless you learn how to see, learn how to look at things. Then to make a painting, a satisfying picture, you have to see a composition. To quote what apparently is a chinese proverb: “First I saw the mountains in the painting, then I saw the painting in the mountains”. And to quote John Ruskin: “You do not see with the lens of the eye ... but you see with the soul of the eye”. So there is more to “seeing” than eyesight.

In fact, what is very interesting is that historically many of the world’s greatest paintings were painted by artists reportedly with faulty eyesight. Included in this list are Degas, Monet, Kandinsky, Rembrandt, El Greco, Goya, Renoir and probably others. Margaret Livingstone, a professor of neurobiology at Harvard, has undertaken a study into the eyesight of artists, and has discovered that established artists are more likely to have astigmatisms than the general population. See http://www.janelleweaver.com/resources/colloq2.pdf for more info. In general she concludes that artists generally have poor depth of vision, which may explain the lack of tennis player painters, whilst simultaneously explaining the multitudinous goalkeeping errors of David James.

Eyesight must somehow influence what artists paint. Degas’ paintings certainly became ‘vaguer’ (and better) as his eyesight faded, and the same could be said about Monet. On the other hand it could have just been that they became better painters the older they got. Who knows what causes a painter to make a great painting. Would Van Gogh have painted as well if he had undertaken psychiatric treatment? Would Monet have been a worse painter if he’d had correctional eye surgery? Incidentally have you noticed that in recent ads for correctional eye surgery the person advertising the surgery doesn’t blink. At all. Weird - clearly he’s an alien.

For me, I know my eyesight has become worse the older I get. I have always been red/green colour blind, and my eyesight has deteriorated in the last ten years or so: I am shortsighted and astigmatic. And I always paint and draw without my glasses on, only putting them on to check how the painting looks at various points. Sometimes I am pleasantly surprised. Sometimes not. But I know how I see is effected by my eyesight, but my paintings are equally influenced by other physical and non-physical factors.

So to sum up: it is quite clear that there are a great many referees who would make seriously good painters.

Cezanne meets Interflora

2011-11-17T08:40:00.001-08:00

That's the title I've decided is appropriate for this picture, another flower painting, making four in this particular series. i don't count the first one as part of the series because it's a bit different - if nothing else, it's a different size. Like the others this is 38x55cm.

Cezanne meets Interflora

That's definitely the last in this particular series because I've run out of canvases and stretchers that size. Not sure what's next. Exciting isn't it? No? Well it is for me!

More flowers

2011-11-12T09:03:00.001-08:00

I 'm not sure if there are any more of these in me. It kind of depends on the weather, which at the moment continues to be lousy. We are promised some sun for tomorrow and I have in turn promised to help my wife build some kind of horse feeder-thing, so won't have any or very much time in the studio. Let's see what happens next week. More flowers? Back to abstracts? Somewhere/thing else entirely? Anyway, these two paintings, the same size as the last flower oil painting - 10P (That's not the price) - or 55x38cm, also inspired by Dyf - the catalogue is still lying around here. Mind you so is a catalogue of some awful Italian sculptor called Antonio Manca, and for some reason I am not inspired to paint Jesus impaled on a red tree. Weird that.

Autumn bouquet

Flowers in Jug

Flowers and oils - I'm coming over all traditional - ooh er

2011-11-09T10:02:00.000-08:00

So here's my latest painting - which instead of being an expressive acrylic is oils on canvas. And it'\s flowers in a vase again. Autumn flowers this time. There is a very straightforward explanation for this and an influence particularly for this one. I ordered oil sticks from the Society of Amateurs and Assholes months ago, and they finally arrived last week. My membership expired in the meantime and given the amateurish crap service I got from them I don't think I'll bother to renew. Although there might be some financial advantages. I'll have to think about it. Anyway now I've got these oil sticks the opportunity to play with them is irresistible.Meanwhile the weather is unbelievably appalling here in the Languedoc - endless rain, flooding rivers, cold, winds. Bloody awful. Normally I have my studio doors open all year round, but at the moment they are shut, to keep out the wind and the rain, and by doing so I have removed all natural light, and all of this is influencing my painting . Flowers seem to be a reasonable response to crap weather, lousy light etc. But I don't have any flowers or vases in my studio. I do however still have some of the stuff my late aunt left, including an old Marcel Dyf catalogue. I am not a special fan of his paintings (see more here) they're good, but not really my kind of thing - but he was damn good at painting flowers. And he made a lot of money painting them. Hmmm.

Autumn Flowers

More flowers

2011-11-06T08:57:00.000-08:00

Flowers in vase 2

Today's effort is oil stick on canvas. I'm really enjoying using oil sticks and using my fingers - yes it IS just like nursery school without any health and safety protection. No idea where the flowers come from.

IPad paintings

2011-11-05T09:25:00.000-07:00

When I was in new york earlier this year it was the day before the launch of the iPad 2, so they were selling iPads with 100$ off. I couldn't resist this and bought one. Since then I have used it for various things - playing games, collecting my emails, looking at stuff on the net, typing, and also painting. I have two programmes - Sketchbook pro, which I installed whilst still in New York, and this week, on recommendation of Kevin at L'Herault Art, I installed Brushes - which probably slightly better than Sketchbook in that it feels more natural to use. Don't ask me why, it just does. Anyway, here are some of the results - sorry about the layout - Blogger does some odd things sometimes:

Cat

Dog

Cheerleader

An Old Docror

Milo

Man

Flowers

Flowers 2

Les Matelles

White Vase

2011-11-03T10:58:00.000-07:00

Or something. New painting, mixing media again - oil sticks and acrylic paint. One of the reasons I like oil sticks is the way i can paint with my fingers quite easily with them. But this does cause a problem with the keyboard and the mouse afterwards.

White Vase

New paintings, new styles, new materials - Dead Nightingale Evil Box

2011-10-30T17:03:00.000-07:00

As previously recorded I have started using oil sticks more in my work. A whole batch I ordered from the SAA (Society of Art and Artists - or Strictly Amateur Arseholes) about 4 months ago arrived this week and this spurred me on to do this work. Some brighter colours and inspiration from still life. Not sure about titles - have changed them 3 times as I type this. Anyway the first picture is small - about30x20cm, the second picture I think is 80x60cm.

Mal encadré

Impasse des rossignols

Meanwhile I received an email this evening from an art association here in France, inviting me to participate. Attached to the email was a file setting out the rules, terms and conditions etc. This being a long pieve of text I cut and paste the french straight into Google translate. Two things immediately stood out. The addres of the person sending the letter out was "impasse des rossignols" - you should know that an "impasse' is simply a road that leads nowhere - kind of a cul-de-sac(!) - and "rossignols" are nightingales - but Google translated what in english should be I guess "Nightingale Lane" as "Dead Nightingales". Even worse, elsewhere in the document there is a list of stuff that will automatically disqualify work, for example work delivred that isn't the same as on the application form, and, I guess reasonably, work "mal encadré" i.e. "badly framed" - but as Google prefers to translate: "Evil Box". The temptation to submit a painting of dead nightingales in an evil box is almost too much to resist.

Animals

2011-10-30T12:50:00.001-07:00

Paintings

2011-10-27T10:25:00.001-07:00

Fish Triptych. Four in One. ParallaxAF aftermath.

2011-10-26T10:23:00.000-07:00

The Parallax Art Fair turned out to be like nothing I've ever experienced before. A million artists. Ten billion people looking. Each artist with 5 square inches of space. Temperature under thew lights reaching 200ºc. Well if I'm going to exaggerate for effect I may as well go all the way. It wasn't so much the size of the wall space, which was as expected, but the incredibly limited viewing space - you couldn't back further away than 2 metres from a painting without bumping into another painting. That's if you didn't bump into 14 other people at the same time, or pass out under the lights. Interestingly the part I took part in was billed as "abstract" - but at least a quarter of the work being shown was figurative. Of those my favourite was Jonathan Alibone with his pervy ladybird-book-style watercolours - hilarious. Of the abstract artists I loved Marcello Scarselli whose paintings I really loved. I tried to convince his friend there looking after his space to do a swap for one of mine, but it was at this point he lost his ability to speak English. Shame.

So I have taken something else from him instead, as you can see in my latest paintings below:

Four in One

Fish triptych

I have extended my use of layers of colour done in various media - oil, acrylic, spray paint, and extended and clarified use of symbols. And I guess neatened things up a bit. The triptych was done differently to the other two triptychs I have done. In the first I joined the three canvases together after painting thewm. In the second I haven't joined them together at all, because I like them on the wall with a small gap between them. In this one they were joined together part way through the process - actually in a way at the start - because at the point I joined them they were three separate paintings, and I decided to make them just one painting with three canvases joined. Yet the fact of them being three separate canvases changed the way I painted. I liked this, so took the fourth painting I was working on while these were drying, and took the idea further by dividing on a single canvas. By four, as it was the fourth. This kind of makes sense to me anyway!

As for sizes, the triptych is 100x45cm, the 4 in 1 is 35x50cm.

Provence Alps, Saatchi and Parallax Art Fair

2011-10-10T09:38:00.000-07:00

Here's the third picture I have done of the Provence Alps. Perversely called Provence Alps 2. The other ones were Provence Alps 3 and 4, and # 1 doesn't exist (because I painted over it).

Anyway I'm quite pleased with this. A lot of work has gone into a small painting that looks like I churned it out in a few minutes. It is only 22x33cm (L4 for those keeping count). Meanwhile I struggle on with a series of 4 paintings I can't quite get right, as reported in another blog entry using a lot of oil stick.

Provence Alps 2

Secondly the Saatchi drawing competition thing is on line. I have two things to say about this: you get to vote between pictures - they call it a "match-up" - and the whole thing has a "hot or not" feel about it (!) - but actually "hot or not" would be better, because voting between two randomly selected pictures is odd, and will no doubt lead to some perverse results, because there's no "Jesus christ these are both fucking awful" button, or even a "actually I quite like both of these" button, which is a shame. There are some revolting drawing up there too - not just bad (there are plenty of them) but actually really tasteless and revolting, which leads you to vote along the lines of "I'll vote for that one because it is just bad, whereas the other one makes me want to rip my eyes out". OOps just found the "Skip this" button. I feel a fool.

Enough of that, the key thing is actually to ensure you go on there and vote for my un-revolting picture here:

http://www.saatchionline.com/showdown/match/showdown/8/artist/192487

I need the votes - am currently only in 1075th position out of 2099!!

Finally - if you're in London later this week I hope to see you (as noted previously in this Blog) at the Parallax Art Fair.

Gallery gone online...

2011-10-04T09:58:00.000-07:00

Today is the last day of the Matelles-Art gallery. Everything comes down tomorrow and a few days later the gallery will be reborn as "Kitty's Tack Shop". A great place for all and sundry to buy horsey type things. That website will be running properly soon, we'll be selling through the shop and in markets and directly at equestrian centres, and those of you in the UK can buy stuff through the Kitty's Tack Shop Ebay Shop.

But as for Matelles-Art, it's all change. The gallery now exists on line here at the main matelles-art website - and in the next few days I'll improve it by giving size and media details and offering the opportunity to buy online - originals and prints. You can already buy t shirts.

My studio will continue, and I can still offer giclée printing at a very reasonable price (!). And every summer I'll turn the tack shop back into a gallery for a month. After all, this summer I've actually sold a few things. Nearly paid the rent.

So I'll finish this post with some pictures of the gallery on its last day:

Losing myself in the crowd

2011-10-02T09:51:00.000-07:00

A new painting. Continuing along the same lines - but putting more oil stick into the mix. This is smaller, too: F8 (38x46cm). Another lyric-inspired title. I choose lyrics that link to the painting in my mind, not at random, in case you were wondering. This painting continues my abstract identity/symbolism theme, and I kind of like that the image has a "still life" feel about it. Anyone got the song? Answer below the painting*.

Losing myself in the crowd

*"Shot by both sides" - Magazine.

He can't remember his own name

2011-09-29T10:05:00.000-07:00

Ok, another painting with the title stolen from a song. In case you haven't worked it out: "My name is Michael Caine". It's such a shame he's such a Tory, as I love him as an actor. But there you go. Anyway, the line seemed to suit this painting, which is more abstract symbolism, more thoughts about identity. The other possibility of a title was "What's your name?" with the obvious answer not being "Virginia Plain".

He can't remember his own name

And a message for Gatsby if he looks at this: I think it looks better with the paint on top!

And finally - here's the tattoo, finally done today:

Some new paintings

2011-09-27T09:16:00.000-07:00

Yes I did say "some". I keep forgetting to have my camera with my at the atelier, so it all happens at once. First are three little ones that I've called Phidelity 1,2, and 3:

Phidelity 1

Phidelity 2

Phidelity 3

The first two are square 30x30cm, the third a mere 24x18cm. I wanted to try producing small abstracts, using the kind oif colours and symbolism I have been using recently. It's quite hard to make small canvases not look overworked.

Not too sure about these - especially no 3. Still thinking about them. They look better on the wall.

Strand

I'm more pleased with these two - called "Strand" and "Suspicious", They are slightly larger - 55x33cm and 46x55cm respectively.

Suspicious

Finally a bigger painting that I am definitely happy about. "Blue Velvet" - 81x116cm. For those that are interested in these things that's a 50L on its side. French sizing. I'm finding new things in this painting as i look at it - which i think is a good thing (!)

Blue Velvet

In other news I've sold a big painting today for a decent amount of money. So to celebrate I've booked myself in on Thursday to get the tattoo done:

Perceptions

2011-09-18T07:31:00.000-07:00

..and this is where I left off. So what is this about?

My work explores the relationship between Critical theory and copycat violence.

With influences as diverse as Caravaggio and John Lennon, new combinations are created from both explicit and implicit textures.

Ever since I was a child I have been fascinated by the unrelenting divergence of the moment. What starts out as contemplation soon becomes debased into a cacophony of lust, leaving only a sense of unreality and the possibility of a new synthesis.

As intermittent phenomena become clarified through diligent and critical practice, the viewer is left with an impression of the possibilities of our existence.

Hmmm.

Artist's Statement

2011-09-17T07:06:00.000-07:00

Generally I hate "Artist's Statements". They are some of the most pretentious drivel ever written, each one a potential "Pseud's corner" winner. Some of this is artists' fault themselves, because their communication skills are really limited to the stuff they paint, sculpt or whatever and they shouldn't really be allowed near a computer, but quite a lot it is the fault of curators and art critics (watch me here cut off my nose to spite my face). There are galleries and curators who expect artists to write pretentious drivel, and are disappointed when they don't. Top of the league in this category goes to the french website who last year rejected my submission on the grounds that my artist's statement wasn't pretentious enough. "That's no good" said the webmaster, contemptuously, "that just describes WHAT and HOW you paint, NOT what it MEANS". I really wanted to quote Charlie Brown then: "It's a horsie".

I can tell you what I think my paintings are about in that I am interested in certain things that influence the process - ideas, colours, music, emotions, processes - but I am also aware that some things are accidents, some things aren't conscious, and that people looking at paintings sometimes see things that weren't intended. That's all ok. Actually, that's great!

So for anyone looking for the best resource for writing an artists statement, I refer you to the wonderful artybollocks.com . With just one click I created the following masterpiece:

"My work explores the relationshipbetween Bauhausian sensibilities and UFO sightings.

With influences as diverse as Kafka andearly Jackson Pollock, new combinations are created from both constructed anddiscovered textures.

Ever since I was a teenager I have beenfascinated by the theoretical limits of the zeitgeist. What starts out asvision soon becomes debased into a hegemony of temptation, leaving only a senseof decadence and the chance of a new beginning.

As spatial replicas become frozen through studious anddiverse practice, the viewer is left with an insight into the darkness of ourfuture."

I love it.

Crossroads 2

2011-09-13T09:38:00.001-07:00

Another painting photographed, edited and uploaded from my iPod. Mainly because my camera's batteries need recharging. The original painting I did called Crossroads is half an inch under this one. By the way the title has nothing to do with the old soap opera.

Crossroads 2

Update... I've painted over it!

Personality Crisis (#100) - Last Hurrah!!

2011-09-12T03:05:00.000-07:00

So, to the 100th blog entry on this site: two new paintings - Personality #1 and Personality#2. Same size - 56x45cm. In fact these were a different pair of paintings of Les Matelles that didn't work, so I have painted over them. There is a third, but that didn't work either, so it will be painted over too. This is my new way forward - painting over old things I don't want to keep. I've photographed everything anyway, and I have begun to realise that if there are paintings hanging around my studio that I don't like, the best thing to do is paint over them. A few more on the agenda. It saves money on canvas too!

And why a last Hurrah? Well I'm going to keep my atelier, but the gallery will close in two weeks time and be reborn as Kitty's Tack Shop . A new family venture. So while I'm painting in the back the front end will be selling horsey stuff.

But for the last/next two weeks come and visit and see an exhibition at Matelles-Art of my more recent abstract work. From October it'll all be around the back!

Here's a novelty

2011-09-09T08:17:00.001-07:00

Posting on the blog from my iPhone. Not sure about this picture- it's a bit too busy and I think therefore needs to be painted over. It's only little - about 30x20cm. Edited on the phone too!

New Provence Alp Paintings and an abstract exhibition in London

2011-09-01T11:24:00.000-07:00

This is going to be a big post. First, some recent work. Two paintings I have been working on for a little while. The idea was to take the way I have been working on abstracts broadly related to the figure and apply it to landscapes. I started these about 3 weeks ago, but finished them only this week after returning from our holiday in the Provence Alps. I won't go on about the holiday, suffice to say the place was fantastic in so many ways, and I may be doing some art holidays there in the as yet unspecified future. More on that as it develops. But it was a beautiful place with inspiring views: I love mountains, and this was perfect - just on the first lower edges of the alps, in the midst of small mountains (up to about 1800 metres) with in the distance giant peaks appearing as the day developed. The colours were amazing, and ever-changing as the light changed. Just beautiful.Well here are the paintings - a sort of vertical diptych I guess, so I'll show them that way. Both are 1.5 metres by 0.5 of a metre:

These aren't the best of photos I have taken of my work, given that they are done with my iPhone, and could be a bit sharper - but I think they are clear enough.

Meanwhile I am taking part in an exhibition thing in London in October - it's the second Parallax Art Fair, organised by Barlow Fine Drawings. Not sure what will come of it but for more information see the website here. And below is an invitation. Actually if you want to go to one of the private views you have to get put on the invite list, To do this you have to email privateviews@barlowfinedrawings.com.My work of course appears in the first 14-16 October section for abstract artists. Hope to see you there!

At the café

2011-08-06T09:48:00.000-07:00

New painting, representational this time, not abstract (like this wasn't obvious). From a sketch I did in a café of two people in intense conversation. I have tried to make this darker in tone and atmosphere, and deliberately stylize the face of the main character. I don't know. I have spent too long looking at this for the past week or so. It is my standard spray paint and acrylic, 1 metre square, if you're interested.

Triptych: a new painting - and some art history too!

2011-07-25T09:56:00.000-07:00

I have been working on this triptych for the past week or so. The idea has been something in my head for a while. I produced a triptych last year with the title: "There is colour there is light there is no god but that's alright" - mainly because I liked the idea of a triptych, but was uncomfortable with the religious history in regard to triptychs. I know there are non-religious triptychs, but there is no escaping that is their history.

As an atheist, I have no interest in portraying religious imagery - and yet I would be an idiot to deny the importance of religious imagery in art. In fact, some of my favourite paintings have religious inspiration - or at least, subject matter - as that's what the artist was paid to paint. For example I love Bellini's triptych in the Frari in Venice, and Duccio's in the National Gallery in London.

And then there's Francis Bacon: the modern master of the triptych. Without question Bacon was influenced by his early religious upbringing, but as he grew up and older, his subject matter reflected more and more his life, his sexuality and his dependence on alcohol.

So what does this triptych say about me? I'm struggling with a title, but the painting (like some others I have done recently) is about the different roles you/I/one carry/carries out. Father, son, husband, artist, boss, client, patient, leader, follower, aggressor, victim... etc. Different but the same. For a little while the picture involved different hats, literally, but that got painted over, as did obvious references to age. So I think the title is "Identities". How does that sound and fit?

Back to reality

2011-07-18T08:42:00.000-07:00

New painting: "Lose Yourself".

Smaller than recent canvasses, only 33x55 cm. This is 10M. Now that will mean nothing to most of you, and didn't mean anything to me until I started painting in France. In France there is a specific scale of sizes along traditional lines - four different scales: Square (carré), Figure (F), Landscape (L) and Marine (M). So this is a 'Marine' size, number 10. Obviously I am breaking all the rules by firstly painting with an M on its side, and secondly having no marine connection in this painting at all. How outrageous. The French have an unexpected attitude towards art, particularly anything 'modern' (see my unpublished 3,000 word essay). At school, the French are taught 'art plastique' which turns out to have nothing to do with plastic (confusing language) but just means 'visual art', and have a very classical education. Mind you I did too - I spent many hours doing pencil drawings of life models. Which I guess explains why I like to do abstracts now. What does this painting mean? Just look at it and... lose yourself.

...and now the "men in café" T shirt

2011-07-13T10:05:00.000-07:00

Here you go - click on the T shirt picture to go to MySoti where you can waste your hard-earned cash on a wonderful T shirt.

Relax

2011-07-11T11:28:00.000-07:00

So this is what I ended up with. One of the characters gone completely and a painting clearly influenced by the combined might of Matisse, Tintin, Rolf Harris and Frankie goes to Hollywood. Well "it is what it is" as some people might say. Not me.

Contrast

2011-07-08T11:22:00.000-07:00

So here's my newest things: both the same size, 100x100cm, but not a lot else in common. First a painting following on in the abstract drippy style I have been using recently. This one is called "Life During Wartime" - after the Talking Heads song - "This ain't no party, this ain't no disco".

The second is work in progress. We had a nice visit (as we like to do regularly) to Ganges market this morning. As I often do i started sketching the stalls and the people around me. No musicians today, but as usual some interesting Cevenol faces. I see people who could be characters in Tintin books. And others who could be in the Fast Show. So I decided I would like to turn a couple of sketches into a composition. And so this is how it has started out.

Part of me wants to leave it like this. But that's why I have photographed it, so I don't lose the drawing - I like its freshness. A bugger to photograph because of the thin lines on white background, so have played with photoshop to make it right. The lines are a bit thicker than the original so that they can be easily seen.

Phi and The Return of the Zambian Prince

2011-07-06T09:33:00.000-07:00

Two new paintings: First an exploration of the use of symbols and shapes within an abstract painting with references to other things, adding to the whole with layers and colours, textures and symbols. Following deliberately on from previous paintings, using similar techniques. interestingly (or not) i think these paintings look like they take five minutes: they in fact take a longer time than many other paintings I have done because of the layers of textures and paints. Whilst waiting for things to dry, I used an old framed print of my late aunt Huldah's to make another painting, using similar techniques, with less textures/layers onto a sprayed piece of card. In honour of the Return of the Zambian Prince to South Wales.

Coffee grounds (and tabasco)

2011-07-02T11:10:00.000-07:00

I guess the title comes from a couple of things. This is a new abstract painting, and while painting I have been involved in an online debate about abstract art at L'Herault Art. In the latest article on the blog Gatsby reported on an argument with a friend on the merits or otherwise of abstract art. I felt moved to respond, and ranted onto my computer for 3000 words. When I'd just about finished I realised that what I'd written was a 3,000 word essay on "Modernism", so edited all the art college crap out and sent Gatsby a 1,000 word response, which he kindly published, here.

And in the meantime, here's the painting. Oh, and it really does contain some coffee grounds. Used ones though, I'm not mad, you know!

New Painting - Analysis

2011-06-25T11:08:00.000-07:00

What do you see? What do I want you to see? What is deliberate? What is accident? When creating work like this it is difficult to explain sometimes what, where and why. The creative process takes over and things can just happen. Yes I make deliberate decisions about composition. Yes I spend time considering colour combinations, considering layers, considering textures. And materials. In this one I have deliberately used things around me - found things - to make textures. Some have meaning - to me - some are just because I like the way they felt and looked and contributed to the whole. So... this painting is about a lot of things, some of them clearer than others.

The other point of interest: this is very big - 180cm x 120 cm. That's nearly 6x4 ft for undecimalised people. So you don't quite get it all on line - size and texture missing.

L'Artiste Magazine - out now

2011-06-24T09:48:00.000-07:00

A truly great magazine. Not just because I'm in it. If you want to check it out, view on line at: http://bit.ly/kG1LTA and subscribe at http://www.lheraultart.com/l-artistesubscribe/

MisShapes

2011-06-19T16:08:00.000-07:00

A painting finished today

Mis-shapes, mistakes, misfits.
Raised on a diet of broken biscuits, oh we don't look the same as you
We don't do the things you do, but we live around here too.
Oh really.
Mis-shapes, mistakes, misfits, we'd like to go to town but we can't risk it
Oh 'cause they just want to keep us out.
You could end up with a smash in the mouth just for standing out.
Oh really. Brothers, sisters, can't you see?
The future's owned by you and me.
There won't be fighting in the street.
They think they've got us beat, but revenge is going to be so sweet.
We're making a move, we're making it now, we're coming out of the side-lines.
Just put your hands up - it's a raid yeah:
We want your homes, we want your lives,
we want the things you won't allow us.
We won't use guns, we won't use bombs
We'll use the one thing we've got more of - that's our minds.

See Monkey?

2011-06-19T10:19:00.000-07:00

Just a t shirt I made earlier this year.

Animaux at Matelles-Art

2011-06-13T07:05:00.000-07:00

On returning to Les Matelles, I had to collect my unsold animal pictures from Gignac. When I say "unsold" I mean all apart from one - this not being the most successful of exhibitions for either myself or Cherryl. So I took a look at the Matelles-Art gallery and thought "why not take away the clocks and the paintings and the giclée prints and have an animals exhibition here?" Apart from the ridiculous percentage charge the gallery owner makes (100%) I could see no reason, so I have now set up my gallery with my new "Animaux" exhibition - and it even includes a few new animals that weren't at Gignac or Lodève. I'm not having a vernissage here, but just making a few posters and opening my doors. So, all welcome!

London Art - Artist of the Week / Boom - Brick Lane opening

2011-06-09T09:07:00.000-07:00

Yesterday the 'Boom' exhibition at Brick Lane Gallery opened. It was a nice opening, with lots of my London friends turning up to support me, and a fun lively atmosphere, with a wide variety of work being shown by various artists. Apart from my own work I really liked the paintings by Italian artist Maria Luisa Azzini.

See pictures of the event at the gallery's Facebook page here . A nice surprise before the event was finding out I had been named "Artist of the week" at londonart.co.uk . It's nice reading things people say about you and your art. Well, when they say nice things, anyway. We all need our egos stroked. Second time recently, with L'Hérault Art, as previously reported being nice to me too.

Baby Lemonade

2011-06-02T09:33:00.000-07:00

Another abstract expressionist experiment...

L'Hérault Art

2011-05-29T15:03:00.000-07:00

I meant to do this a few days ago, but Blogger was having one of its off days so what I wrote never got put up and ... then I forgot.

I have had a very nice feature on the L'Hérault Art (LA) website after a nice meeting with Kevin - better known as Gatsby, and Mrs Gatsby. They came to visit my studio and chat (as you can read) and I hope we will be working together more in the future. I have to write down the reference Kevin - sorry Gatsby - gave me on his blog: "One interesting man is David. Approachable, knowledgeable, interesting and also a fine artist."

Finally, someone who understands me - not like all those other bastards.

OFFICIAL Invite!

2011-05-29T06:59:00.000-07:00

Unofficial Invitation...

2011-05-28T10:03:00.000-07:00

But please DO come!

Shuffling Madness

2011-05-27T10:43:00.000-07:00

New Abstract - experimental expressionism

Meanwhile, back in the atelier

2011-05-26T13:37:00.000-07:00

I have managed to complete two paintings (Just like buses, you wait for one then two come along). Well actually what happened was I had left a painting I was unhappy with last week and started something new. This led me to re-examine the first painting, change it - a lot. The end result is two paintings completed at roughly the same time.

Here they are:

This one is called "Porte des Remparts" - it depicts the eastern entrance into the medieval village of Les Matelles.

This one is "Ancien Chemin du Triadou" - which is the street my atelier is on, and this is the view looking out of my front door.

These two are more painterly than recent paintings, but I am quite happy with them both.

Pictures of Pic Saint Loup on Pic Saint Loup...

2011-05-21T06:38:00.000-07:00

Today was the day: showing off my paintings of Pic Saint Loup in the middle of the garrigue to 40-odd walkers hiking up the mountain. This was part of the "Festa-Trail" going on today. The hikers wondering past me and my paintings were on the 17k hike see here for info and some great photos. It was all kind of surreal,but fun - especially as i had to get up at 6.30am to do this, after getting a bit (ok a bit more than a bit) drunk at my vernissage last night.

So at 8am, somewhat hungover, I drove to the car park above St Matthieu to meet Cécile - one of the organisers. I hiked up about a kilometre carrying all my paintings, then I went back to the car and got my equipment - paints, water, canvas etc - and hiked up again. Then I arranged the paintings (as you can see) and sat down and painted.

Several hikers having nothing to do with the Festa-Trail walked past wondering what on earth I was doing having an exhibition half way up a mountain, but mostly they were pleasantly surprised.

At just after 9.30 the Festa-Trailers turned up and seemed to enjoy themselves looking at my pictures and watching me paint, whilst Cécile explained the idea behind having me there, my paintings of the Pic whilst they walk up the Pic. Unfortunately I wasn't listening very hard so I missed the explanation.

Unusually I found myself to be of visual interest, as several walkers took my photograph.

Soon they all walked on, some gripping my cards, wishing me a "bon peintre" whilst I wished them a "bon promenade.

My painting wasn't finished, so i stayed a little longer, but
about an hour later, the sun beating down on my head, I had had enough and was desperate for a coffee, so i lugged everything back down the hill to the car.

Anyway - here's the painting I did:

Websites for artists - are they any good?

2011-05-15T05:42:00.000-07:00

I was asked recently that given I have put my artwork on so many websites in the world (see here)what did I think of them? Also, I have looked around the net to see if anyone else has actually rated them or at least reviewed them, and I found nothing of any use at all, so why not have a go at reviewing them myself? Well here goes:

Artwanted were the first 'Artist' website I joined, which is why they are first on this list. I can't say it's my favourite, I don't like the design, and uploading work to the site is a major pain in the arse (the multiple uploading tool never works) , which is why it isn't as "complete" as other websites with my work - although it does have some old junk that exists nowhere else. However they do a widget I quite like:

Otherwise, I can't say I recommend it: they charge a fee (not a lot, but they still charge) and offer other stuff that some of the other websites do, groups, message boards, sell prints, but I have to say that the site is so badly designed, so slow and clunky and difficult to navigate that I don't like it very much.

But for bad design, the winner has to be ArtQuest - I simply fund this website unusable and have given up loading things there completely. They claim all sorts of things as a website - but in my view the site is virtually unusable.

Another website claiming to be high-profile and important is Yessy which is another site that charges for membership (59$ pa) - although you can have a free account with only limited art shown. Again, it's not the best design in the world (You would think websites for artists would be better designed,wouldn't you?) and aims to be a site that sells the art, rather than prints or offer artists any other goodies (forums, groups etc). Uploading is however a major pain. Like some other sites they suggest you upload three images of the same painting. I guess they assume that artists only use one website and have lots of spare time.

Artspan is another site in the same category - 'serious', I guess you'd call it - selling themselves a high-profile artists' website/marketting tool. Unless you pay them (gulp) 19.95$ a month, you can only put 6 images on their site and they will include a link to YOUR site. But even tHAT costs 35$ a year. Which seems a lot. On the positive side my experience is that people actually DO visit Artspan, and DO click on the link to my website - but not as many, my recent stats show, as many who came from Socialist Unity (!!), and less than other art websites - which will get to you. As a site, it's better looking than many others, although the admin part for members looks like it was built in 1954.

Lateral Arts is an oddball site which has "over 100" artists with their own pages on it. Having your own page is subject to a selection process, and once it's done it's done - but apart from that it's ok, and it's free. But with only 3 pieces on the site, it all seems a bit, well... pointless?

Absolute Arts is another ball game altogether: I get a lot of referrals through this site, and lots of contact - and even offers of shows. It clearly has a high profile and is used by galleries and others in the "Art World", which I guess is a good thing. Also on the positive side it is relatively easy to upload work and general admin of your site is less painful than on other sites. On the negative side, it is another piece of uninteresting dull web design, but I suppose it works, which is more than you can say for some others which we'll come to. And it's another site you have to pay for: Free if you upload 20 works, 44$ if you upload up to 60 and then 100$ for up to 6,000, and there's some sort of "jury" process for which you have to pay ANOTHER 25$. And then of course they charge commission on your work - like most other sites do of course. I've not gone into this in any great detail on any of these reviews, because it makes little difference to you as an artist, since all the sites that charge commission ADD their percentage after you've told them what YOU charge.

LondonArt are a London based site (surprise surprise!). You have to apply to join the site, and I guess you need to have some kind of London link. Mine - I was born there and lived there for over 40 years. They charge commission only, and no charge for using the site, and no limit on uploads. It's not bad for uploading either, and generally I have nothing bad to say about it. Except I get very limited contacts/referrals from the site. But then again, that may be just me.

ArtSlant is another "internationally renowned" website for artists that also prides itself on being hip, up-to-date and whatever... It links itself to cities all around the world - New York, London, Paris, Munich .... - and gives you the 'slant' on what's happening, man. In their regular email which you can't avoid once you have signed up. On the positive side it's free, is well designed and has lots of information from all over the worl, and has forums and sells your work and has lots of other bells and whistlesd - on the negative side it's a bit painful in terms of uploading work - slow and annoying size limits.

ArtBreak is a different thing altogether, it has the best login screen in the world, bar none, where you login in 144 point text. I love it. It has a design reminiscent of Facebook and is easy to navigate and upload. I get nearly as many clicks to my website from here as I do from ArtSpan, but this is free. They sell your work too, but I can't say I love this site - but I can't exactly tell you why, either.

I should love BlueCanvas, but I can only honestly say, it's ok. It's reasonably well designed, it sells your work, and sells giclées of your work on canvas and paper, and has groups, blogs and all the other well-established bells and whistles that go with being "artist-friendly". But the admin section is a bit clunky, as they force you to put your pictures into "galleries" for no apparent reason, and then uploading is never as straightforward as it should be. But it is free, and there is an active community, if that's your kind of thing.

Articite is an Anglo- French thing. It limits the numbers of work to 12 unless you pay them money, and it is horribly designed. It is covered in adverts, including ads for another art website "Artisho" that I haven't reviewed here because it doesn't appear to function any more. Bet you enjoyed that 'internal server error' link. Checking my site stats no one has ever visited my website as a result of visiting Articite. I'm not impressed.

D'art sounds like it should be French, but it isn't. Or maybe it sounds like it should be a darts website. You decide. Actually as an arts website, it's not bad at all. Better designed than many (re-done recently) it offers art for sale, it is easy to navigate, and relatively easy to search, considering the large numbers of artwork on the site. It has message forums (that I never use so shouldn't comment on). As a user it gives you interesting stats, and does as well as ArtBreak for clicks through to my website. Administration is well organised, and you can link to your work like this:

For what that's worth!
Uploading work is reasonably simple - but there is an irritating form system you have to go through for each picture.the good thing is you can sell using paypal and google checkout should you wish to.

The site I actually get the most clicks from to my website is The Celeste Network. This is a different animal to all the rest and I kind of like it! It is linked to an annual prize (The Celeste Prize) and various other linked prizes, all based in Italy. You have to pay a fee if you want to enter your work into the contest(s) but otherwise use is free, and you can load up as many works as you like, subject to an irritating upload interface. There is a busy network of artists who are all trying to get you to become your "friends" so that when the time comes they will vote for you when the competition opens (one of the prizes is based on votes from other Celeste Network members). But despite this, and despite its Italian bias, I like this site - there's something good natured about it, the design is good, I get lots of click throughs, and get contacts, just like absolute arts.

Wooloo is another good site, but for different reasons. It is a great resource for competition, residency opportunities etc - almost as good as TransArtists (which isn't bad because that's all transartists do). To add to that they email you regularly with opportunities that meet the preferences you have laid down. Very useful. However, uploading art is really painful. The site demands you create "galleries" and then add pictures to those galleries. Why? I don't know, I just want one gallery called "David Abse", but there you go, maybe that's me. Then try and add another piece of work. Go on, try... Nope. Not that easy,what a shame. I guess I have to open another "Gallery". Bugger, how annoying.

Fine Art America is an off-putting website name for non-Americans, but don't be put off - it's actually one of the best (apart from one thing which we'll get to). It's reasonably well-designed, it offers an active community thing, groups that actually appear relevant and functioning, and some other good perks, including a dedicated site for you (your-name.artistewebsites.com) - very useful if you don't want to build your own site. The site sells giclées of your work (and actually does sell them) and does sensible marketing. So where's my gripe? You've got it - uploading: Every bloody time I go to this site I waste 10 minutes trying to find the lousy button that says "upload work". By the time I've done that I am pissed off, and then it takes another 60 days to actually upload anything because the multiple upload feature never works - remind you of anyone?

In some ways I like PicassoMio, in some ways I hate it. On the good side it looks ok (but dull), I get clicks through to my website, and it's a quality product that costs nothing. Even the uploading part seems OK, until you realise that as well as uploading all your tedious information about your painting in English, you have to do it in Spanish too! Aaaargh. Obviously i do this using 'google translate' as my Spanish is limited to asking for "dos cerveças por favor" (what you want one too?), but still, it's a pain in the lower back.

Then there's Artmajeur. This is another website that claims to be the biggest and the best (yawn). And one of the most annoying. If you find my page on this website you may notice that it is rather lacking in information. You may also notice the dark self portrait of me looking like I'm going to kill someone. That's a picture of me thinking about the designers of this rubbish website which constantly gives error messages when uploading, adding info etc. Good reputation, apparently this website. I really don't know why. Well, maybe it isn't the website, maybe they just use their home pc as a server. To prove I wasn't making this up I just tried to upload a picture, Didn't work. Oh yeah - and another one with NO click throughs.

Another site I have recently come across is Art Limited which whilst it has its shortcomings has some good things too. It's a french based site, which can be in French or English - by a simple click - and various price options are available ranging from free to 99 euros a year (there seems to be a pointless middle option. There's no limit in total on the basic free site, just a weekly limit of 10 uploads - which is only an issue if you are incredibly prolific and have even more time available to upload your work. File sizes are limited to 300dpi so that means uploading shouldn't be too painful But unfortunately it is one of the most tedious uploading systems I've come across. There is a form which asks you to categorise your work about 6 different completely irrelevant ways (what "mood" is your work? Well I don't know about my work but I'm damn pissed off with this uploading system), and asks no useful information like "size", "price"... Anyway, on the good side of things the 99 euro thing looks pretty good if you want to set up your own site - they show some impressive examples of sites other people have built with them. But I don't need that, so ...

Oops - I forgot Artdoxa which is a nice site for uploading stuff in - really easy to upload, including uploading multiple stuff. A community thing going on, which i haven't really taken much notice of, but it's a nice site, and gets some traffic. You can't sell anything on there - it's just for showing your work. As they say: "ARTDOXA aims to offer better ways to share your contemporary art and your opinion."

Artobolus seems like a good thing, but as I've only recently joined I can't give too detailed a review. It is well designed, its user interface is OK, but the site is slow. I'm not sure how much traffic it gets, and you don't seem to be able to sell anything.

Saatchi Online tries to be an English version of Premier celeste, without really succeeding. It did have a competition thing going on, with people voting, but apparently there was some controversy about people cheating on the voting or something allegedly (better be careful here, not sure what really happened). They have tried recently to turn the site into an all round artists' site, and it seems ok. You sell your work, the work looks ok on the site, but uploading they want big files (see below) for giclées and therefore uploading is very slow , and the categories for work they have chosen are a bit odd. I always like to say my work is 'political' just because they are Tory bastards. There you go.

Now if you and look at my links page again you'll see there are a few I've left out. These include some specialist sites that are interesting for me but may not be for you: eg ArtCardiff and L'Hérault Art . But you can assume that the rest of them are just so poor that they aren't up to the job. For example MoyaWorld looks like a good thing. But it clearly isn't finished yet. There are a couple of other unfinished sites out there too, offering semi-working services.

And finally I should, of course, mention RedBubble. In many ways RedBubble is better than all of the above, because of the active community thing they have going, and the ease of uploading work, and the large number of people using it. However, RedBubble are a bunch of bastards, who have no qualms about selling nazi-apologist, holocaust-denying crap. Have no problem publishing tasteless shit as long as THEY make money out of it. And worse, they ban people who protest. For more info on THAT see here. And here. And here.

I guess having done all this the key things to consider are:

1. The price - is it worth paying for your work to be on this website?
2. The convenience of uploading - are you going to end up killing someone because of the terrible problems you have uploading?
3. Visits: Does anyone actually USE this site? How many people will see your work. Try searching for my work on Google and see which websites come up first

This also leads me to give some advice that I should remember to follow myself about uploading artwork to different sites:

David's simple rules for uploading art to websites:

1. All websites want your work in different file sizes. Some demand "less than 500kb", some demand "less than 1mb", some say "min of 300dpi", some say "minimum of 800pts on width" some say "upload as large files as you can to enable us to print high quality copies". Bastards aren't they. So the simple rule is: save copies of your images in different sizes. Don't believe all the other crap - THAT is what photoshop is for.

2 Price your work in pounds, euros and dollars. And remember to use the same price on each website.

3. Write some blurb about the picture and save it in word or something so that you can copy and paste it into the sites that demand you write a description - it gets really boring typing the same crap over and over again.

4. Do the same with "key words". Come up with a list and cut and paste them into the box that asks you for them (if they do). Again, it's really tiring doing it over and over.

Now if only I can keep to these rules myself!

FOLLOW UP - November 10th 2011

Just about 6 months has passed since I originally posted this, and as I have noticed quite a lot of people have looked at this blog entry, I thought I would update my original post and tell you what's new.

Firstly - in order written originally, I have to write nice things about Art Wanted - they have updated and improved the website since my original post, and have I have to say are incredibly responsive to member criticism etc. So I have decided I like them and will continue to use them. Other sites that have in my view improved in the last six months include LondonArt, which has just got faster and more popular, and I am getting much more traffic from there, Fine Art America which has improved some of its bells and whistles, BlueCanvas which now sells prints (but is still too slow!!) and last but not least Saatchi Online that has sped up and now offers print sales as well as annoying 'head-to-head' competitions (if you like that sort of thing).

Mostly other sites are as I wrote about them above but there are, however, sites that have unfortunately managed to get worse. Top of the list is ArtSpan - which is frankly useless, and I don't bother with it any more. Next, ArtQuest which is, if anything, even worse than I wrote 6 months ago - avoid! I am having similar misgivings now about Yessy, and don't bother uploading my stuff their any more either. I'm not even going to link to these sites now!

I am sure there are other sites I have missed - let me know if you come across one worth noting. All comments are welcome (but moderated!).

David

Opening/Vernissage - "Animals"

2011-05-11T07:09:00.000-07:00

This is to invite you to the opening of my latest show, 'Animals' which is taking place in Gignac, Friday May 20, 7pm at 'Art Nomade. It is a joint show with ceramicist Cherryl Taylor.

Obviously many of you won't even be in France, let alone in this area, but just in case - please feel free to visit!

For those of you in London in June, you might want to keep the evening of June 8th free for an opening at the Brick Lane Gallery.

In other news take a look at http://www.lheraultart.com/ - where I am to be featured, also in the magazine 'L'Artiste'

Ceci est pour vous inviter au vernissage de mon dernier spectacle, «Animaux», qui se déroule à Gignac, vendredi 20 Mai à 19 heures «Art Nomade». Il s'agit d'un spectacle commun avec céramiste Cherrryl Taylor.

Visiblement, beaucoup d'entre vous ne sera même pas en France, et encore moins dans ce domaine, mais juste au cas où - s'il vous plaît n'hésitez pas à visiter!

Pour ceux d'entre vous à Londres en Juin, vous pouvez garder le soir de Juin libre huitième pour une ouverture à la Galerie Brick Lane.

Dans d'autres nouvelles jeter un oeil à http://www.lheraultart.com/ - où je dois être présenté, également dans le magazine "L'Artiste"

Re-revisiting Pic Saint Loup, and other things!

2011-05-05T15:41:00.000-07:00

I've been working more on the Pic Saint Loup painting, which has turned into Pic Saint Loup behind a fence. I'm not sure about this.

The colours are ok, but the whole thing is beginning to look like three different paintings stuck together. It needs more work I think.

The difficulty here is one of composition. I've been working for the last few months on smaller views, which involve buildings, so the whole scale issue is different. As well as the lack of right angles, which is why i guess i created some.

This is very different from the other Pic painting I did - which is a small experiment - thick vibrant paint on a ceramic board/canvas thing that I bough in an art shop in New York. It seems to work, but what you can't tell from the image here is how small the actual painting is - about 20x20cm i thing 8 inches square for those who don't get cm.

The other painting I've been working on is an idea of taking the village landscape/abstracts a step further - but in some ways a step less - taking out complex marks and strokes. Using the textures I like, but primarily making the painting with only spray paint - and simplifying the composition a lot. I'm not sure it works completely. Too red?

Finally, I've been doing some giclée printing today for Peter Maher - it took hours because my printer was playing up, but eventually got what he/we wanted. Fantastic drawings of relatives/cousins - i like the Welsh small town image especially but generally these are really great drawings, as you'll see on his site here.

Pic Saint Loup revisited

2011-05-03T08:58:00.000-07:00

There's some kind of walking festival later this month where ramblers go walking over the dramatic mountain of Pic Saint Loup. My paintings of the mountain I did last year will be exhibited 'en route' and in the place they all meet up. This kicked me into doing another pic painting - a bit of a leap from what I've been doing recently:

Dave Bown Projects

2011-04-30T13:52:00.000-07:00

Here's an interesting thing:

http://davebownprojects.com/

Two more forthcoming exhibitions - Gignac and London - and the Fête Médieval at Les Matelles

2011-04-26T16:44:00.000-07:00

More "Printemps en Folie" in Gignac from May 9th, and taking part in "Art in Mind" in the Brick Lane Gallery in London - put the opening in your diary for the evening of June 8th - more details to follow.

Meanwhile the Fête Medieval is this forthcoming week in Les Matelles - here's a few pictures to give you an idea of what it's all about:

But I'll just be selling bubble swords and t shirts

New Paintings - New York and back here

2011-04-10T08:43:00.000-07:00

Some new paintings:

Forthcoming Exhibitions: Gignac and London

2011-04-08T14:36:00.000-07:00

From May 14th at the Galerie Art Nomade in Gignac: with Cherryl Taylor again, drawings and ceramics; and from June 6th "Art in Mind" at the Brick Lane Gallery. Watch this space for further details.

And don't forget to visit the Soleil Bleu if you're anywhere near Lodève.

Lodève exhibition starts 4 April - Le Printemps en Folie

2011-03-28T05:30:00.000-07:00

Art in the Hérault: 20 Questions - New York, Icosahedron

2011-03-16T16:41:00.000-07:00

See here: http://www.lheraultart.com/20-questions/

Also, on my last day of my New York trip/quest. Here's a bad photo or two of the exhibition opening:

I thought this was performance art but she was just tidying...

Virtual Gallery

2011-03-06T14:45:00.000-08:00

I got invited to have a go at this - so I have. I think it's pretty cool! Take a look:
http://3dvas.com/galleries/gallery.php?ex=3266

Crossroads

2011-03-05T08:42:00.000-08:00

New painting: Abstract, 80x80cm, acrylics and spray paint on canvas.

I'm standing at the crossroads, but I don't think ~I'm sinking down.

Symbolism?

Alternative Realities - 3 new paintings

2011-02-27T10:42:00.000-08:00

Alternative Reality 1

Alternative Reality 2

Alternative Reality 3

Canned Oxygen Invite

2011-02-25T14:50:00.000-08:00

Canned Oxygen - Icosahedron Gallery, March 5 to 26 2011

2011-02-23T07:20:00.000-08:00

The information for the Canned Oxygen -exhibition, including an on-line catalogue is now on their website: http://www.icosahedrongallery.org/SearchResults.asp?Cat=454

Only thing, the painting "Max Bygraves" is not in the show.

Clash of the Artists

2011-02-22T05:29:00.000-08:00

Art for progress run an annual competition for artists based on online votes - so support me by voting!

CLICK HERE!!

And then scroll down - you should find me eventually! I'm just over half way down...

Market abstract - Hanging around

2011-02-16T15:00:00.000-08:00

Third version of this painting - I have painted over and painted over. For the moment I am happy. You don't quite get the scale in this reproduction - it is huge - 185cm tall, 115cm wide. That's over 6 foot tall for non-metricated people.

The Hanging around is a reference for a number of things - that this canvas is still hanging around, that I like hanging around markets - and whilst painting the Stranglers came on..

One of 'em comes over,
he's got a monkey on his shoulder
and the monkey's getting grinner
but his eyes are on the ground
He's just hanging around...

Art Scams

2011-02-10T15:20:00.000-08:00

Will they never go away? Today I've been hassled by three different scammers. Firstly some pain called "Jordana Jack" wanting me to sell her works - she'll organise the shipping. If you don't know how this one works, it's like this:
They ask for you to give them a price for a work but they will "use their own shipper":, then they ask you to take too much money for some convoluted reason and ask you to repay them the rest. Jeez they think people are stupid.

Strangely when you tell them you only accept paypal and use your own shippers they go away. In this case it was amusing in that they asked to purchase two prints - which would have cost about 10€ to post!

The other two scams are more subtle

One said I had been 'chosen' to have my work featured in a publication of art. Akl I had to do was send them 1500€... The other one asked me to enter an open exhibition/competition - at the cost of 80$ per artwork, where, if I was one of the lucky chosen ones, my work would be *gasp* 'exhibited for two years... on a website. Hmmm. And there is a first prize worth 4,900€!!! Wait a minute - the key word is "worth"... The first prize is TWO WHOLE PAGES featuring your work in a new art publication. Second prize ("worth" 2,450€) is ONE PAGE. But never mind if you don't win, you can buy a page....

I guess artists are vulnerable souls desperate for appreciation, so are easy prey for bastards like these. But I wish they would go away.

In the meantime a big appreciation is due to the following scam-fighters:

http://stopartscams.blogspot.com/

http://www.artscams.com/

Who killed Bambi?

2011-02-08T12:25:00.000-08:00

Gentle pretty thing

Who only had one spring

You bravely faced the world

Ready for anything

I'm happy that you lived

For your life is mine

What have I except to cry

Spirit never die

Birds of the air

Beasts of the earth

Overjoyed at Bambi's birth they gambolled in the glade

Who killed Bambi?

Murder murder murder

Someone should be angry

The crime of the century

Who shot little Bambi

Never trust a hippie

'Cause I love punky Bambi

I'll kill to find the killer

In that rotten roll army

All the spikey punkers

Believers in the ruins

With one big shout

They all cry out

Who killed Bambi?

Who?

Who killed Bambi?

Something Right

2011-02-06T14:29:00.000-08:00

I was hanging some pictures today on the gallery wall. One of the paintings I was going to hang was "Something Ain't Right" - an abstract inspired by the Talking Heads song. But when I went to hang it I thought: "hang on, something ain't right". So I spent the next couple of hours working on it. So now here it is, reborn as "Something right".

Better, I think.

Fenêtres Vista

2011-02-04T16:35:00.000-08:00

Another painting inspired by my environment. Arches and windows in ancient walls all around me.

The title is an unsubtle pun. I use a mac.

Exhibitions - New York and Lodève

2011-01-26T01:37:00.000-08:00

Yes it's true. In March five of my pieces will feature in the Icosahedron Gallery in New York, in an exhibition called "Canned Oxygen". Whilst in April I will be exhibiting animal drawings in Lodève along with ceramicist Cherryl Taylor in the Soleil Bleu. More details on these events to come - and watch out for other new developments (see, I'm not spending ALL of my time being annoyed about those RedBubble bastards).

RedBubble are thieves too!

2011-01-26T01:26:00.000-08:00

I've just worked out the bastards kicked me off without paying me for the few things I sold on there. It must be at least 10€. That's one lunch in the café. Thieving nazi-sympathiser bastards.

Oh and it's not just me they're not paying: http://www.flickr.com/groups/central/discuss/72157622375299199/

More RedBubble Hijinks - They are Nazi-apologists and Liars

2011-01-25T04:16:00.000-08:00

Just to keep you up to date, I have had an interesting exchange of emails with RedBubble.

It started with this from them to me:

Hi David,

Recently, one or more of your works or communications has come to our attention as being a personal attack. No matter what situations people find themselves in while interacting on RedBubble, we expect artists to conduct themselves within the community guidelines and to report any more serious issues to us so we can follow them up directly. A personal attack is where a member writes hurtful or insulting things about another member. This also includes personal remarks made with the intention of hurting someone or upsetting them. Personal attacks include attacks on groups of artists (e.g. all the members of the ‘I love flowers’ group are losers). Most importantly, provocation is not a justification for a personal attack on another member. Personal attacks are not permitted. The following comments are considered a personal attack under the RedBubble Community Guidelines.
Profiting from genocide. Shame on you. Jason. You are clearly in need of help. Get some.
Yes, RedBubble is still selling HipsterHitler’s horrible shit, and still deleting comments underneath the t shirts that offends those nazi fuckwits by criticizing them. Ah. Poor nazi babies.
This makes them no better than the people who made the gas for the nazi concentration camps in my view. Simply: profiting from genocide is evil, and sick.
such as this crap: http://www.redbubble.com/people/hipsterhitler
We have de-published the following journals as they contain content that is considered a personal attack.
Still selling offensive Nazi shite on this site - spoiling a great social network...
Not for Sale,
I don't want to be part of a website that tolerates racism as 'art', but Merry Xmas anyway
In addition we have today removed 30 comments on Hipster Hitler work that read:
Profiting from genocide. Shame on you
The descriptions in your works "If you tolerate this" and "Profiting from genocide is evil", read as follows:
RedBubble continues to sell ‘amusing’ Hitler T shirts referring to Auschwitz, genocide etc. It’s not that far removed to being an arms dealer is it? Well my fury is being directed constructively at least. Shame on RedBubble.
RedBubble continues to sell ‘amusing’ Hitler T shirts referring to Auschwitz, genocide etc. It’s not that far removed to being an arms dealer is it? Well my fury is being directed constructively at least. Shame on RedBubble. Also – song-inspired: the Manics: If you tolerate this your children will be next
These descriptions, in conjunction with your comments and journals as outlined above are defined as harassment under our Community Guidelines:
Harassing behaviour includes: to disturb persistently, torment, humiliate, bother continually, pester or persecute. Names don’t have to be mentioned in order for behaviour to be considered harassing.
As such, we have made the decision to remove these works.

In accordance with our Community Guidelines on personal attack and harassment, this notification indicates the beginning of a suspension period. For the duration of your suspension, you will not be able to log into your RedBubble account, and your profile will not appear in RedBubble's search results. However, your profile is still viewable should your customers wish to make a purchase.

Your account will remain suspended for at least seven days, please take this time to familiarise yourself with our Community Guidelines. Suspensions do not expire automatically. Please reply to this email after 31st January 2011 to arrange for your account to be reinstated. Upon your return to RedBubble we ask that you have no further contact with HipsterHitler or directly related parties, as this will be considered a continuation of harassment. We must also warn you that if we receive another valid report within the next six months, which qualifies for a suspension according to the Community Guidelines, your account may closed permanently.

RedBubbles Approach to Content
RedBubble has a clear set of content guidelines designed to outline what we will and will not host. These are not designed as a comprehensive statement of freedom of expression in society but an expression of what we at RedBubble will host. Every company must take some view on what it hosts based on its audience and own values, and our guidelines have been developed after much consideration and a number of years of experience dealing with these issues in the RedBubble community. We have a robust reporting mechanism in place for people to report concerns. All concerns are carefully looked at and works are removed or actions taken when behavior or content falls outside our guidelines.
We may not agree with all the work on this site, but if it fits within our guidelines we will defend the artist’s right to show it. If you disagree with something you see on RedBubble, please be mindful that it's not ok to target other artists, write personal or hurtful comments about them or use them as negative examples under any circumstances. Such actions are considered a breach of our guidelines on acceptable behavior. No matter what personal feelings you have about content uploaded to RedBubble, we ask that you are respectful in your interactions with others.
Our community guidelines can be reviewed here, and a summary of our content guidelines here

Thank you for your understanding and cooperation,
The RedBubble Support Team

Community Guidelines: http://support.redbubble.com/faqs/advanced/community-guidelines

If you're interested you should take a look at those guidelines: read the stuff about offensive material, and about racism, and then try and justify their stand on HipsterHitler. You should probably also know that I am not the only one protesting and there have been a number of people being censored by opposing HipsterHitler's sale of T shirts.
Anyway - here's my reply:

Dear RedBubble

Your action is disgraceful. You are prepared to publish offensive material such as HipsterHitler's, and to profit from it, and yet you are not prepared to allow protest. HipsterHitler, and subsequently RedBubble, are profiting from genocide. You think this is, no doubt, an over-reaction, but I challenge this. Whilst HH was only producing comics as he (they) says (say) "parodying" stuff - well fair enough, even if lacking in taste. But selling T shirts with the offensive comments on them as they do is over the top. I understand they are the T shirts that their 'character' in their cartoons wears - but that's exactly it: on one hand they understand how appalling it is to go around with a "Death Camp For Cutie" or "Eastside Westside Genocide" T shirt, and therefore stay within the reasonable grounds of parody - but once they start selling them (and you too) then they are as bas as the person they claim to be parodying in.

It is clearly no longer "ironic" - you only have to read the forums on their own website to see that, and look at the 'parodying' anti-semitic shite their. You clearly have some very odd 'libertarian' views which are unsustainable under intelligent examination because you fail to understand what racism is (there is NO debate unlike you think) and you fail to understand what is and what is not offensive.

To be more concerned about defending a sicko who thinks "Hitler had a view that needs to be heard", than worry about how HipsterHitler's work offends people is bizarre. You know how many of your users are upset, and are making a completely unjustifiable stand. By removing my journals, by removing my protest art you are acting in a way no better than a fascist state - China's actions on the internet come to mind. I don't understand your viewpoint - but I don't have the power to censor it. But HipsterHitler's work is being published and sold worldwide on RedBubble - and whilst it is not against the laws of the USA where you are, it is on the borderlines of law throughout Europe, and in Australia.

Since you have made the decision to censor my work which protests against profiting from genocide (bizarre) I no longer wish to have my work published on RedBubble, and so request you remove all of my work under both accounts David Abse and Gary Socrates. I will continue my campaign against HipsterHitler however, and against your selling of their offensive works.

I hope you give this some serious thought: You will in all probability become known as the home of nazi sympathisers: if that's your business model - well, in all honesty, I cannot wish you good luck.

Such a shame - RedBubble is such a well-built site and such an excellent social network for artists. What a stupid waste.

David Abse
Matelles-Art

And this morning I received this response:

David,

We are happy for people to protest and many artists have voiced strong opinions and criticisms of RedBubble on the site over the past weeks but we have community guidelines on behaviour and conduct and all communications on RedBubble must fall within these guidelines. The wider community expects us to apply these guidelines to all cases, regardless of the circumstances. If you disagree with something you see on RedBubble, it's not ok to target other artists, write personal or hurtful comments about them or use them as negative examples under any circumstances. Such actions are considered a breach of our guidelines on acceptable behavior. We have made attempts to explain this to you in previous emails.

Your latest journal was removed as it contained yet another attack on an artist which is a breach of RedBubble's personal attack guidelines. You were also suspended from the site for seven days due to a previous breach of the guidelines so by logging in and posting this journal, you broke the conditions of your suspension. The guidelines clearly state that if you breach the guidelines again while on suspension or probation, the result is immediate account closure.

As a result, we have taken the decision to close your accounts on RedBubble. We ask that you do not open any new accounts on RedBubble in future. Any accounts found to be owned or operated by you will be closed without notice.

Regards,
The RedBubble Objections Team

So, I have sent this reply:

Dear RedBubble

There are many things that are very interesting (and very strange) in your email. I find it astonishing that you need to pointlessly lie to me to justify your unilateral actions. It's your website, you can do what you want but really I think you shouldn't lie to your users or ex-users - apart from anything else, there's not much point. Firstly you know full well that I did not post the journal AFTER being suspended - that would not have been possible. You have suspended and expelled me within the same 24 hours - and your expulsion comes 13 hours AFTER I asked you to close my accounts down - so I have no idea why you are deluding yourself and lying when it is so transparent. You even include my email requesting my accounts are closed in your email to me, so you can't claim not to have seen it. You are strange. (Oh dear, I seem to have broken your guidelines again by calling you strange - read on - I'm going to get worse). Anyway, perhaps it makes you feel better about your actions.

Your other lie is that you are happy for people to protest - well, that's clearly not so. I don't even need to explain this (but as you appear to be delusional h I'll carry on explaining to you) - your censorship of arguments on your own blog, your removal of all criticism of HipsterHitler, your removal of my art, your removal of my journals (not just one, but three, all written over a month long period before you suspended me and removed them) are all prima facie proof.

You also seem to think my comments: "Profiting from genocide. Shame on you" are personal or hurtful. I would guess only "hurtful" if true, eh? Personal in that they are directed at HipsterHitler and RedBubble (both companies who prefer to hide behind their companies' names) - that doesn't really fit with any definition I know. Although I do admit I asked a Nazi apologist to "get some help".

You also seem to regard HipsterHitler's T shirts as 'Art'. You have such incredibly poor judgement it is terrifying. Let me explain again to you since you seem to be too poorly educated to understand: those T shirts are offensive. As such, that breached your rules. Also pointless racist comments about the French seem to be tolerated by you. There is no justification in selling racist, nazi-apologist T shirts that offend so blatantly like that, and no justification of parody, humour or 'art'. They aren't 'art' by anybody's standards - they are sheer exploitation and profit-making by a young uneducated person in New York, who clearly does not care how offensive they are, and only cares about how clever they are being and how much money they are making by selling to stupid, gullible people - I guess there is some irony in this. I can only assume you are the same and your only motive is profit, and you fear criticism to the point you have to censor it. It, as I have said before, is a shame, and a shame on you: you fail to understand what a good artistic social network you have built and prefer to profit at its expense in the lowest possible way. Why you don't open a new website just selling trash nazi t shirts is beyond me. You'd do good business with the American Nazi party.

Do you know what I find even more amusing is the support I have received from all sides of the political spectrum, including positive feedback from the most alien political quarters for me, the Republican T party lot, as well as more understandable support from the left, internationally.

I'm sure you don't care, but I will continue to campaign against you in various ways: Hey, maybe you DO care, then you can take me to court - that would be interesting. So let me make it clear of what I am accusing you of (here and in public throughout the internet and in the art world).

1. Profiting from genocide

2. Putting profits before people

3. Putting profits before art

4. Lying

5. Censorship

Oh and I'm sure I'll find some more.

I don't want to hide from you so keep a look out on my blog (you have the details - unless you forgot to note them down before deleting my account).

Keep in touch, don't be a stranger.

David Abse

Matelles-Art

Anyway - I hope this helps convince more people to abandon RedBubble and to protest against them and HipsterHitler (also on facebook - but they at least don't sell their T shirts.)

Banned for protesting against genocide!!

2011-01-24T02:18:00.000-08:00

I woke up this morning to discover I have been censored and banned. Yesterday I uploaded two works that I loaded here ('Profiting from genocide is evil' and 'If you tolerate this') onto RedBubble. As I note on this blog, these two pieces were created in response to my fury that RedBubble is continuing to publish and sell work by HipsterHitler, a New York-based pair of idiots making money from selling offensive T shirts.

HipsterHitler, and subsequently RedBubble, are profiting from genocide. You may think this is an over-reaction, but I challenge this. Whilst HH was only producing comics as he (they) says (say) "parodying" stuff - well fair enough, even if lacking in taste. But selling T shirts with the offensive comments on them as they do is over the top. I understand they are the T shirts that their 'character' in their cartoons wears - but that's exactly it: on one hand in their cartoons they appear to understand how appalling it is to go around with a "Death Camp For Cutie" or "Eastside Westside Genocide" T shirt, and therefore stay within the reasonable grounds of parody - but once they start selling them (and RedBubble too) then they are as bad as the person they claim to be parodying.

It is clearly no longer "ironic" - you only have to read the forums on their own website to see that, and look at the 'parodying' anti-semitic shite there. RedBubble clearly has some very odd 'libertarian' views which are unsustainable under intelligent examination because they fail to understand what racism is (there is NO debate unlike they think) and fail to understand what is and what is not offensive.

To be more concerned about defending a sicko who thinks "Hitler had a view that needs to be heard", (this is one of the reasons I am told I am banned for - suggesting that the person who said this needs some help) than worry about how HipsterHitler's work offends people is bizarre. RedBubble knows how many of its users are upset, and they are taking a completely unjustifiable stand. As well as removing my comments on HH's work - which all said "profiting from genocide - shame on you", my journals I wrote protesting about HH's work were removed, and most unjustifiable of all three of my artworks have been censored including the two previously mentioned works and the picture here on a t shirt (no I wasn't selling it).

By removing my journals, by removing my protest art RB is acting in a way no better than a fascist state - China's actions on the internet come to mind. I don't understand their viewpoint - but I don't have the power to censor it. But HipsterHitler's work is being published and sold worldwide on RedBubble - and whilst it is not against the laws of the USA where RB is based, it is on the borderlines of law throughout Europe, and in Australia.

Since RedBubble have made the decision to censor my work which protests against profiting from genocide (bizarre) I no longer wish to have my work published on RedBubble, and so have requested they remove all of my work. I will continue my campaign against HipsterHitler however, and against RedBubble and HipsterHitler's selling of their offensive works.

Profiting from genocide is evil

2011-01-23T07:59:00.000-08:00

RedBubble are still hosting the obnoxious HipsterHitler, and censoring criticism, still arguing this is 'freedom of expression'. As someone said - genocide is the ultimate repression of freedom of expression. There is nothing funny about genocide, there is nothing clever about making t shirts exploiting idiotic American teenager's lack of education and understanding. Profiting from genocide is evil - no they're not selling guns, zyklon B: they're just making t shirts. And selling them. "eastside westside genocide" . "deathcamp for cutie". And more. It disgusts me. But at least it's causing me to create some angry protest art.

The first one is "Profiting from genocide is evil".

The second is "If you tolerate this".

Lifetime Piling Up

2011-01-21T08:27:00.000-08:00

I have tried marijuana
I get nervous every time
There will come a knockin' at the door
Why is everybody makin' eyes at me ?
I don't want to know
Excuse and pardon me
Stay for a while
Maybe we'll never
meet again

I can see my lifetime piling up
I can see the days turn into nights
I can see the people on the street
Open those windows up
- A hundred floors below me
Pilin' those houses up
Pilin' them higher, higher, higher
I can feel them swayin' back and forth
Building it higher, higher
- This tower's leaning over

I got bad coordination
Stuck a pencil in my eye
I can hardly wait to get back home
Why is everybody gettin' paranoid ?
I's only havin' fun
Scum bags and superstars
Tell me your names
I'll make a bet, you're
both the same

I can see my lifetime pilin' up
Reaching from my bedroom to the stars
I can see the house where I was born
When I was growin' up... they say that
I could never keep my trousers up
I remember days and crazy nights
Are there any pirates on this ship ?
And if they sober up - they’ll have us
Home by morning

Cry, cry, cry
It's just you and I -
Like an automobile
with no one at the wheel
Spinning out of control
We're all over the road
In our sexy machine
Oh, all the passengers scream
Scream, scream !

I can see my lifetime pilin' up
I can see it smashin' into yours
It was not an accident at all
Open your window up - I hear you laughin'
Going one two three four five
Goin' from the bottom to the top
Maybe I'm holding on too tight
And now I'm throwin' up
I got a funny feeling
Pilin' them houses up
Pilin' them higher, higher, higher
Building that highway to the stars
Turning the music up - Hey!
I got a winning number

Talking Heads

One Step Beyond - Orange Light

2011-01-15T09:54:00.000-08:00

Abstract - inspired by the incredible orange light that reflects of the building opposite (the old bergerie) as the sun goes down. A strange phenomena. The building is grey stone until the sun sets - when there's no cloud.

But the painting is about other things too. I'm interested in windows, and what reflects them and what you can and can't see and can imagine. And it's also about developing a view of the world around me. One step beyond.

Acrylic and spray paint on canvas 116x81cm

If you want to buy my work please to go to my website at http://www.matelles-art.com

Rue Droite - Les Matelles

2011-01-07T08:20:00.000-08:00

Rue Droite was the high street of Les Matelles about 600 years ago. Now it’s a cobbled lane with pretty small medieval stone houses. I walk through Rue Droite every day to get to my atelier. I live opposite the arch you can see at the end, over the other side of the river Lirou.

Acrylics and spray paint on canvas 55×46cm

Just a reminder:

T shirts and giclée prints of my work all available direct from matelles art.

Nazis Fuck Off

2011-01-01T09:22:00.000-08:00

This time I'm responding in paint: Acrylics and spray paint on board 100x70cm

Nazis on the internet -but on Art sites??? Shame on RedBubble.

2010-12-31T09:09:00.000-08:00

It is illegal in most of Europe to deny the holocaust and to perpetrate and support nazis. In some countries (Germany at least) it is illegal to publish and use a swastika. America is not the same. For some reason they believe that the notion of 'free speech' should allow organisations such as the American Nazi Party to not only carry on existing and preaching hatred, but to allow them to publish on the internet. Thankfully, this is not the case in France, and in the UK there have even been successful prosecutions of (well at least one) americans publishing their shit in the UK. So... what has this got to do with art? OK - I'll get to it:

You may have noticed from this blog or my facebook page or my website that I publish work on other websites, including the remarkably good easy to use website, RedBubble. In fact I regularly publicise my work on RedBubble via this blog and facebook. Well not any more. You can't buy my work via RedBubble any more, because I have decided that I don't want to sell my work and contribute to the profits of a company that allows people to sell racist crap. On RedBubble, despite hundreds of people protesting, you can buy T Shirts that are made by some sick american called 'HipsterHitler' who finds it amusing to laugh at the holocaust, belittle genocide and then profit from sales of T shirts that do this. "Amusing" T shirts include pictures of Hitler wearing T shirts (how ironic) saying "Death Camp for Cutie" or "Eastside Westside Genocide"... and more shit. These people claim (I quote) "Hipster Hitler is a comic that satirizes both hipster culture and the exploits of the Third Reich." Yeah great. And then makes T shirts and sells them for profit. Profiting from genocide. Not much different to manufacturing Zyklon B is it?

RedBubble won't stop selling their goods, and argues that it is protecting 'artists' who are victims of people calling them offensive. And then goes and censors comments people make who complain. They have some very strange hippy libertarian beliefs (one idiot told me I was being 'uncool'), which allows Nazis to proliferate. Do they not remember the message of Pastor Niemöller:?

They came first for the Communists,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Communist.

Then they came for the trade unionists,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a trade unionist.

Then they came for the Jews,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Jew.

Then they came for me
and by that time no one was left to speak up.

Anyway:

Two new paintings

2010-12-16T06:46:00.000-08:00

It's so cold in my studio I am painting wearing loads of clothes under my overalls plus a scarf and a hat. I was trying to paint with gloves on too, but couldn't undo the paint tubes. The dog wants to play all the time too, and the only water I've got to wash my brushes and my hands is icy cold. That's why I've been painting these two pictures side by side for over a week. I can't paint for too long, my hands would fall off. Also the paint takes ages to dry, and using spray paint (which I like to mix in with) is hard because they don't work well when so cold. But on the other hand I'm please with these two:

Bergerie - Chemin des Jasses

This one is called "Bergerie, Chemin des Jasses" - it's based on what I can partly see through my atelier's front door.

Rue de l'Eglise/Rue Droite

This is another Les Matelles piece. based on a view a see every day as I walk from home to the studio. Just past the church, I turn right at the T junction you see.

Unfortunately I now seem to have picked up a bug of some sort and feel like shite!

With Compliments

2010-11-14T11:19:00.000-08:00

NEW!!! Signed Limited Edition giclée print: 'With Compliments' :

Exclusive: Available only from www.dannieabse.com. Click here for details. Limited edition print based on Dannie Abse's poem 'With Compliments' dedicated to Joan Abse.

Dear, if I had a small legacy from Croesus
I would purchase – please do not argue –
that painting of gladioli by Soutine
you so admired. But in a waking fit
of realism I’ve bought
this bunch of robust-red,
radiantly alive upstanding gladioli
from The Corner Flower Stall instead.

Zazzle!

2010-11-10T05:12:00.000-08:00

Look for a personalized gift at Zazzle.