JaZzArt en València

These three are very interesting and quite different in style and approach to their creative process. I think they are a great special edition to this series of «Art History in One Minute (videos)«.

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AND LET US NOW TALK ABOUT «BAD» ARTISTS
(in my opinion)

This is simply my subjective opinion, although I will support it with some facts as I have been able to discover them.

I have to start with Jeff Koons. To me he is not an artist, but a businessman that has capitalised on thinking himself an artist and creating works that, well, you know them, and if you don’t, you will have to look them up because they are too hideous to be placed in this post. The official data on him from “experts” is: Koons is criticized for being more of a brand than an artist, outsourcing most of his work to assistants. Well the experts here are right, although they could have said more.

Moving right along we have Damien Hirst, and the experts say: Some see his work (like the diamond-encrusted skull or preserved animals) as shock value over substance. Here is another artist that employs lots of assistants to do his work. With these experts I do agree.

Damien Hirst created a series of what he called “Spot Paintings” (actually it was done by his assistants, mostly) and then British Airways budget arm Go used a design of multiple coloured spots to the tagline “Go, the new low-cost airline from British Airways.” (The Independent). Hirst stated that the advertisement “bears a striking resemblance” to his own “spot paintings” series. (The Independent). He actually tried to sue the airline but the case never progressed. I mean, hasn’t he ever seen the flamenco dresses of the women at Sevilla’s April Fair? Good grief!

Then we have Thomas Kinkade, and what do the art experts say: Kinkade is hugely popular for his glowing cottage paintings, but widely dismissed by critics as overly sentimental “mall art.” And about this Californian I’ve nothing to say except that he was a trained and technically sound artist but his style and his art is not something I spend much time on. And this is another case in which I agree with the “experts.”

Some other things that art history talks about are artists that are famous but are, or were, “bad” people. Let’s check out these three that can be thought of as being ethically or personally controversial:

• Caravaggio – literally murdered someone.
• Wagner – (in music) was notoriously anti-Semitic.
• Picasso – was brilliant but also famously cruel to women. (although none of the supposed “victims” ever complained and he supported them all generously)

Of course the «list» does not stop there, but this post does, so look for part 2 coming soon.

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From LEGENDS TO THE LIVING WORD I’ve always loved the adventures bold,Of Vikings, Pirates, tales of old.Medieval Knights, Celtic lands,Stories told …

Something Beautiful and Meaningful: Willie Torres (editor Francisco Bravo Cabrera)

As I may have mentioned, I started Omnia Caelum Studios (OCS) calling it OCS Miami back in 2003, but I had been painting, exhibiting and enlarging my «inventory» since 1996 when you could say I launched my public career.

So, in going over some boxes I had brought back to Spain, I found some of my early works. I reckon you can call them «practice» pieces, or part of «the search which is art.»

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You can follow me on Instagram: @Francisco_Bravo_Cabrera and on X: @Euskadi_Bakero as well as on YouTube: @FranciscoBravoCabrera

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THE TIMELESS CIRCLE OF MASTERS
(of art)

Usually most people think of the great masters of the Renaissance when asked about their favourite artist. Others look more to the recent past or even to the present. But knowledge of art history is very sketchy among most people and even among many artists who have not gained from the vast amount of knowledge that art history contains. So, the solution is to study art history?

Well, yes, but no, not necessarily. You can subscribe to my blog and to my YouTube channel (www.YouTube.com/@FranciscoBravo Cabrera) and I think you will learn enough. That is if you are simply a lover of art. But if you are, or aspire to be, an artist, then you should study art history, as well as painting, drawing and other techniques. Education and preparation is essential for an artist.

So, let us look at what I am calling the “timeless circle of masters.” These are greats that not many dispute their inclusion in such a special group:

Leonardo da Vinci – mindful, experimental, the searcher
Michelangelo – impetuous, powerful, indefatigable worker, mystic
Rembrandt van Rijn – light and human truth.
Diego Velázquez – visionary, technical perfection, spiritual quest
Johannes Vermeer – seeking the light and its impact on the world and people
Francisco de Goya – painter of reason, nightmare and social criticism
Claude Monet – the birth of perception as art.
Vincent van Gogh – emotion as flame and colour as the medium
Pablo Picasso – inventing new ways to create, innovations, the search without end

I would say, unequivocally, that all of these, (whether I like them or not), redefined the meaning of a painting, or what painting was before them. They did not only work through their good taste and the search for beauty but of art being.

Here are some more that some art historians would probably add to the above “super” group:

• Caravaggio – light, darkness, and violence turned into revelation
• Frida Kahlo – capitalising on being a “martyr”
• Sandro Botticelli – a true maser of light, colour, image and greatness
• Salvador Dalí – self-agrandising, narcissist, non-genius who called himself a genius

And although these painters are now famous, some of them were not famous in their time, although some, like Velázquez and Goya excelled in the courts of kings and Michelangelo was commissioned by popes to decorate churches…

Some would say, and I would agree, that fame is only the faintest reflection of what truly matters in art…

Most of the “greats” did not live to chase recognition. On the contrary, their search, their quest was for truth, light, and the feeling of art, and used a canvas, or a wall, to find themselves within that search. Painting is seeing, and one must see with honesty and if you accomplish that, then you will walk the same path of the great ones even if only a few people know your name, or no one at all. As an artist you add colour to the world and things that did not exist before you picked up a brush, dipped it in paint and placed it on a surface. And that is no small thing. It is a search and it is the expression of what you found.

I have heard it say that, «Art is the quiet echo of the soul made visible. It asks nothing but attention, and in return, it teaches us how to see ourselves and the world anew.» I can subscribe to this statement only if I can add that art is also an academic/professional pursuit which demands of the student/artist education, preparation, discipline and good taste. And also the hunger to exhibit, sell and live off of his art. Art, can also, like a soft brushstroke across still water, stay with you if you let it…

So you, yes, you, what are you chasing in art?

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WHO IS THE GREATEST PAINTER OF ALL TIME?

Well, it could be said that it may be Leonardo da Vinci (1452 – 1519)…
Art history has emphasised that he is the ultimate synthesis of art and science. And furthermore, and these are simply facts, that his Mona Lisa (to me a second rate portrait), and The Last Supper (phenomenal but badly done and due to that it is almost totally deteriorated), are among the most studied and reproduced images on Earth.

It has also been said (mostly by “experts”, good grief!) that he transformed painting into a form of intellectual inquiry. That he was able to merge light, anatomy, spirit and mystery into his paintings successfully.
And finally “experts” simply conclude that he was a genius.

I do not think he was a genius. I think he was a painter of his time and that there were probably many other “Leonardos” in abundance during the Renaissance, especially in Italy. He was not, in my opinion, the author of intellectual inquiry. And reference merging light, anatomy, spirit and mystery to create, well, allow me to introduce you to the real master, Sandro Botticelli, the author of La Nascita di Venere (The Birth of Venus). And let me add that Leonardo was also a bit lazy. Most of his paintings are unfinished and many times he had been commissioned, and paid, to create either a painting or a sculpture and he would leave the job either half done or not at all. Is that the work of a genius? I do not think so…

And The Mona Lisa, definitely not his best portrait and it would not have become so famous had it not been stolen. After the theft the “marketing” campaign created the mystique and after it was recovered the museum sent the painting on a world tour to ensure its fame. If you really want to admire a great Leonardo portrait take a look at “Lady With An Ermine” totally superior to The Mona Lisa.

Now, if we mean the most “famous” painter in art history, one might say it is Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890)…
His life story, along with his art, was woven into a myth. He was the mad painter, victim of suffering and of course his death made him a martyr, and martyrs sell. They (“experts”) say that the struggle, the passion, the vision. I don’t buy it, and it reminds me of another artist, one that I do not like, because I do like and admire van Gogh, which is Frida Kahlo…

Art historians claim that his style, i.e. his use of colour and of “swirling emotion” changed the language of painting forever. Well, perhaps, but the language of painting has been changing and by his day, it had changed much and still is. So that is nothing so big that it can elevate him to that level.
Finally they claim that he put his soul into his work. I would remind the “experts” that most good painters have done that and still do.

So I would conclude that Vincent van Gogh was a great painter and a reference to all artists that study art history. And if you are, or aspire to be, an artist you must study art history. But to me he is not the most famous painter in art history.

But if we mean to say the “most influential painter on modern art”, without a doubt it would be Pablo Picasso (1881-1973)…
Picasso was the true genius of art. He totally reinvented painting and opened the door for all the other painters of the 20th Century. When he invented cubism he created a new way of expression on the canvas that allowed for all the other art vanguards of the 20th Century to come forth. He did not create surrealism, or abstract art, but his break with tradition and classicism allowed others to become surrealists, expressionists, or abstract artists. His innovations even allowed for the clear and unequivocal development of realism and ultra-realism.

Picasso worked tirelessly. His incredible body of work proves that he was the consummate professional of art. He delved into sculpture, poetry, theatre, set and costume design and let us not forget that he invented the collage.
Picasso was the true revolutionary of art.

So, who is the greatest painter in history? Well, you tell me. But, to not let you wondering, here are a few contenders:

• Michelangelo – unmatched in power and divine drama.
• Rembrandt – master of human light and introspection.
• Claude Monet – father of Impressionism and modern vision.
• Caravaggio – light and darkness turned into revelation.
• Diego Velázquez – painter of truth before photography existed.
• Francisco de Goya – Arguably the first modern painter.

CHEERS

One of my favourite of the jazz pianists and composers, Thelonious Monk, born in North Carolina (US) in 1917… This cat was one of the founders of bebop back in the 1940’s… Monk composed «Round Midnight«, «Straight No Chaser«, «52nd Street Theme» y «Blue Monk«… The only jazz composer with more tunes is Duke Ellington… Another interesting fact about this outstanding jazz musician is that ​he was among the only five jazzmen to be featured on the cover of Time magazine (1964). The other four are Louis Armstrong, Dave Brubeck, Duke Ellington and Wynton Marsalis.

Thelonious Monk retired from performing in 1973. He died of a brain haemorrhage on the 17th of February 1982.

ENJOY HIS MUSIC

Ok, so I think a lot of my readers know that I am very partial to The Beatles. To me they did it all in pop music, wrapped it up with phenomenal lyrics and placed it in a balloon and let it float all over the world. And I am grateful that I coincided with their songs as with their songs I learned to speak the English language. Well, and with the help of my dear teacher from Scotland, Mrs. Donovan, who I will never forget. After all both of them taught me so well that when I arrived in the US (as a wee lad), nobody could understand me…

In any event. I am in the process of presenting twenty great British bands of all times. Except the present, as I am not into present day bands or music. I like good music so I stick to the golden years which lasted until the 90’s. So I thought about who to place in the coveted number 20 position. Of course, The Beatles! And in number 19 the Rolling Stones. But then I thought again as I was discussing this with my good friend Malc, also a great Beatles fan. And I concluded that the two bands will not be in the reckoning as they are in a totally different category. And here they are as the two best British bands (in my humble opinion) of all time.

So tell me what you think…

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CHEERS AND KEEP ON ROCKING

Portraits… why? What is in a portrait? At first there were no portraits. Then the portraits done mostly of religious figures.

Then came the 15th-century and the Renaissance in Europe and portraits became very popular. The reasons: A growing emphasis on the individual, advancements in oil painting technology, and increased wealth. Of course this is what allowed them the privilege of having their portrait done and what they were going to do with it, which was displaying it as a symbol of status and power. Before this, portraits were largely limited to ancient cultures, and in the late Middle Ages, they began to appear as more realistic depictions of specific individuals rather than general religious figures.

Here are a few of the portraits I have done throughout this 2025. They are not religious figures, kings or noble folk. They are a thought, an idea, a search for what a portrait really is. Is it a mirror? Is it a mask? Is it a psychological reflection of the subject? I don’t know…

CHEERS

The advisory committee on vaccinations to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) were hand-picked by notorious vaccine-denier Robert F.…

Another Trump Nail in the Coffin of the CDC?

Click here to read the full report.