JaZzArt en València

Here are some of my cats throughout the years… And these works are available as fine quality prints through Fine Art America which is the only company I use to create fine art prints (of many styles) of my artwork.

CHEERS

Picasso said many things, in the «style» of an artist, about art. He usually stuck to the practical side of the debate, but at times he went a bit philosophical. Or maybe he thought that people would expect that an artist talk like he was doing when he said such a thing as: «El arte es una mentira que nos hace darnos cuenta de la realidad.» («Art is a lie that lets us understand reality»). I would never think of art like that and I doubt that any artist works to «understand reality through the lie that art is…». I would prefer to turn the phrase around and work my art as the truth extracted from the lies of supposed «reality».

Picasso also said: «La inspiración existe, pero tiene que encontrarte trabajando.» («Inspiration exists but it has to find you while you’re working.«). I certainly agree with this thought. I don’t believe in the «magical power» of inspiration and I don’t believe in muses. An artist creates because he/she is a trained professional, not because he/she is inspired. Granted, like Picasso said, there may be times when inspiration does drop by, but it has to catch you on the stride.

Lastly, this quote by the great master: «Debes tener una idea de lo que vas a hacer, pero sólo una vaga idea.» («You must have an idea of what you are going to do but it should be just a vague one.»). Another thought that I can subscribe to. In my work, «JaZzArT», I do plan, but I leave lots of room for that great element that is found in jazz, improvisation.

And I have to say that I truly admire Picasso for his love of cats. Cats are, by far and wide, my favourite animals. They are superior to any domestic animal and a source of inspiration, wonder and education for me. I have always learned much from the cats I have had in my life. A cat is forever and one never forgets one’s cats…

And here is what I have to say about FACES. Of course, as an artist…

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SWALLOWING SWORDS WITH THE PIPER

And I thought time was standing still
when I learned to swallow swords,
before the Big Show left Mulberry Street,
before the clowns had caught the last flight
to a place where I’ll not mention,
nevermore…

I start to write with words I’ve written times before
to fill the pages of my grimoire,
that taught me how a simple man can learn to swallow swords
and how an artful piper can go door to door
from Hamelin to Florida
with feet so sore….

I walked with Harlequin and his deer friends
on yellow streets of plasticine,
while rabbits made their way into his head,
or perhaps just his hat
it’s hard to say.
but I’ll try once again…

Then three blind rats began to dance a minuet
to the rhythm of the piper playing fugues and dirges,
and the drumbeat of the stooge marked out the tempo,
accelerating here and there and then
quite abruptly slowing down the tempo.
to join in with the military cadence they had conjured.
to guide their well worn out boots to oblivion.

C.2025, Francisco Bravo Cabrera – 24 JUN 2025 – Valencia, Spain

Surreal-Expressionism is a lot more than the sum of its component parts, it is another language and another way to approach the concept and the content of a painting, including the theme and message… Here are some samples of my surreal-expressionist works done at Omnia Caelum Studios Valencia.

THANK YOU

To me, both clearly geniuses of pop music. Perhaps one more than the other, but they complemented themselves almost perfectly. Yet, two geniuses cannot work together for long and so it happened, but for more than 10 years as superstars with The Beatles, they did it all, musically, then they wrapped it up, put it in a balloon filled with helium and let it go so it would go on and on, all over the world and forever.

My grandchildren are Beatles fans! As well as Beach Boys fans and fans of most of the music that was made in the 60’s, 70’s, 80’s and even up to the mid to late 90’s… That says a lot about where the musical geniuses are coming from.

So, I cannot say anything about The Beatles, or about John, Paul, George and Ringo that you do not already know, so I will leave it here and just groove on this tune from one of my fave albums of the fab four…

CHEERS

Well, I think the song and the video says it all…

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De acuerdo… confía en todos pero espera lo inesperado y estate listo…

Well, here it is, part 8 of the mini-series…

Enjoy!

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I must admit that until quite recently, when I ran across an article about her, I had never heard of Lucia Wilcox. But seeing that she had been an influential painter, especially for the surrealism movement, I could not leave her behind. However, there is not much about her to be found.

For starters she was born in Beirut, Lebanon in 1902 (although some say 1899). She moved to Paris as a young woman and there met Picasso, Léger and other young aspiring artists. She wanted to study art and possibly did at the Académie Ranson. André Derain, a fauvist, became her mentor.

In 1938, with war on Europe’s horizon Wilcox left for the United States. She settled in Amagansett, Long Island where she became friends with Jackson Pollock, Frederick Kiesler, Max Ernst, and others. In New York Lucia had her first solos show in 1948 at the Sidney Janis Gallery. Then in 1949 she was instrumental in organizing East Hampton’s first contemporary art exhibit at Guild Hall. Reviews of her artwork from The New York Times and other newspapers, described her work as being “a dramatic compound of Byzantine color, allegro fancy, modern treatment, and near mystic feeling.”

Her work was mostly surrealist up until the 1950’s when she started doing some abstract expressionism, something quite popular at that time. Lucia was invited to participate in two of the four historic exhibitions that Alfonso Ossorio organised at Signa Gallery in 1957 and 1959. Then in 1961, she had a solo exhibition at Lefebre Gallery on East 77th Street in Manhattan.

By 1972 she had gone blind but continued to work, substituting ink for oils and allowing her mind to guide her, free of distractions. Lucia Wilcox died in New York in 1974.

These are some of her works. I find them interesting. What about you?

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Instagram: @Francisco_Bravo_Cabrera

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GRACIAS – CHEERS

To me, both clearly geniuses of pop music. Perhaps one more than the other, but they complemented themselves almost perfectly. Yet, two geniuses cannot work together for long and so it happened, but for more than 10 years as superstars with The Beatles, they did it all, musically, then they wrapped it up, put it in a balloon filled with helium and let it go so it would go on and on, all over the world and forever.

My grandchildren are Beatles fans! As well as Beach Boys fans and fans of most of the music that was made in the 60’s, 70’s, 80’s and even up to the mid to late 90’s… That says a lot about where the musical geniuses are coming from.

So, I cannot say anything about The Beatles, or about John, Paul, George and Ringo that you do not already know, so I will leave it here and just groove on this tune from one of my fave albums of the fab four…

CHEERS