JaZzArt en València

Surreal-expressionism is my own, unique and personal style of creating art. It may sound as if it derived from two of the great vanguards of the XXth Century, Expressionism and Surrealism, but not exactly. The combination of both yields greater results artistically, plus more expressivity and visual intensity. Sort of like the synthesis gained from the union of thesis and antithesis.

Then I must say that Surreal-expressionism is my unique and personal philosophy of art as well. It unites, yet disengages, thoughts and emotions and allows me to create a way to communicate. In so doing I believe I can reach deep into the soul of the spectator for you are not seeing what you would expect you would find in everyday life. Yet you perceive it as such and as such you understand it. These paintings are greatly admired and sought after by collectors from all over the world for they contain the spirit of their contemporariness.

Surreal-Expressionism differs from pure Expressionism in its origins and procedure. Although it does present context, figures, landscapes or even abstractions in the manner of last century’s Expressionists. Perhaps the closest similarity is that I paint not what the figure/object actually looks like, but how I see it. But I approach my paintings with peace, happiness and an enduring faith that seemed to be lacking in the great Expressionists of the early XXth Century. Painters like Munch, Kokoschka and Dix painted the sadness, the melancholy and the pain of their existence. I paint for the beauty that I am blessed with. And I paint what the XXIst Century teaches me and reflects upon me. They painted their reality, I paint mine.

Surreal-Expressionism differs from Surrealism in ways similar to how it differs from Expressionism. The first and most significant way is that I am not repeating the process/philosophy of the Surrealists of the XXth Century. I am, and must be, true to my time in order to bring lasting spirituality to my work. Therefore I do not seek the same dream-like fantasies of painters like Dali, Magritte, or Max Ernst. Like I said previously, I paint according to my time and culture, using the references of all of Art History but not attempting, in any manner or way, to emulate or repeat what artists had done eras before mine.

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FEATURES en VALENCIARTIST ya ha comenzado. Esperamos que se unan a nosotros y que disfruten de los poetas, escritores, artistas y más que protagonizaran estas entradas especiales de VALENCIARTIST. Todos los participantes serán presentados con una entrevista, una biografía y incluiremos muestras de su trabajo para su disfrute. Además os dirán como seguir su trayectoria artística online.

Aquí va nuestra cordial invitación para que participéis. Si eres poeta, escritor, artista o te dedicas a alguna de las bellas artes, puedes ser protagonista de FEATURES. Para unirte, solo tienes que responder a esta publicación con tu dirección de correo electrónico para que podamos ponernos en contacto contigo con la información necesaria.

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FEATURES on VALENCIARTIST has begun. Hope you join us and we certainly hope you enjoy the poets, writers, artists and more who will be the protagonists of these ongoing posts on VALENCIARTIST. All will be featured with an interview, a bio and we will include samples of their work for your delight. And they will provide links to their online sites as well.

We cordially invite you to join! If you are a poet, writer, artist or are engaged in any of the fine arts, you can be a protagonist of FEATURES. To join all you have to do is reply to this post with your email address so that we can contact you with the information necessary.

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Berenice Abbott was an American photographer born in Ohio in 1898…

She started her studies at Ohio State University, then in 1918 she relocated to Manhattan and started studying painting and sculpture. In 1921 she went to Paris to continue with her studies and studied sculpture with Emile Bourdelle. Bourdelle, French sculptor, was a student of Rodin, and a teacher to Giacometti and Matisse. He was a vanguard artist and a major proponent of Art Deco and an important part of the Belle Époque movement…

In France she met Man Ray and became his assistant. She then began to develop her art and started taking portraits of other artists…

Man Ray was an American photographer born in Philadelphia in 1890 but spent most of his life in Paris. He is renowned as a fashion photographer and for the many portraits he took of famous people…

But we are focusing on Berenice Abbott and you can see many of her incredibly delicious photographs that I have placed in this video. Don’t miss it!

Cheers…

Francisco Bravo Cabrera, a.k.a. Bodo Vespaciano

What can I say about myself? Well… I am a graduate of Florida International University (located in Miami, Florida). I have been engaged in the art world since 1998 when I began painting and selling watercolours which I titled simply “Jazz-Art”, mainly because of my love of Jazz music and because of the themes of the compositions. I created his studio, Omnia Caelum Studios in Miami where I lived at the time. Presently I live and paint and write in València, Spain.

My first professional gallery exhibition was in 2003 at the PG Gallery in Istanbul, Turkey. Following the success of this show, I returned to Miami and began exhibiting in galleries there and in Sarasota and Bradenton, Florida, as well. In Miami, I was named “Artist of the Month” several times during my participation in Miami’s “Cultural Fridays” programme.

I have exhibited in Sarasota and Bradenton, Florida; Manhattan and Brooklyn, New York; Zaragoza, Barcelona, Valencia, Palma de Mallorca, and Sevilla, Spain and again in Turkey, this time in Izmir. Apart from galleries my paintings hang in many private collections throughout Europe, the United States, Taiwan and Turkey.

My unique style for painting is surreal-expressionism, but I do not not limit myself to just one style or approach. Most of my paintings are on musical themes and I use instruments as well as bodies to represent players and dancers which exist in the world of jazz and fantasy I am creating. I use colours boldly to express feelings and emotions, and many times I paint an abstract background to my figurative paintings. However, being that I believe that art is the “search” I continuously experiment and investigate new and different approaches to be able to create paintings that truly communicate and transmit the message that I wish to share.

Besides my figurative work, I have developed a way to approach abstract art thinking it something spiritual, and almost mystical. Another very important aspect of my work is drawings, (illustration), which I do using various types of graphite and ink. These I do in series titled “JaZzArt”. The series is separated into phases. And although most are in black and white, some I have drawn with ink upon a colourful abstract background of watercolour. So, are these paintings? Or drawings? You tell me…

My present work seeks to expand the use of colour, as well as to explore other styles. This would allow me the use of more symbols and abstract forms. I am looking to continuously delve deeper and deeper into expressionism. My “search” is to discover the true essence of this historical/vanguard art movement and to try to more clearly and effectively reach out and communicate with its audience. And of course to continue drawing JaZzArt because for me the black line is the clearest and most visual manner with which to bring forth the spirituality…and communicative power…of art.

My upcoming projects continue to be here in my hometown, València, Spain. But I also do a lot of work and sell much on Internet. Next year I will be back…October 2025…at the museum Sala d’Exposicions de Ciutat Vella (València) where, in 2023, I was so successful with my premiere Valencia exhibition «Atrévete» («Be Bold»).

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