Activity #7 - ART 101: Mid-Term Exhibition Introduction

20 Years of Fantasy

Art can have many different themes and purposes. In this exhibition, we will discuss and explore six paintings falling under the theme Invention and Fantasy. When you hear or think of the word “fantasy,” one immediately connects the word with happiness or perfection; in a fantasy world, all of your desires come true and dreams seem to become a reality. “Invention and Fantasy’s” primary goal is to bring an imaginary world to life before the viewers and in this exhibition each artist does just that in similar and contrasting ways.

One similarity that is brought before us is that 4 out of 6 paintings use blue as its dominant color. Blue is a cool color, known to provide calm and peaceful atmosphere. When you look at the four paintings that use blue as its dominant color, you can sense a calm tone and a peaceful mood. For example, “Adoring Moon,” an acrylic on canvas by Jean Campbell, is a painting predominately colored in blue as its background sky with a personified moon looking over the world and “adoring” what he sees. The lack of definition and clarity in the outline of the moon causes us to be at peace just as the moon is. The monochromatic harmonies of blue seen in this painting keep the viewer at a calm state of mind. “Serpent Mage” is an acrylic on board painted by Ciruelo Cabral and also uses blue as well, yet we wouldn’t think of using an object/theme to deliver a peaceful mood. Serpents are known for being dangerous, sneaky and have evil connotations. But because of the blue that is used throughout this painting and the bright horizon in the background, it brings us back to our initial connection with the word “fantasy:” a place of happiness. If you really look at the serpent, it seems to be very happy that his kingdom is near a peaceful and beautiful ocean.

As we look over the past 20 years of fantasy artwork, we come across the differences that come with the development of fantasy occurs. “Dapple Grey,” a watercolor created by Lela Dowling is the oldest painting in this exhibition and resembles a fairy tale type narrative. Here, you see the flying horse coming to return something that was lost, something treasured by the queen. The use of watercolors brings a soft touch to the colors on this painting as well as the dominant blue used as the peaceful sky, setting a happy and somber tone for the painting. This horse is the hero and saves the day, establishing a “happily ever after” ending to this tale. One of the more recent paintings also has a fairy tale type narrative, only this time there doesn’t seem that this tale will end with “happily ever after.” “Three Samurais” is an oil on hardboard by Nick Marci and doesn’t use much blue in this painting. The two samurais standing have an evil look on their face and seem to have defeated what could possibly be the desired hero of the tale. Because of the strong warm colors used as well as the blacks and grays, it causes us to believe that evil has prevailed, an ending that we don’t like to see yet it is becoming more and more evident and relevant in our world today.

This exhibition has allowed you to see the development of fantasy over a span of twenty years and to see the many similarities and differences used to convey the central message of bringing an imaginary world to life.