Well I guess the Federal courthouse, courtyard is good for something?

Dizzy Gillespie
14 x 36″
Mixed Media
Commission – Private collection of the Speirs family

A friend asked me the other day “Why do you care about what the art organizations do?” My answer to the question could be long one. I’ll start with the most simple; once we become apathetic about the things we care about, they’ll be taken away from us.  I love art, but most of all I love artists, musicians, writers, dancers, thespians what have you. I think I take a common sense approach to art; art is created by artists, they are the cornerstone of art. I know, it sounds like a pretty simple statement, but it is the truth. In case you haven’t noticed, art has been hijacked by the establishment. This is why ‘I care’.  It’s called passion, not anger. I think the establishment is angry; angry because they got caught, angry because someone is pointing out their corruption and lack of integrity, angry because they really don’t have a defense accept to personally attack me or ignore me.

I have never gotten paid for speaking out against this corruption or lack of ethics and integrity, I speak out because it is the right thing to do. Period. I can not sit by and watch a bunch of elitists hi-jack the arts in our community, while trying to damage the reputation of artists who dissent or speak out against there crooked operations.

I wouldn’t care if any of these operations were in the private sector, I don’t tell them how to run their private businesses, and frankly I really don’t care. But when you receive public money, MY MONEY, and refuse to be open and fair about your processes, suspicions arise.

One of the persons who has tried to quell the secrecy rumors in not so many words told me to ‘Shut up and paint’.  Imagine if Picasso would have taken that advice, would he have painted Guernica? Or what if Michelangelo would have taken that advice? Would he have sculpted David? The fact is artists are much more then just artists, they are purveyors of truth, and sometimes the truth is ugly, very ugly.

Maybe that’s why they have trouble looking in the mirror.

I saw Shawn’s stuff at ArtFalls this weekend. It is a great combination of found objects, comic books, collage and mixed media.

Check out more here: www.shawnwolter.com

 

20 x 24″ – June 2007
Mixed Media on Canvas Board
Framed – Black Metal
$200

“RANT: Anonymous bloggers spewing venom and criticism don’t merit newspaper space, particularly when they attack other people. This is not free speech. It is a license to slander others behind the verbal equivalent of a white hood. Readers deserve better.”

This was from the RANTS & RAVES in the Argus today. Made me laugh, the person who said this is a trial lawyer. I heard she is quite the bulldog in the courtroom to. She may be correct about ‘some people’ in her statement, but comparing bloggers to the KKK is a little over the top. Of course, we know what they say about lawyers . . .