I'm a subscriber to Robert Genn's Twice Weekly Newsletter...and only discovered it thanks to one of my artists, Janie Giles Carp. I never know what Robert is going to be talking about each week, but I do know that it has to do with art...as subject I'm very interested in of course.
I contacted Robert after reading the November 13th edition...as it struck me because as a gallery owner...I've recognized that many people think there's a level of "art intelligence" and yet it's been proven to me over and over again...a "bad piece" of art can be recognized from miles away...by folks who have zero formal training. Why? Robert touches on that very subject here.
(Reprinted here by permission...Thank you Mr. Genn for your insight into this interesting subject.)
Authenticity
November 13, 2007
Dear Rachel,
In a public gallery the other day I came upon a tailored young
woman and her equally tailored mother. They were admiring a
painting by an artist I happen to know. As I lingered to see
what they were seeing, the daughter turned to me and said,
"It's the only good one in here." While I was mulling her
dangerous pronouncement, the word "authentic" slipped from her
lip gloss. She invited my agreement with her considerable eyes,
and I gave back.
She had been struck by that indescribable something that says
"quality." Beyond quality--more like "presence." The real goods
as opposed to the ersatz. It happens. Suddenly you see and you
trust. If you have an open mind, any type of art can do the
trick--realistic, abstract, a lofty installation or a practical
craft. And as creative people, wherever we're coming from, we
intuitively know authenticity is something worth having.
I've always thought that authenticity wasn't an add-on but the
best effort of an authentic person. This person may have acute
powers of observation or an eye beyond the ordinary. You can
sometimes tell the authentic by seeing something else nearby
that isn't. In a way it's sad that people will actually pay for
this vacuum. Intuitively or unconsciously, finer eyes see
virtue beside subject and rendering. As I said, it's
indescribable. "Casual, confident, understated, refined," may
be words these eyes use. Some simply feel an underlying ego
force or the power of intended design.
Folks with finer eyes are not always authorities or critics.
They may be quiet ones who think and feel for themselves.
Neither schooled nor influenced, they may have deep pockets or
shallow. Maybe they're just adept at spotting phonies or have a
distaste for the artificial. What's left is what we sometimes
call "taste."
A good looking fellow came by--blue suit, striped shirt, shiny
green tie. Perhaps the boyfriend--he brought the ladies' coats.
After some encouragement, he too looked long and hard at the
painting--up close, like a lawyer examining evidence. "There's
less to this than meets the eye," he said. Perhaps unknowingly,
he was quoting Tallulah Bankhead. We've illustrated the
painting in question at the top of the current clickback. See
url below.
"I get it," I said to myself as I left the gallery, "No matter
what anyone thinks or says, 'authentic' is still a matter of
opinion."
Best regards,
Robert
PS: "He is only an eye, but my God what an eye." (Paul Cezanne
was speaking about Claude Monet)
Esoterica: Think of what authenticity isn't: poor conception,
faulty rendition, bluff technique, crudity, lack of feeling,
failure of understanding, overworking, grandiosity. Yep, one
small passage may have more authenticity than one great
thundering opus. Furthermore, what about the joy of just doing
it? Writers to the twice-weekly letter often tell us how
important it is to simply enjoy the work. But what about that
good-looking guy in the blue suit, or the canny Tallulahs of
this world? Does authenticity exist?
If you think a friend or fellow artist may find value in this
material, please feel free to forward it. This does not mean
that they will automatically be subscribed to the Twice-Weekly
Letter. They have to do it voluntarily and can find out about
it by going to
http://www.painterskeys.com
