GREEN // The Color of Spring

In New York, it's trying very hard to be spring, it feels like it's taking a long time to warm up and change seasons.  In my last post I talked about organ donation, at the same time I sent an eblast with various artworks that to me, represent spring. Green is the color that symbolizes spring.

I received lots of great comments and compliments about the art I selected to represent spring, so I wanted share some of the artworks and acknowledge the artists. I was drawn to nature when thinking about spring, and when I worked with my good friend and graphic designer, Sandy Shekel, to edit the images and create the layout, the greener the better...and there's a reason. Green symbolizes life, new growth, the environment , ecology, recycling and nature.

The lush foliage in COBAMONG BOAT, by Stuart Zaro 

LAUGHTER, by Elena Lyakir

It also represents tranquility, health and luck. We used it for the Share Life logo, to inspire good health and sharing, through organ donation.

Green is also thought to reduce stress and is recommended for a work environment. I'm not sure I'm ready for a return to green walls, but I would love to look at these paintings,

LINE-ING_12"x12", by Xanda McCagg 

and combined with warm colors that evoke a combination of nature and calm, WATERFALL_60"x48", by Anne Raymond   

Christine Wexler's photograph, THE WAVE,  of 3 boys waiting to surf, captures the warmth and spirit of the spring and summer seasons.

There are other artists that come to mind when I think color, and light and spring. Wolf Kahn creates beautiful paintings that evoke nature. I pinned SPRING GREENS on my Pinterest board recently, and it was 're-pinned' and 'liked' many times.

Photographer Bonnie Edelman captures the extraordinary colors of nature in her SCAPES series.

Color theorist Josef Albers explored the relationship of colors and perception in his series of over 1000  geometric paintings, HOMAGE TO THE SQUARE.  One of his green paintings, SOFT SPOKEN,

We will be seeing a lot more green in 2013 since Emerald green was selected by Pantone as the Color of the Year. Versions of emerald will find its way into many products this year.

The spring RE eblast, with the variety of inspiring green artwork was created and sent in support of National Donate Life Month. Thanks to President Obama for making it official and acknowledged throughout the country. My family and I are involved in a number of events during the month to help raise awareness and the profile of the dire need in New York State and throughout the US to increase the organ donor registry. Romanoff Elements will be donating a portion of sales to the New York Organ Donor Network and their work on behalf of increasing the donor registry.

I'm hoping that the sun starts to shine more, and we can all enjoy spring;  the warmth, the natural and beautiful colors, and the new energy that comes with it!

Color // The Power of Red

Red is an emotional color. It elicits feelings, both positive and negative, depending upon its context. Last year, I wrote a blog in February about the color red in art & design and why it has become associated with Valentine's Day. When I began thinking about it recently and if and how I might add to this, I found red was present in many places other than art. It prompted me to think about what else elicits emotion. Abstract Expressionist Mark Rothko's "No.1 (Royal Red & Blue)" sold in November 2012 for $75 million at a record-setting Sotheby's contemporary art auction. The NY Times reported that as the bidding was escalating, the dealers described this painting as having "wall power" - as in, it is large, and has presence, a result of the strong color and composition, and thus fetched a significant price.

Leatrice Eiseman, a color specialist, is an "international color guru". She works with color consultant Pantone, and with companies worldwide offering advice on how color can affect their brands. Eiseman says, "People love red".  In her book, "Colors for Your Every Mood", she writes that red evokes a physiological reaction. And since it is believed to promote passion, it's an obvious choice for the bedroom. Red is perceived as the most sensual of all colors and, as the saying goes, 'sex sells.'

Diana Vreeland, the larger than life fashion editor of Harpers Bazaar, Vogue and then Creative Consultant to the Costume Institute at the Metropolitan Museum said, "Red is the great clarifier - bright, cleansing, revealing. It makes all colors beautiful. I can't imagine being bored with it ... I wanted this apartment to be a garden - but it had to be a garden in hell."

Vreeland in her  multi-patterned living room, with layers of red,  her "garden of hell",  photographed by Horst P. Horst

Editor Pamela Fiori recently wrote in Harper's Bazaar about Richard Avedon and his muse, Audrey Hepburn. This photo was one of his many photographs during his collaboration with Vreeland.

 

The passion of red extends to other fields, including sports...and this was very apparent to me recently. At a Super Bowl party last week, a kitchen conversation, away from the TV's and the game, turned to politics, Michelle Obama and her fashion choices. There was a sharp divide on the subject of the Jason Wu flowing red organza gown she wore to the Inaugural Balls. Was it a good color for her, was it too strong, was it elegant, did she look better in white four years ago?  My opinion: I thought she looked beautiful and regal in red!

And then the sports teams themselves. This past week with football season over, my family turned its focus to Big Ten college basketball. I began to notice the red and white uniforms. First, of the Indiana Hoosiers (my son's team, so a family favorite!) then, the Wisconsin Badgers and Ohio State Buckeyes. Really, once you start looking, there's a long list of teams with red in their uniforms, from college to the pros.

National Geographic reported a study by anthropologists on the power and benefits of red in sports. It stated that, "when opponents of a game are equally matched, the team dressed in red is more likely to win."  It went on, "Across a range of sports, we find that wearing red is consistently associated with a higher probability of winning."  The feeling is that there is an intuitive, but not conscious, aspect to seeing the benefits of the strong color.

In art, color theorist Josef Albers series, Homage to the Square, he explored chromatic interaction of nesting squares. One of  his red studies

I'm a fan of the strong canvases of several artists that I work with;

Attraction, by Xanda McCagg - with an evocative name

Random Red, by  Andrea Bonfils - created with layers of encaustic wax

Cirrus Cadmium ll, by Anne Raymond - named for the red pigment

In interiors, color is used sparingly as an accent or in large doses to fill the room. Designer Jennifer Post, known for her minimalist interiors, often punctuates a space with bright color

Architectural Digest recently featured the LA home of Maroon 5's Adam Levine, beautifully filled with an art collection and mid-century furnishings. Designer Mark Haddaway used a combination of reds, from the deep rich hue of the drapes, to the pattern of the rug to accent the masculine bedroom. The oversized bright red tufted red ottoman is the visual centerpiece

Miles Redd is known for his bold use of color and often chooses red, either saturating a room in the color or in small doses of red as in this fun closet.

Robert Indiana's LOVE sculpture was initially created as a holiday card for the Museum of Modern Art. The design then became a sculpture exhibited at the Indiana Museum of Art.  It has since been recreated around the world, it became a postage stamp and an iconic pop art symbol.

As a color identified with emotion and love, red has long been associated with Valentine's Day. I found it so interesting when I began to focus on the color red, I realized it was all around me: from the First Lady to fashion to interior design to art, to sports uniforms. Totally different applications, but in each, the color red, elicits emotion.

Tracy Burtz // An Artist's Exploration of Women

I was recently re-introduced to Tracy Burtz, a mutual friend suggested we meet.  As I read the email introduction, Tracy's name and face appeared from the past, bringing back memories of high school art class. Tracy and I knew each other from our early art training. I looked forward to meeting at her studio, especially after visiting her website and seeing what an accomplished artist she became since those initial art days.

This painting, La Sposa, has stayed with me since first seeing it.  It's a more recent work and filled with all that Tracy expresses as an artist.

We reminisced about Mr. Blackburn and Mrs. Sperber, our art teachers at New Rochelle High School, that we both had spent a summer at RISD and how that began to shape the creative directions we both took.

From the early years exploring drawing and painting, Tracy never stopped.  She studied at Boston University School of Fine Arts and followed with an MFA at Queens College.

Her drawings reflect her incedible skills of composition, line and form

After grad school, Tracy left NY for 5 years in Paris, She studied with a variety of artists, Elaine DeKooning, James Weeks, Leland Bell and more, and describes these years as “fascinating and bohemian”. The influence of those years are evident in her work.

Back in NY, Tracy started teaching and showing her work, in NYC at Hoorn-Ashby on Madison Ave , and assorted galleries in Chelsea, Westchester and CT and exhibitions in Taos and Paris.

Her subjects are varied; portraits of women, couples, still lifes and seascapes.  We spoke about the themes that tie it together - the traditional training emerges,  it’s “all about picture-making, and what makes a great painting; composition, color, darks, lights, value, line and texture.”

You can’t help but feel Tracy’s love of women - her life is filled with 3 sisters, a daughter, Milena Corin, who has been the artist's favorite model throughout her life, and many women friends. She explores their beauty, their sexuality and their everyday lives.

Tracy’ s work is extremely personal. Talking and walking through Tracy’s home and studio (a picture-perfect Victorian barn, c.1850's, with 20' ceilings and fabulous light in South Salem, NY) is like passing through different moments in her life, each piece tells a story, about herself, about her models and their connection, about motherhood, marriage, divorce and the moments and emotions in between them all.

Time spent in Nantucket, Hawaii, Morrocco are expressed in small beautifully executed oil pastels.

and classic Still Life's express simple moments; the kitchen table filled with fresh flowers, coffee, cookies and chocolates

Each piece brings you to a different part of Tracy’s life, and the stories about them.  Color is what strikes me the most about Tracy's work, and why I come back to La Sposa, it's quieter than most of her work - but in it's subtlety is depth of color, expression, form and line - all the traditional components that Tracy focuses on.

and then another favorite, Blue Girl, about color and yoga - a part of Tracy's life and also how we re-met, through Linda Kreisberg, our mutual friend and yoga teacher.

The Color of February // RED in art & design

The color red is filled with meaning.  It’s found in nature - in red roses and robins. It's spiritual -  the symbol for luck and it's the first chakra in Sanskrit.  It has history and special meaning in various cultures around the world.  It’s political - as in the red states, and it's emotional, symbolic of both anger and love.  The red or root chakra provides stability, groundedness and trust, red symbolizes power and strength, it encourages action and enthusiasm. In addition to the inferred meanings, the color red has a significant visual impact  when used in art & design. Artist Anne Raymond, on red and her red paintings,  “Red is strength, it’s the pigment of passion and confidence. Red is energy known, felt and intended.”  Anne spoke with me about the appeal of her red canvases and how some naturally gravitate towards it and others may choose it in small doses.

For those who love it,

or with white, negative space and additional colors, for a quieter canvas, named for the red pigment, Cirrus Cadmium

Photographer Bonnie Edelman captures the natural beauty of red in a stunning sky

Abstract Expressionist  Barnett Newman often used red and other strong flat primary colors in his noted Zip paintings, as in “Who’s Afraid of Red, Yellow and Blue”

I love the contrast of the flowing red scarf in William Wegman’s, “Red to Head”, one of his Weimeraner photographs

Red has found a place in many familiar idioms, Seeing Red, Red carpet treatment, Caught red-handed, Red flag, Red tape and In the red are just a few. It’s pretty interesting to focus on this and see how this color, and the word are in our everyday experience.

Red is in the name of many iconic brands: for a cause - Bono’s (Red), The American Red Cross, in sports - Boston Red Sox, to signify energy - Red Bull, for achievement - Red Ribbon.

Red is used visually  to create strong brand identitly

for New Yorkers, the fun and much adored Milton Glaser designed symbol,

Artists and designers use red to fill an entire canvas, a product, or room -  when the goal is a bold statement to elicit a strong emotional effect or they use it as an accent to provide a stroke of contrast and energy.

In fashion, like art, red is classically used to make a statement.

Charles Louboutin red soles are iconic. The NYTimes, recently refered to”The Little Red (Litigious) Shoes", The company is suing the YSL brand claiming that their red shoes infringe on the trademarked, “Red Sole Mark”.

Louboutin red,  from classic

to outrageous

Designer Donna Karan is identified with clothing that empowers - red from her Spring 2012 advertising campaign

Double red, Reese WItherspoon on the red carpet in a striking red Zac Posen dress

The use of red in home and furniture design provides impact whether used in large amounts, or sparingly. Iconic modern furniture combines strong silhouette and color.

The Egg Chair, by Arne Jacobsen

The Miniature Verner Panton Heart Chair

Heller’s, Marilyn BOCCA sofa, 1972

A bold use of color in a room, walls painted with a saturated deep red, Benjamin Moore’s, Million Dollar Red and red upholstered furniture in a classic room, by designer, Bibi Monnahan

or red as a dramatic and effective accessory, chairs and wall decor in a fresh Hamptons home by Ilene O’Neil

Why RED?  because it’s February and the color is synonymous with Valentine’s Day - red roses and the celebration of love.

Exhibiting in Times Square for the holiday, a 10 foot tall installation with 400 LED acrylic tubes around a big red heart.

“the interactive art piece pulses with a glowing red luminosity whereby, people's interaction with one another intensify the beating of the brightly, burning heart”

and classic RED - 75 gorgeous red roses