MARSDEN HARTLEY

This scarf reminded me of the work of Marsden Hartley, an artist I always encountered when reading about American art of the 20th century, but whose work I never really investigated.  

Hartley (1877-1943) was an American Modernist painter, poet, and writer, born in Maine.

Hartley's work was shown alongside many other well-known American artists, such as Georgia O'Keeffe and Charles Sheeler, at Alfred Stieglitz's legendary 291 Gallery in New York.

Though Hartley traveled extensively throughout the United States, and was eventually categorized as an authentically American artist, he also lived in Europe and was greatly influenced by German Expressionism, and inspired by German military pageantry, as seen in the works shown here.

While in Europe, Hartley became acquainted with Gertrude Stein, Wassily Kandinsky (discussed here), and Franz Marc (recently discussed here), each of whom had a distinct influence on his work.

In the later years of his career, Hartley moved back to the U.S., and became a part of the Regionalism movement, depicting scenes of local life in both his paintings and his writing.

Hartley considered his art a spiritual journey, and found great meaning in symbolism.

"My work embodies little visions of the great intangible..."

--Marsden Hartley

Wool coat: vintage, thrifted
Scarf: thrifted
Riding pants: Tahari
Leather boots: Franco Sarto (also worn here and here)
Socks: Gold Toe (also worn here)
Leather purse: vintage (also worn here)
  Striped tunic: H&M
Leather gloves: Urban Outfitters

[Hartley images from arthistory.about.com, oilpainting-frame.com, venetianred.net, and triviumproject.com, respectively.]

FRANZ MARC

The colors I wear are always very specific, expressive choices, related to my mood or surroundings.  This is an ideal that I share with the late German Expressionist Franz Marc.

Marc (1880-1916) was a painter and printmaker, and one of the founders of the artistic collaborative known as Der Blaue Reiter (The Blue Rider).

Along with Auguste Macke and Wassily Kandinsky, Marc founded Der Blaue Reiter journal in 1911, which became synonymous with the German Expressionist movement in Munich.
View my Kandinsky post here.

In 1912, Marc met Robert Delaunay, who greatly influenced Marc's artistic shift toward Futurism.

Within months after being sent to the front in World War I, Marc was listed as a notable artist and was slated to be removed from combat.  However, he was killed in battle in 1916, before he could be sent home.

For Marc, particular colors had very specific meanings.  For example, blue signified masculinity or spirituality, and red symbolized violence.

"Art is nothing but the expression of our dream; the more we surrender to it the closer we get to the inner truth of things, our dream-life, the true life that scorns questions and does not see them."    --Franz Marc

I'm wearing a vintage silk blouse, thrifted Ellen Tracy silk skirt, vintage cardigan, Urban Outfitters socks, whistle pendant from the Brooklyn Flea, and Marni shoes.

[Marc images from artmight.com, Leicester Arts and Museums Service, wikimedia.org, and karlshuker.blogspot.com, respectively.]

COLOR CUES

Although one of the best ways to gain inspiration is through art books, I believe that art is best experienced firsthand. There is nothing comparable to standing before a Boticelli or a Pollock for the first time, and it is an experience one does not easily forget.

Color is one thing that is never fully justified in reproductions. After looking at photos, slides, and jpegs of paintings by Wassily Kandinsky (1866-1944), nothing could compare to seeing one in person. The colors are so bold and vibrant, they are nearly overwhelming.

It's easy to be inspired by Kandinsky wardrobe-wise, what with the multitude of bright colors and interesting shapes. One aspect of his work that I've been picking up in my personal style recently is the striking combination of purple and red.

Nearly all of Kandinsky's paintings feature this color duality, and, though the two colors reside next to eachother on the color wheel, the result is still very bold.

As I shared before, Kandinsky's primary motivation in his work was composition, but clearly his use of color is equally strong.

For this outfit, I decided to take some cues from Kandinsky's color scheme and juxtapose purple and red with black accents, and a pair of shoes that could probably be camouflaged into a Kandinsky painting.

I'm wearing a vintage blouse and jacket, vintage leather skirt, Betsey Johnson leather clutch, and L.A.M.B. reptile heels.

[Kandinsky images from russianavantgard.com, dosiamckay.wordpress.com, and artobserved.com, respectively.]

COMPOSITION

Even though yesterday was awfully gray, I couldn't keep myself from dragging my brand new camera out for its first official photoshoot! These photos represent my first round of self portraits using a tripod and self-timer.

Since the weather wasn't particularly inspiring, I wanted my outfit to be bold enough to reflect my cheerful mood. I ended up channeling one of my favorite artists, Wassily Kandinsky.

Kandinsky approached his paintings as though they were musical or poetic compositions. Each aspect of the work was fully considered on its own and as a part of the whole.

Composition X, 1939

He said, "Each true painting is poetry. For poetry is not made solely by use of words, but also by colours, organized and composed; consequently, painting is a pictorial poetic creation...The source of both languages is the same; they share the same root: intuition -- soul."

Around the Circle, 1940

I like to use Kandinsky's approach to getting dressed as well. Each piece of an outfit should have a particular function that relates to everything else--and the overall effect.

I used the long black leather skirt as an opaque balance between the busy silk blouse and bold aqua boots, much like Kandinsky's use of a black ground and wiry, unexpected moments of color and shape.

This outfit was a great way to perk up a dreary day! I'm wearing a vintage silk blouse, vintage leather skirt, UO glass bead necklace, and aqua leather Durango boots.

[Kandinsky images from abcgallery.com and amazonaws.com, respectively; Kandinsky quote from Kandinsky by Ulrike Becks-Malorny, 187.]