Online Image Appropriations

Internet has becoming a incomparable tool for search and research. I have utilized internet satellite photos for inspiration to create paintings and drawings. One such photo was a bridge connecting North Korea and China. The bridge in the Korean territory was bombed in the Korean War and remains broken, while the Chinese portion stood rigidly above the frozen river. A new bridge parallel to the ruin runs across Yalu River.



Via satellite photo, I located a main square in my home city, Shenyang, China. The square is named after Dr. Sun Yat-Sen who led the revolution that overthrew the monarchy. Though it is called Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Square, the dominant feature there is a gigantic statue of Mao, afloat atop the masses. I made a drawing of the satellite photo, and it, in turn, was appropriated by another website:



















Mao Zedong at Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Square in Shenyang, China (for details see my portfolio)


The too-common practice of online image borrowing -- or appropriation -- is double-edged sword for artists. Though a broader group of viewers will have access to appropriated images of artwork, more often than not copyright issues were simply ignored, and sometimes the artist is not even credited. However, considering the borrowers usually only use an image for specific personal purposes, the loss of commercial value of the visual art amounts to almost nothing unless the works belong to a very well known artist.

A Google search of my name yielded a few more web pages featuring my paintings and drawings.



















A Young Frenchman (for details see my portfolio)























Self-Portrait, Black and White (for details see my portfolio)




















Purple Dream (for details see my portfolio)




















Fruit Tree (for details see my portfolio)

Now and Then - Two Three-Year Old Paintings Updated

When I looked back at some of my old works, sometimes I was compelled to either renounce them or update them according to my current state of mind. Two paintings I finished about three years ago fell into this category and images below demonstrated the changes I made to these works:

- Heavenwards Ladder

Now:



Then:

















- Snowy Mountain, II

Now:



Then:
















I cannot say that the new versions are superior to the older ones. I can only say that they fit my current state of mind.

Mackerel / 鯖魚 / Makrele

Mackerel / 鯖魚 / Makrele
Originally uploaded by Matthew Felix Sun

I just received the notification from "ViewPoint 2009", a national juried art competition sponsored by the Cincinnati Art Club. This marks the 41st year for this annual competition which comprises 70 works by national artists in various media.

ViewPoint 2009 will hold an opening reception for the public at the Cincinnati Art Club, 1021 Parkside Place, Cincinnati, Ohio, on Friday, November 6, from 6:00 to 8:00 pm. The exhibition will continue until November 22nd, 2009.

Founded in 1890, Cincinnati Art Club is one of the oldest and most active nonprofit art organizations in the United States of America.

The juror for this year's competition is Mr. John Michael Carter, a nationally known portrait artist from the Luoisville, Kentucky area. The juror will judge the awards in person after the show is hung and the awards ceremony will take place during the opening reception, approximately at 7:00 pm.

My "Apocalypse Series" on Synchronized Chaos Webzine

Last September, I participated an exhibition at Artist-Xchange Gallery in San Francisco and was contacted by Synchronized Chaos, "an interdisciplinary art, poetry, literary, science, nature, cultural issues, and travel writing webzine", inviting me to submit to their website.

After reviewing the sample of my website and my portfolio, Synch Chaos decided to publish my "Apocalypse Series" which is an on-going series commenced when the George W. Bush was drumming up to invade Iraq.

The article online ( http://synchchaos.com/?p=989 ) features nine paintings of mine from this series and the conception in its entirety.

I am so happy to be able to share this series with more people. Thank you, Synchronized Chaos!

June Exhibit at City Art Gallery (San Francisco) Reported by ArtBusiness.com

I just found out there was a brief reporting by ArtBusiness.com, of the June Exhibit at City Art Gallery, San Francisco, which I participated.

According to ArtBusiness.com, "ArtBusiness.com provides complete art services, art appraisals, art price data, news, articles, and market information to art collectors, artists, and fine arts professionals. ArtBusiness.com services include appraising all works of fine art; consulting on buying, selling, donating, and collecting fine art; dispute mediation and resolution; and expert testimony in legal cases involving art issues. ArtBusiness.com accesses a variety of databases containing well over 5,000,000 price records, and biographical information for more than 400,000 artists.

ArtBusiness.com contains over 3,000 pages of free content, regularly posts art business articles, reviews art gallery openings, critiques art, covers art market news, and critically evaluates specialized technical art reference books, CD-ROMs and online databases. Out-of-print and rare art reference books and exhibition catalogues are also available through the site.

For artists at all stages in their careers, ArtBusiness.com consults on marketing, promotion, public relations, website construction, internet selling, selling at online auctions, and career development."

Though no review was written for the show, it is nice to be listed. Thank you, Artbusiness.com.

Swing / 鞦韆 / Schaukel - "Finished", Again

Swing / 鞦韆 / Schaukel
Originally uploaded by Matthew Felix Sun

Once again, I became dissatisfied by the work and made more adjustments to "Swing". On 29 September 2009, it was finished, for sure, one more time.

Previously, I thought I'd finished it on 28 July 2009, in a blog "The Progress of a New Painting", I demonstrated the phases of this painting's progression. I would like to hear the comments on how you reacted to the final changes.