Art, motherhood and religion – oh my!

There is no such thing as the perfect parent and what works for one family may not work for yours. the best advice I’ve received is to do whatever works for you. all of these subjects make me think about relative roles in the home and workplace. there is still an expectation that women will stay at home to raise their children, that their careers are temporary (as evidenced by the very large gap still in pay rates) and that we have a duty to surrender to our children. a few artist dads spoke out in the comments of this post, they find it just as challenging to balance their careers with their children. all working parents have this dilemma. the problem is that because so many artists are passionate about their jobs (and enjoy them!)

Rubbing Botero the wrong way

I can’t decide if I’m thrilled or horrified by all this.. on one hand people are interacting with art, they’re enjoying it and it’s making an impact in a positive way – so that’s all good. but on the other, they’re all seeing everything in the most puerile light!

Nude of the Week – Standpoint Daz Render

Wavelength Daz|Studio and Realityrender Reality is a new bridge for Daz|Studio and Lux Render. it’s a physically based render engine, which means that it calculates the actual physics behind the lights, reflections and the way that light actually works. it produces outstanding effects but means that you have to re-learn everything you knew about how Daz lighting works and go back to original photographic lighting concepts. this is pretty cool, and I can see so many applications for artists who work mostly in still life. it creates volumetric glass, proper metallic reflections, and wonderful realistic water effects. sadly it also requires a pretty powerful machine – my computer just wasn’t up for anything more complex than this!

David Miliband’s nude art under critical and political attack

An emerging photographer took a portrait of David Miliband and his wife in their living room for a competition. she got the idea from a frend and ran down, narrowly missing the scrum of reporters after Miliband announced that he was not standing for the Shadow Cabinet. the photograph was entered into a competition and won. wonderful news for the photographer Naomi Goggin, but unfortunately the focus has not been on her exciting win, but on the cavorting nudes behind her subjects.

David Miliband’s nude art under critical and political attack

An emerging photographer took a portrait of David Miliband and his wife in their living room for a competition. she got the idea from a frend and ran down, narrowly missing the scrum of reporters after Miliband announced that he was not standing for the Shadow Cabinet. the photograph was entered into a competition and won. wonderful news for the photographer Naomi Goggin, but unfortunately the focus has not been on her exciting win, but on the cavorting nudes behind her subjects.

Kaisa Two censored by city council

As usual, I say if they were concerned they should have said something during the jurying process as the works were chosen. rather than letting the artist go to all the additional expense and excitement of exhibiting only to have their artwork pulled by a council member. there is nothing disturbing or sexual in this piece, it’s rather lovely (I enjoy chiaroscuro so I love the lighting in this one!).

Kaisa Two censored by city council

As usual, I say if they were concerned they should have said something during the jurying process as the works were chosen. rather than letting the artist go to all the additional expense and excitement of exhibiting only to have their artwork pulled by a council member. there is nothing disturbing or sexual in this piece, it’s rather lovely (I enjoy chiaroscuro so I love the lighting in this one!).