Saturday, September 15, 2007

Black Velvet Painting: Where the Talent Really Shows

"You're so ugly you could be a modern art masterpiece."

R. Lee Ermey, Full Metal Jacket (1987)

"...The so-called fine arts have been on the skids since the turn of the century, when impressionism was aborted into the birth of all "isms" of abstract painting. Art is, always has been and, if it is to survive, always must be emotional. To make it coldly intellectual by abstractionism and impressionism is to destroy it or mold it into a monstrosity that is better kept locked up in musty museums. I frankly would rather prefer to have my paintings displayed in a gin-mill rather than buried in a repository together with the rest of the dead art, which is where this modern crap will end up.


...I refuse to be converted. The other day one of these 'artsy artists' from the Metropolitan in New York was sitting right on this lanai and he did some sketching of this bay. He showed me his finished canvas. I wanted to vomit when he showed me what a sacrilegious abortion he painted of my beautiful Paradise. I was quite frank with him. I told him I had seen better similar art on a stableboy's shovel!"

-- a letter from Edgar Leeteg to Aloha Barney

The Father of Modern Velvet Painting
Spectator Magazine - Leeteg of Tahitis

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Black Velvet Zell Miller

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Leeteg of Tahiti: Paintings From the Villa Velour - Froogle
LA Weekly: Features: Pictures From the Unibrow Revolution
Flickr: Hecho en Mexico: Tacky Velvet Art

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I think I have a black velvet Elvis somewhere in the basement. I may have to go on a quest to find it now ;)