Selected Works

Philosophy

2011-12-02T17:48:00.000-08:00

A discipline comprising as its core logic, aesthetics, ethics, metaphysics and epistemology.

Logic. The science of the formal principles of reasoning. A science that deals with the principles and criteria of validity of inference and demonstration.

Aesthetics. The discipline dealing with the nature of beauty, art and taste. Dealing with the creation and appreciation of beauty.

Ethics. The discipline dealing with correctness and with moral duty and obligation.

Metaphysics. The system of principles underlying a particular study or subject.

Epistemology. The study of the nature and grounds of knowledge especially with reference to its limits and validity.

A discipline comprising as its core logic, aesthetics, ethics, metaphysics and epistemology.

Philosophy tests our most fundamental values, beliefs and convictions for the purpose of establishing their correctness. Philosophy at the same time realizes that the basic questions as to what it means to establish correctness are most often unanswerable.

Art

2011-11-26T20:27:00.001-08:00

The conscious use of skill and creative imagination in the production of aesthetic objects. The faculty of executing well what one has devised.

Art distinctly implies a personal unanalyzable creative power.

Skill stresses technical knowledge and proficiency.

Cunning suggests ingenuity and subtlety in devising inventing or executing.

Artifice suggests mechanical skill.

Craft implies an expertness in workmanship.

The conscious use of skill and creative imagination in the production of aesthetic objects. The faculty of executing well what one has devised.

Thanksgiving

2011-11-24T19:30:00.001-08:00

Today I got a call from Sam who was in Central Park. It made me think of how much I enjoy being there. When I went looking for my photos of Central Park on the computer I realized that most of them are on film. There were a few digital ones from the time Rica and I were there a couple of years ago. It is a wonderful place to have coffee and a pastry with a friend. Enough said.

Last Sunday of October

2011-10-30T16:53:00.000-07:00

Permission:

The act of permitting.

Formal consent

Permit:

To consent to expressly or formally.

To give leave.

To make possible.

To allow.

Allow:

To neglect to restrain or prevent.

September Weekend

2011-09-18T10:59:00.000-07:00

Little flowers in the yard I photographed before they are gone.

Permission 7

2011-09-08T05:57:00.001-07:00

I like moving beyond my own boundaries in photography.

Permission 6

2011-09-07T07:05:00.001-07:00

I like the way I write.

Permission 5

2011-09-06T05:48:00.000-07:00

I like being inspired by the concepts and artworks of good friends.

Permission 4

2011-09-02T05:34:00.001-07:00

I like finding beauty in the seemingly ordinary.

Permission 3

2011-09-01T05:36:00.001-07:00

I like photographing sidewalks that appear to go nowhere.

Permission 2

2011-08-31T05:25:00.000-07:00

I like the things I surround myself with.

Permission

2011-08-30T06:08:00.001-07:00

I like the way I see things.

Moved and Adjusting

2011-08-27T06:06:00.000-07:00

Rothko and I have moved from our house of 11 years to an apartment in the same neighborhood.

I thought I would never do this sort of thing in this blog but I am just seeing if I can get used to accessing it with a new computer.

Starting soon there will be poetry and images on a regular basis. Hopefully there will be other pleasant surprises as well.

This kitchen is smaller than the foyer in the house we moved from.
This will eventually be a living room.
Everything is a jumble and will be for a while. Going from a large house to a small apartment is a challenge. We will do it.

Here's to the future.

July Short

2011-07-07T10:08:00.000-07:00

The song
of your sisters
unnoticed absence
(escaping beauty)
sounds like
the poem
you wrote you
(my pretty)

Josie Hey Josie

2011-06-15T06:17:00.000-07:00

Do you know the name of these lovely little volunteers that showed up in my yard beginning last year?

June Without Words (redux)

2011-06-14T05:28:00.000-07:00

June Without Words

2011-06-08T06:13:00.000-07:00

A Poem for the Month of June

2011-06-01T10:05:00.001-07:00

Thank you
for the things you brought to me

your shoulders and your mouth
your face and your voice

the sacred warmth
of your hopeful lean.

Thank you
for your ideal feet in my nervous hands
the taste of your skin on my lips
the chill on the back of your neck.

I loved the summer and you.

For the things you brought to me
thank you.

More Papers from the Past

2011-05-26T06:14:00.000-07:00

These papers are from around 1977. They were to be part of an exhibit to take place in a store front window. I think my idea was that they could be seen 24 hours a day.

John Searcy had a shoe repair shop in downtown Cincinnati. John was always a guitarist singer and songwriter extraordinaire. He just happened to be able to repair shoes too. The shop window was at his place on 8th Street.

All of the paintings were to have the shape of a guitar pick in them. The papers were all to be 8 1/2 X 11 and the frames were to be sheet protectors. I think the hanging apparatus was to be tape. I don't think they resemble any of J's early works.

Like many light hearted ideas the start is easy the finish is hard.

Art and Science

2011-05-25T12:24:00.000-07:00

When a group

of physicists

showed up

in poets corner

of our

favorite library

they didn't

really look

out of place

some men of science

wanted help

finding

the formula

that proves

white is all colors

while being

no color at all

Or perhaps the poets

were definitely

out of place

when they went

to visit in

science and industry

of the physicists

favorite library

to get help

writing about

white having no depth

while its exquisite

whiteness

makes depth

possible

I guess it could be

tomorrow

and the

day after that

all of us taking

a place

in art and music

of your

favorite library

to research the

the never ending

richness of black

Old Paper

2011-05-24T07:33:00.000-07:00

I have been going through things in order to prepare for a move soon. While packing I have found some not so interesting and a few interesting things that I have managed to hold onto for a while. The things that I still have in my possession at this time are usually from no longer ago than the very late 1970's. I do not seem to have many personal things from before then. I have moved too many times. Lost too many things. Misplaced too many things. Left too many things behind.

I was surprised when I found a piece of paper that has to be from a year or two before 1965. It is not a good drawing. I was sixteen/seventeen or even younger when I did it. It is apparent that I did not know what I was doing. I do know I wanted to be an artist. Or at least I wanted to live an artists lifestyle.

When I found it recently I had no idea that this piece of paper still existed let alone that it was in my possession. It was folded into a notebook from a much later period of time.

I am glad I found it at this time. My twelve year old son Rothko wants to be an artist. It is nice to see something I did in my teens. It will help me remember just how much work it takes to gain the abilities to do credible works of art.

Another One

2011-05-21T06:08:00.000-07:00

I invited you here
to tell you
how I feel
about you
and people
and parts of this earth

and now
that you are here
I would like to
introduce you
to
some of
the thoughts
that entertained me
when we sat together
quietly

For those of you who have the boxed version of my book "Auspicious Circumstance" this will be familiar. Or maybe not if you haven't looked at the book since you got it.
It seemed an appropriate poem for what I want to do with this venue. Also I wanted to reintroduce you to my book if you have not looked at it lately. It is now over twenty years old.
A limited number of copies will be available again soon if you lost your copy.
If you know where your copy is and are still reading it please go to Amazon.com and review it. There are seven revues there but it would be nice to have forty seven.

2011-05-20T08:42:00.001-07:00

One night

from the beginning

to the end

of my sleep

you stood in front

of a blackboard

writing out the explanations

for all the theories

involving the origin

of our universe

each time

I was close

to understanding

you erased the board

and began again

Poetry

2011-05-19T09:52:00.001-07:00

Bowing

before you

I formally

introduced myself

to your illusion

as I touched

the hand you offered

you became a dancer

carefully

you began to interpret

our future conversations

into movements

soft and complex

graceful

yet difficult

to understand

Transience

2011-05-18T05:23:00.000-07:00

I was asked about the word temporary in the last post by a friend who thought it was perhaps referring to the archival or lack of archival qualities in an individual artwork. It was not.

I was referring to an artworks ability to to have a lasting effect on me. There are works that I look at and look at again and as I do they mean more and more to me. When I read a poem or a book and I don't want to read it again in some ways I am disappointed. I want these writings to be more like friends. Just because I met you once does not mean that I leave you and then go on to another person. When I like you and enjoy your company I want to see you again and again. I feel that way about art work too.

The first major painting that made me want to see it again and again was Turner's "Europa and the Bull" at The Taft Museum. The first time I saw it was in 1965. Even though I have seen it many times it still had this effect on me when I saw it in 2008 at The Metropolitan Museum of Art along with several more Turner paintings from that period.

Another painting that had a great effect on me was Mark Rothko's "Number 10" at the Museum of Modern Art. I have made it a point to visit "Number 10" every time I am in New York City. I always enjoy seeing it.

That said. I like works that I want to be with again. I like books I want to read again. I like movies that I want to see again. There are works I will most probably never see again. Not because I don't want to but because I won't get the chance to. I still appreciate the effect they have had on me.

I am not as concerned with a work of art lasting forever as I an concerned about it's effect lasting forever. It is okay if a work is transient. Transitory. Ephemeral. Momentary. Fugitive. Fleeting. Evanescent. I don't mind transience.

The flower at the beginning of this post lasts less than 24 hours. It blooms when the sun is going down. It is quite beautiful with a lovely subtle scent. When the sun shines on it in the morning it withers.

I don't mind transience. And I have also found that there is a second meaning to the word transient. Affecting something or producing results beyond itself.

Images and Words

2011-05-16T05:50:00.000-07:00

I mentioned the possible glut of photographs and paintings and poems. If glut is not the right word I apologize. There are a lot of images and words. We are bombarded with them daily. Many of them are designed to catch our eyes or ears. They do catch us and hold us but only temporarily.

A temporary nature in art can be wonderful like the temporary nature of an iris. They are some of the most sensuous and beautiful flowers in the world. I love that I get to walk past a large garden of them every morning in the spring. (Thank you Deb and Lisa.) They make me feel good. Then they are gone. That is natural. Their bulbous roots and hard stalky blades remain but the most beautiful and sensuous part of the plant is gone. I am thankful that it was there. I appreciate it.

A temporary nature in art can also be just a big "wow" and then there is nothing left. I understand that this is a good thing to many. However. I like the images and words that stay with me for a long long time. I like to look at them again and again. They are like friends. I like to interact with them and grow from having known them.

That is my proposed goal with photography and painting and poetry. I want to make something that I and hopefully you can return to again and again and still find that incredible creative substance to interact with and appreciate.

Hold me to the goal. Please.

On the Way Back to Here

2011-05-12T06:16:00.000-07:00

I started this blog a long time ago because it was recommended to me. It was supposed to help in business as well as art. I tried it. I didn't like it much. There are blogs I look at and follow at times. They always inspire me to try this again. What has made me get back to this is the fact that Emily Brunner is currently working on a web site for me. My hope is that it will be available soon. It will feature my photography and artwork and poetry. There is no rush. I want it to be right.

In a time of never ending media why do we need another person sharing what they are doing? Everyone seems to be a photographer and/or an artist and/or a writer. There already appears to be a glut of photographs and artworks and writings. Why do we need any more?

It is with an almost complete lack of comfort that I have decided to add my photographs and artworks and writings to the ever increasing numbers that are offered to you on a regular basis. I hope you will enjoy them. If you don't find them interesting you will still have so many choices out there.

Stay tuned. Please.

Moss Gardens of Cincinnati

2009-10-06T11:20:00.000-07:00

I have been experimenting and photographing as well as planning and talking about a series of photographs called "Moss Gardens of Cincinnati" for a long time. I even thought it should be a book. This has been a great year for moss and I spent time this September locating scenes to photograph. These are six of the scenes I have captured so far this October. The photos were taken close to Sycamore Street about three blocks north of Collector's Art Group. I have been looking for more than just moss. I wanted scenes that reminded me of gardens. Mostly I have been thinking of the gardens I saw in Japan. When I get enough to do a book I will be sure to let you know.

Thank you

Ballard

Ballard Borich

2009-09-28T08:50:00.000-07:00

I had an interest in the visual arts from as early in life as I can remember. Memories of the thought of artwork as an act of value and substance seem to predate any other childhood memories. I thought I was doing meaningful works while I was still quite young. By the time I was eleven I was totally sure I was misunderstood as an artist in my sixth-grade classroom because of my genuine interest in abstraction.

I was raised in a rural area that left most of my serious learning about the visual arts to self teaching. I read all of the limited supply of books available about art and artists with no choice but to go through them again and again. The school I attended from the sixth grade to the ninth grade was very small. The number of students from the first grade to the twelfth grade combined was less than six hundred students. The library of course was small as well with absolutely no emphasis on art. There were some books on artists lives and all of those artists were from before the 20th Century. I do not remember any good art reproductions. I read the books then read them again. My personal vision of artists as apprentices and then having apprentices of their own was lovely and quaint but it left me with a strange gap between old masters and contemporary art. This gap was widened even more because the majority of the contemporary art examples I saw while living in that community were more like illustration. With my interest in art and my desire to learn I tried as hard as I could to learn about artists and art history I didn't have that much to work with at the time.

In the beginning of my high school years I moved to a more urban environment where I became aware of larger libraries a university and a small art museum. I went from the very small school to a larger school where there were now 700 students in the same grade I was in. The city's library was a vast improvement as far as looking at art was concerned. The most amazing change for me was the small art museum. (It is much larger now.) I could see some actual paintings not reproductions. The museum was also close to a university that had galleries as well. My ability to see art work changed drastically. There were also high school classes in art which were mostly commercial by nature but were better than anything I had available to me before.

I was profoundly influenced by the news of modern art movements in the popular media of the time. “Life” “Look” and “Time” magazines brought a superficial and somewhat entertaining news of the changing art movements in NYC to my family’s living room in Kentucky. These glances into the art world were a great foundation for more research and my continued self teaching. Each time I looked into the works of one artist it lead to looking into the work of other artists.

When I enrolled in college I signed up for elementary art appreciation and drawing courses. While following the meager course of study that was available to me I continued to use the library for my personal study of art.

When I left college I moved to Wilmington DE and took my first job in an art supply and picture framing store. I was exposed to more art and artists than I was ever aware of before. (Some of them were quite successful.) I found the paintings by famous illustrators of the Brandywine school to be fascinating. I had the chance to see many of them up close. I saw (framed) works by many members of the Wyeth family. The influences on me were from representational art. I thought I had possibly grown beyond that. However it was impossible to not be enthusiastic about seeing original works by people who were famous and admired. I learned that no matter what manner an art work was conceived and executed in a good painting will always be a good painting.

My next frame shop experience was in Louisville KY where wildlife art was very important. I had the chance to see many original works of art by the most famous wildlife artists of the time. Once again seeing original paintings close up influenced my feelings about painting. I realized I liked paint and other art materials. I liked seeing what other people did with them. I liked seeing quality works in all styles. This experience was abruptly interrupted by two years in the Army.

In the early 1970s I moved to Cincinnati OH. I attempted to run a gallery that is no longer in existence. While doing that I met several people connected with the “art scene” as it was at the time in Cincinnati. I worked at a great art supply store. I did framing in the finer frames shops of Cincinnati. I made friends with critics and appreciators of art. Those connections have made it possible for me to meet many of this area’s artists. I have been in many group shows and had several one person shows in Cincinnati. The work and showing experiences in Cincinnati lead me to this current co-ownership of Collector’s Art Group with my very good friend Terry Boyle.

Over the next few weeks I will add as much pertinent information to this outline as possible. This post much like myself is a work in progress.

Selected Works

2009-09-26T08:37:00.000-07:00

My hope for "Selected Works" is to show artwork and photography and writing of my own and when it is alright with them to show some work by others as well.

Soon I will be introducing the limited 21st Anniversary edition of "Auspicious Circumstance" as well as the "Dedicated Absurdist" edition which will be quite limited. I also have some of the silkscreens I printed for the original deluxe edition to offer as well.

Today I am only hoping that I typed all of this correctly and have added my picture from our web site http://www.collectorsartgroup.com/

Thank you

Thank You

2009-09-23T09:46:00.000-07:00

Adam
Thanks for all of your work. I will begin soon. Promise