Author Archives: JMN

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About JMN

I live in Texas and devote much of my time to easel painting on an amateur basis. I stream a lot of music, mostly jazz, throughout the day. I like to read and memorize poetry.

A Descendant of Ralph the Wrecker

Posted on November 5, 2019 by JMN

A mighty union that had lasted hundreds of years, running from the Orkneys to Cornwall, from Belfast to Llanfair Pwllgwyngyll, would have been torn asunder…. (Nicholas Kristof, “Will Great Britain Become Little England?” NYTimes, 11-2-19) I would like to visit … Continue reading →

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George Condo

Posted on November 3, 2019 by JMN

Mr. Condo, 61, is best known for his bold figurative paintings that blend old master techniques and cartoonish characters, capturing a range of emotions from many perspectives in a method he calls “psychological Cubism.” “In the early days of Cubism, … Continue reading →

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Meaning vs. Making

Posted on November 2, 2019 by JMN

I do wish [the show’s curators] had enforced a bit more critical distance. Mr. Haacke, as each gallery proudly proclaims, has written every single wall label himself — which offers helpful context, but turns the show into an uncomfortable act … Continue reading →

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The History of Art, Minus Art

Posted on November 1, 2019 by JMN

I want to find this slightly bizarre article interesting, but I’m distracted by astonishment that it does not show a single illustration of the work of the artists it discusses: Stanton MacDonald-Wright and Morgan Russell. Well, unless you count the … Continue reading →

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“We live without a future”

Posted on November 1, 2019 by JMN

Virginia Woolf’s house was destroyed by bombings in the Second World War. One of the last entries in her journals before her suicide has imagery that lacerates. She sounds almost bemused by the despair she conveys, as if observing it … Continue reading →

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Can a Lie Be “Unintentional”?

Posted on October 30, 2019 by JMN

I propose as a reflection on semantics that a lie, strictly speaking, cannot be “unintentional.” A lie must know itself to be such in the mind of the liar. Consider the following quotation: “I am unquestionably, undoubtedly, the greatest human … Continue reading →

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Sequelae

Posted on October 29, 2019 by JMN

[“The existing Hollywood order, the current pop-cultural regime,”] is built, to an extent that would have been unfathomable even 20 years ago, on the commercial exploitation of what was once called “genre” entertainment — the comic-book movie especially, the Marvel … Continue reading →

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Get Thee to a Nonery

Posted on October 29, 2019 by JMN

Pew’s latest report found that nonbelievers are gaining ground fast. “Nones” — those with no particular religion — now account for more than one-quarter of the American population. There are substantially more nones than Catholics. (Nicholas Kristoff, “We’re Less and … Continue reading →

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War and Art

Posted on October 26, 2019 by JMN

In this article about Hilma af Klint two themes draw my attention. First, not having been clobbered by twentieth-century wars is a sad and sobering distinction to apply to a city. While there is not currently any comprehensive display of … Continue reading →

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Catch of the Day

Posted on October 25, 2019 by JMN

I qualify only as a spectator to the Brexit scene; however, the informal allegory cited by Roger Cohen in his opinion piece travels well in other precincts. As a British friend wrote me recently, “I’m just saying if I narrowly … Continue reading →

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