Author Archives: JMN

Unknown's avatar

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.

Paint-by-Numbers

Posted on April 6, 2019 by JMN

For art critics, painting-by-numbers was, and is, a byword for robotic repetition and unoriginality… (Jonathan Jones, “From Warhol to minimalism: how painting by numbers revolutionised art,” The Guardian, 4-5-19) At some point in my pre-teen years I was given a … Continue reading →

Posted in Commentary | Tagged | 4 Comments

“Perverse Obliqueness”

Posted on April 1, 2019 by JMN

Brexit defies me as much as my native political scene defies me. Anomalies aside, I find here a stretch of forceful writing to savor for language’s sake. I came to attention from “carapace” forward. What follows illumines for me something … Continue reading →

Posted in Quotations | Tagged | Leave a comment

“All right — take the picture!”

Posted on March 31, 2019 by JMN

Annie Leibovitz’s latest exhibition of her photography is Annie Leibovitz: The Early Years, 1970-1983. It includes a shot of Henri Cartier-Bresson, one of her idols, during her time roaming Paris as a budding photographer. The notoriously camera-shy Frenchman glares into … Continue reading →

Posted in Anthology, Quotations | Tagged | 1 Comment

Some Fizz for ‘Fissile’

Posted on March 31, 2019 by JMN

“That’s Alex Jones’s M.O.,” Owens said of the deposition. “To flood any topic with confusion and doubt so no one can grab onto anything.” But under oath, Mr. Jones’s tactics fissile. (Charlie Warzel, “Why Courtrooms Are Kryptonite for Alex Jones,” … Continue reading →

Posted in Commentary | Tagged | Leave a comment

Stubborn Repetition

Posted on March 29, 2019 by JMN

In my own modest easel practice I’m trying to psych myself into painting a subject more than once. Artists I admire do it. Real artists. They dwell and go deep; obsess, in a good way. I’m afraid I have a … Continue reading →

Posted in Quotations | Tagged | 3 Comments

Dyspeptic Rumination

Posted on March 29, 2019 by JMN

A French aphorism says, “Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose”: “the more it changes, the more it’s the same thing.” It’s sometimes paraphrased in English as, “The more things change, the more they stay the same.” My comments, … Continue reading →

Posted in Commentary | Tagged | Leave a comment

Cartoon Transfer Technique

Posted on March 28, 2019 by JMN

The article is about Raphael’s preparatory cartoon for his fresco “The School of Athens” in the Vatican. What caught my eye in particular was mention of the method used to transfer the image to the walls. Its value must have been … Continue reading →

Posted in Anthology, Quotations | Tagged | Leave a comment

Scott Walker (1943-2019)

Posted on March 28, 2019 by JMN

As a latecomer to Scott Walker’s music I’ve only scratched its surface. The admiration other artists have expressed for his solo work makes me want to hear more. I want to appreciate the zone of listening that stretches from the … Continue reading →

Posted in Quotations | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Van Gogh in London

Posted on March 27, 2019 by JMN

A new exhibition at Tate Britain, “Van Gogh and Britain,” opens March 27, 2019. This article causes me to think somewhat differently about van Gogh. Of several good illustrations it contains, I chose the painting reproduced here because I’ve never … Continue reading →

Posted in Anthology, Quotations | Tagged | 2 Comments

To ‘E’ or Not to ‘E’

Posted on March 27, 2019 by JMN

A silly title, yes. I get pleasure from reflecting on minutiae of language — syntax, spelling, grammar, etymology, what have you. Language is part of “what makes us us,” to borrow Jacinda Ardern’s clarion phrase. It’s worth talking about. If … Continue reading →

Posted in Commentary, Quotations | Tagged | Leave a comment