Mr. Potato Head

When I noted the the uncanny resemblance of Groucho Marx and Mr. Potato Head, I dug deeper (no pun intended) in to the history of the look of the toy. I learned that Mr. Potato Head was "invented" by George Lerner (Romanian-Jewish descent). In 1952 the Hassenfeld brothers (Polish-Jewish immigrants) bought the rights and it became a hit and was the first toy every advertised on television.  For more on Hasbro and the Hassenfelds https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hasbro

http://www.jewoftheweek.net/2012/02/22/jews-of-the-week-george-lerner-the-hassenfeld-brothers/

I have many happy memories of digging potatoes with my Grandpa Bouska on his ranch in Montana and am eager to share the pleasure with Clem, AO, Jude and Gray. The thrill of finding:

Our bumper corp of potatoes and and the high-five hilarity of potato heads make this an apt subject for Marc's 2017 exploration. From botanical illustration to recipes for mashed, there is something for everybody.

A traveling exhibition from the Hunt Institute for Botanical illustration at the Petaluma Art Center sparked my interest in the rigor and focused attention required of that discipline. 

It sent me on journey of discovery about the origins of Mr. Potato Head as a new cultivar of tuber Solanum: Dominus. Capsicum annuum capitis 

Human Interest

Human Interest: Portraits from the Whitney Collection

Fayum Forever

Marc Fayum HERE.

Theme and hodgepodge

For years I have been interested in the idea of identity, masks, personas, doppelgängers, the nom de plume. My project to define and depict my alter-ego began in 1996 when I discovered that Marcel Duchamp created  Rrose Sélavy and signed many of his seminal works in her name. That sparked the thought that I too should have a pseudonym and should art and enact an ongoing series of works authored by my new character. Wanting him to be funny, full of good humor, I donned the nose and glasses of Groucho Marx and began.

Each year for 25 years I am painting 4 portraits 22" x 30" and I am making a 3-5 minute video of his antics. Upon the completion of my project I intend to have 100 portraits and just over an hour of video footage.

It has definitely been a mixed media endeavor. Some years a theme has been developed, other years it has been a hodgepodge of exploration.

From 1996:

From 2003:

From 2013:

PRIDE

In June 2015, Marc was keen to celebrate the Pride Month by going all in with the rainbow. Facebook offered a rainbow filter and the rainbow clown wig were perfect complements.

 

 

Walk of Fame

The Giovio Portraits, intended as a public archive of literary figures, rulers, and statesmen were assembled by Italian Renaissance historian and biographer Paolo Giovio. The original portraits, which were painted from life by a variety of esteemed artists, were lost. But, copies have been displayed in the First Corridor of the Uffizi in Florence, Italy since 1587.

After a visit to the Uffizi, where I took a walk down that famed corridor, I wanted to see my portraits take their rightful place.

In 2013, the Uffizi Four were added to the collection. Marc De Ansar poses as Rembrandt, Holbein, El Greco and Hals. The portraits now hang high along with the other illustrious dignitaries. 

As an artist who aspires to have work displayed side by side masterpieces in important museums — instead of waiting for the day, using photoshop and iMovie I am envisioning my paintings in place, in most anyplace I want. This short video is a realization of Don Draper's advice "If you don't like what's being said, change he conversation." and Marc DeAnsar's admonition, "If you don't like what's on the wall, change the picture." 

But, it is Rembrandt who has the final word. "A painting is finished when an artist says it is finished."

FINI

Krishna Mud

One of the delights of 2012 was time spent with granddaughter Clementine Deluxe. My Frida Kahlo satchel filled with art supplies, watercolors and paper was my go-to babysitting activity kit. 

She brought such exuberance to her painting — the swirl of using every color at once. The simple pan set of paints was soon a mix up going towards a muddy brown. 

Inspired by her free spirit-expression, I learned a lot about letting my judgmental hand go and she was intrigued by my ability to render something recognizable. I tried to show her what can happen if colors are kept discrete but the exuberance she brought to the vocabulary of her brushstrokes held sway. 

I marveled watching her grow into being with first words and the formation of language. One day I happened to snap a pic of her with the face of astonishment, with her mouth open wide. 

Given the contentiousness of the 2012 political landscape it is no surprise that some of the main issues have entered into the Marc DeAnsar discourse. Reproductive rights are a prime issue for social conservatives. When does human life begin? When are we human? When does Marc become Marc? The creative moment when Marc was conceived and then in the ontology of development—when did the nose and glasses first appear?

When is the beginning? We now have new ways of knowing. The beginning has come closer and closer to the point of conception so close that now some people believe as soon as the sperm fertilizes the egg, that bit of cellular should be afforded all rights and responsibilities of a citizen. In bygone days a woman might not even be aware she was pregnant until the quickening. 

My yoga instructor Tony Briggs told the story of Krishna's mother who had heard that mischievous Baby Krishna had eaten some dirt. Expecting to find a mouthful of mud, when she opened his mouth it was filled with the cosmos, with the wonders of the universe…and then maybe, it was just mud.

So this mumble of thoughts were shaped into this painting of Marc with his mouth open wide with Clementine with her mouth open wide and inside it all Marc— the embryo of the creative life or maybe, it was just mud.