Charles Bell: The Complete Works, 1970-1990

Rating:
Summary: Paintings that are easy to like.
Review: Charles Bell's images will be attractive to those with some nostalgia for childhood and the accoutrements of childhood, e.g., wind-up toys. The images feature marbles, old-fashioned roller skates, bubble gum ball machines, Donald Duck pull toys, wind-up rocket ships, hopping bunnies, and seals. Most of these objects comprise painted metal, though the paintings also include cloth Raggedy Ann dolls. The nostalgic aspect is reinforced when one realizes that metal wind-up toys are not much manufactured any more, and that pinball machines have been replaced by games with computer screens and software. The paintings are in the photorealist style. The quality of the work seems similar to that of the Flemish masters. Possibly, Charles Bell's name should be a household word, just as Jan van Eyck (Wedding Portrait) is a household word. My own analysis of photorealism is as follows: A man might spend a minute or so gazing at a chrome plated napkin holder, ketchup bottle, or grocery window, losing himself in the reflections, and the plurality of layered reflections, taking a mental journey through adjacent zones of color. However, most people do not do this sort of thing with these objects, or even with photographs of these objects. On the other hand, when rendered as a photorealist painting, the resulting painting is a format that invites the eye to explore. Even if the photorealist painter refrains from altering the image of a photograph of the napkin holder, bottle, or grocery, the resulting painting on canvas places the image in a format that invites gazing and visual exploration. (That is my analysis). If you admire Richard Estes, Ralph Goings, or Don Eddy, there is little question that you'll like Charles Bell. The book being reviewed is authored by Henry Geldzahler. According to Pop Art by Anne Umland, Mr. Geldzahler, as a curator at the Metropolitan Museum of art in 1962, helped to identify and legitimize the pop art movement. Umland writes that at the time Mr. Geldzahler argued that pop art: "still carried on art's task of self-criticism . . . maintaining a dialog with itself . . . and was therefore connected to the most advanced contemporary art." Thus, the book being reviewed was authored by an established art critic. Harry N. Abrams, Inc. is the publisher. This publisher is responsible for art books of high quality, e.g., Photorealism at the Millennium (2002) by Louis Meisel or Desert (1999) by Jack Dykinga.

Rating:
Summary: Paintings that are easy to like.
Review: Charles Bell's images will be attractive to those with some nostalgia for childhood and the accoutrements of childhood, e.g., wind-up toys. The images feature marbles, old-fashioned roller skates, bubble gum ball machines, Donald Duck pull toys, wind-up rocket ships, hopping bunnies, and seals. Most of these objects comprise painted metal, though the paintings also include cloth Raggedy Ann dolls. The nostalgic aspect is reinforced when one realizes that metal wind-up toys are not much manufactured any more, and that pinball machines have been replaced by games with computer screens and software. The paintings are in the photorealist style. The quality of the work seems similar to that of the Flemish masters. Possibly, Charles Bell's name should be a household word, just as Jan van Eyck (Wedding Portrait) is a household word. My own analysis of photorealism is as follows: A man might spend a minute or so gazing at a chrome plated napkin holder, ketchup bottle, or grocery window, losing himself in the reflections, and the plurality of layered reflections, taking a mental journey through adjacent zones of color. However, most people do not do this sort of thing with these objects, or even with photographs of these objects. On the other hand, when rendered as a photorealist painting, the resulting painting is a format that invites the eye to explore. Even if the photorealist painter refrains from altering the image of a photograph of the napkin holder, bottle, or grocery, the resulting painting on canvas places the image in a format that invites gazing and visual exploration. (That is my analysis). If you admire Richard Estes, Ralph Goings, or Don Eddy, there is little question that you'll like Charles Bell. The book being reviewed is authored by Henry Geldzahler. According to Pop Art by Anne Umland, Mr. Geldzahler, as a curator at the Metropolitan Museum of art in 1962, helped to identify and legitimize the pop art movement. Umland writes that at the time Mr. Geldzahler argued that pop art: "still carried on art's task of self-criticism . . . maintaining a dialog with itself . . . and was therefore connected to the most advanced contemporary art." Thus, the book being reviewed was authored by an established art critic. Harry N. Abrams, Inc. is the publisher. This publisher is responsible for art books of high quality, e.g., Photorealism at the Millennium (2002) by Louis Meisel or Desert (1999) by Jack Dykinga.