Electric Green Sheep and Sheep's Parade

Dear friends,

Some good news:

1-Electric Green Sheep

The first Collaborative Review of this series is ready and on line:

We analysed the work of the French Artist Isabel Saij and at the same time we tryed to answer two questions:

>> Do you believe in the human species' CREATION POWER to change our "political landscape"?
>> Do you believe that the "Universal sufrage" can change the world?

To know everything what was analysed during a month through the Musem Newsletter, browser at:

http://arteonline.arq.br/newsletter/reviews2005/english_saij.htm

A success, without any doubts!

2- The Project "Sheep's Parade" that has the deadline on May 15th has already many flocks. It is estraordinary to see how a so simple theme can produce so different solutions from the artists.

http://arteonline.arq.br/sheep/

Artists:

PAULO VILLELA,
P. VILLELA & R. PINTO
LIA BELART
MURIEL FREGA
ISABEL ARANDA - YTO
DANIELLE RICCIARDI
COLINO / BABEL
CARLOS RAMIREZ
ROB MYERS
TAMARA LAI
JOESER ALVAREZ
ISABEL SAIJ (I)
ISABEL SAIJ (II)
ISABEL SAIJ (III)
ISABEL SAIJ (IV)
MIGUEL JIMENEZ
DEA JUNQUEIRA
EDWARD PICOT
CRISTINA ORENSZTAJN
ALEXANDRE VENERA
LISA HUTTON
JUDSON (PLASMA STUDII)
REGINA PINTO (I)
REGINA PINTO (II)

TEENAGER SHEEP

JOAO PEDRO

3- Some sheep were reviewed:

I)- e-motion by Isabel Saij

It seems to me very charming although dramatic this Isabel Saij's almost animated series of 3D images for which the Artist wrote a poetic statement. The use of colors is excellent and it punctuates the drama that is developed through the pictures. The way Saij uses different points of view increases the observer's interest who becomes more and more interested in discover what is going to happen in the next scene… The electric green sheep are teeny robots, a probable allusion to all that Saij has already revealed us in her other work "Political Transparence". For me this is a fantastic series, I do not tire of observing it and everytime I discover new details and minutiaes which I really consider surprising. (The download is very fast!)

Saij revealed us that she was inspired in two classical to develop her tale:

- In the myth of the labyrinth of Knossos
- In the tale "Panurge" by the "old" French author Rabelais.

II)- How many sheep? by isabel Saij

After you delight yourself with e.motions, click Isabel Saij [IV], at the same page ( http://arteonline.arq.br/sheep ) and have a good time discovering "how many sheep", but also do not fail to appreciate the minutiaes and colors of this magnificent 3D scene, a QTR movie. To move the 360 º scene, move your mouse on the picture. Ah, the "download" (1 MB) will make you wait a little bit, mostly if you do not have a fast connection, but it is worthwhile!


III- The "loup mouton" (wolf lamb) by Isabel Saij

Let's starting with the "Loup-Mouton". The "Loup-Mouton" is a drawing from Saij's series Fragments. This drawing is made of nervous but strong black lines. It is a gestual "Loup-Mouton" where the agressiveness of the black lines that sometimes are almost barbed wire contrasts with the inocence of the soft and faded wool of the almost white lines (visible only in the print version). So that Saij's drawing gets to show the double character of the well known "Loup-Mouton" - the "wolf in sheep's clothing".

Nowadays, the expression "wolf in sheep's clothing" is very used to indicate someone, generally politicians, that shows to be nice people but by the contrary, they are the evil.

I am sure that everybody knows the famous Aesop's Fable:

The Wolf in Sheep's Clothing

ONCE UPON A TIME a Wolf resolved to disguise his appearance in order to secure food more easily. Encased in the skin of a sheep, he pastured with the flock deceiving the shepherd by his costume. * In the evening he was shut up by the shepherd in the fold; the gate was closed, and the entrance made thoroughly secure. But the shepherd, returning to the fold during the night to obtain meat for the next day, mistakenly caught up the Wolf instead of a sheep, and killed him instantly.

* Nowadays thinking on some politicians and impunity, the fable always finishes in the word "costume"… ;-(

IV)- Sheep by Edward Picot

"Edward Picot's sheep's parade is very poignant - we have a general election May 5 and Mr Tony Blair's Labour Party may not be re-elected due to his lack of transparency over Iraq. A change of leadership would secure the vote. Most people have lost respect for the man due to his toadying to America. It doesn't feel good to be British at the moment." (Elizabeth Curtis - UK)

Do you remember what our friend Clemente Padin commented?

…Art necessarily expresses the social conflict (it cannot be avoid, it is impossible… )

Edward Picot's sheep, essentially political and very intelligent, shows this clearly. When , we browser http://arteonline.arq.br/sheep/ ( click - Eduward Picot), we soon observe a white sheep peaceful flock, which eats the grass of a small elevation near a mirror of water (the sea?), in fact they are not real sheep but sheep painted by the Pre-Rafaelita English painter William Holman Hunt (1827 - 1910); who sought to revitalize the art of his time emphasizing the detailed observation of the natural world in an almost-religious devotion regarding the truth. We also hear a beautiful and very calm musical composition by Erik Satie (1866 - 1925). It reigns a complete peace in this landscape… Sudden, in an action of the mouse, the first fright: the black sheep (the expressio black sheep has the tradirional meaning here…) Sadam Husseim appears on two different times - in the summit of the glory and in the bottom of the well. When we move the mouse, other surprises can appear: the scapegoat or some scenes of the current world (UK?) . We can not forget that the myth of the scapegoat today is related to extremists ideologies, and in it we can see Bin Laden X occident or George Bush X terrorism…). When I accessed the work for the first time, the last "sheep" which appeared was the ""the wolf in sheep's clothing." - Tony Blair… Perfect! So the Isabel Saij's "loup mouton" has a name now…

I do not have idea of the reason why Edward Picot chose "William Holman Hunt" to illustrate his work, but it is curious that the search of the truth is the same in Hunt as in Picot. A coincidence? If Hunt searched the natural world's truth, Picot searchs the political world's truth, Picot's search is much more arduous. As Muriel Frega affirmed:

"- This is one of the themes in which I do not believe. Politics is something that basically bores me, because it gathers the characteristics that most displease me: lies, hidden things, conveniences, corruption."

I agree fully with her. And it is exactly because of this that Edward Picot's "flock" excites me, through a simple game of images and through a music that enchants and that does not prepare the spectator for what is going to happen - a Picot's excellent discovery - a narrative that can be understood by everybody was built and it shows very well what politics and most of our politicians are - unfortunately!

V)- Coming soon: "De Velazquez y Ovejas" (On Velasquez and Sheep) or "Refranero espanol" (Spanish Proverb) … by Miguel Jimenez - Zenon

I am waiting for your sheep until May 15th.

A hug,

Regina Celia Pinto

http://arteonline.arq.br
http://arteonline.arq.br/library.htm