Hats off, gentlemen. A genius!

[foggytown]

I've never seen anything like the wood art here.

simple yet so . . . I dunno. You supply the missing word.

FoggyTown

[Leon]

Very nice. you may also be interested in,

wife is a quilter, I work with wood, he apparently does both.

[foggytown]

Wow! Does she get time to do anything else?

FoggyTown

[Tim]

I would love to be able to do work like that. I wouldn't do it because it is ridiculous, but I wish I could.

[Bill]

He's getting as much as $38,000 for one piece. Still ridiculous?

[papadoo1]

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Here is more > >

[C & S]

I agree that it's rediculous. I think wood is a perfectly legitimate medium for sculpture, but for dead-to nuts representational art it does not leave much opportunity "follow" the medium. IMO, it's as if the sclpture was executed in spite of the medium rather than coming forth from the meduim.

Which is not to diminish the craftsmanship... it's just not my cup of tea.

-Steve

[C & S]

Referring specifically to the quilts rendered in wood: Art representing art is a bit too removed for me. My wife makes some awesome quilts, I can't imagine rendering them in another medium that exceeded the original. I guess I can get my mind around that as a specific "concept piece" but not as a career.

This is coming from the guy who used to write software that ran on computers for the sole purpose of helping to make more computers.... I found that a bit unsastisfying too.

-Steve

[RicodJour]

instead of just linking to his web site?

Or at least mention Livio De Marchi by name?

R

[foggytown]

I didn't have his website address. I didn't even know who he was. I saw the pics in a mass e-mail I received from a friend who knew I was interested in wood but she had only received it from someone else and then forwarded it to me.

Now I know who the artist is!

FoggyTown

[RicodJour]

How is his work ridiculous? His humorous pieces, like the VW boat, are terrific. It's not a "serious" piece but it's nice to look at, exhibits a lot of skill, is functional and puts smiles on peoples' faces. His more straightforward pieces take everyday items and makes you look at them again.

I also don't know that the medium dictates such "form follows function" type of rules. Those are the artist's choices. The David would have been a far different work in sandstone, limestone, granite or whatever.

This

is an amazing work. The wood choice certainly doesn't interfere with the representational art part.

It's well beyond craftsmanship, certainly art and astonishing regardless of what criteria you use to view it.

R

[Prometheus]

Yep. If I wanted something that looked like a coat hanging on the wall, I'd hang a coat on the wall.

Not to say he isn't a very talented carver- he obviously is.

[foggytown]

Hell, if I wanted a work of "art" that looked like a filthy, unmade bed I could do that myself every day. So who needs Tracey Emin? Yet there she is. This guy has it over her ANY day!

FoggyTown "If you can't create, your life will consist of nothing but your opinions and other people's facts."

[Prometheus]

Don't know who Tracey Emin is, either- but that doesn't sound very appealing. There are a lot of things in the world that people with too much disposable income will pay outrageous sums of money for- and they're not always easy to create. But IMO, calling some of this stuff "art" is slapping the faces of the old masters.

But I never got it, and probably won't. I suppose it's my loss- but it's easier on the bank account.

[RicodJour]

An old guy with a big beard sitting down and holding a book - not very appealing.

It's all how you look at it.

If you had the money, would you buy the work, or buy the tools and develop the skills to make your own?

R

[RicodJour]

Your bed is filthy every day? You're either having way too much fun or you need more discipline. ;)

R

[Prometheus]

All things considered, if I were decorating a place and had unlimited cash, I'd prefer any one of Michelangelo's works to a rumpled overcoat made of knotty pine or a boat that looks like a car. Doesn't make me right, just a personal preference- based on Michelanglo's depiction of the heroic in man, as opposed to depictions of the common.

I actually do really admire the skill of the artist who sparked this thread- I just can't understand why that skill was applied to reproduce such common objects. Kind of like making a model of a toaster from Italian marble- even if it is flawless, it serves no purpose (unless it can toast bread, too)

Neither, really. If I had some extra money, I'd probably use it to finish making my own furniture for my house. If I had enough to go beyond that, I'd buy machine tools and use them to make tools and parts. It'd take a lot of scratch before I ever got around to buying or making "art", unless you lump turned objects in that category. I find functionality and good engineering more aestetically appealing than most art, new or old.