Food, Fashion, Industrial Waste Complex...

Fulton Market Street. As a young lad, my mother would take us to the iconic Fulton Market to get fresh fish. I loved it. You got to pick fish so fresh most of them were still moving. Kind of revolting to some, but I love fish. I love it. Since mercury scares have increased and they are still dyeing the river green annually I am not surprised my mother has gone the way of grocers, but she is not the only one to change. The industrial path of the street begins at Halsted heading west interupted briefly by Ashland and continues it's stretch to California, transforming from butchers and galleries, to lumber yards, metal works and much more.

I know, I said butcher shops and galleries. It's the craziest thing. You have to see it for yourself. The most posh, upscale, mod business have flourished right next to the most unexpected businesses. The balance is uncanny, sometimes shocking, but it is great to see different social classes-(if they still exist) coexisting instead of gentrification.

Not only are the new businesses pioneers because of the location, but Folia for example is a fine dining Restaurant and Boutique. Next door they slaughter live pigs. Wild, but true.

Chicago Art

I apologize ahead of time. Often times I will be searching for something on the net completely unrelated to Lambert Says Art and come across an incredible piece of art work. Sometimes I remember to write the name of the artist down. This is not one of those instances. This is one of the many occasions I spaced out and assumed I'd find the name again if I put in a similar search.

I vow to change my inconsiderate ways, but I feel it would be a travesty not to share the art with you and/or expose the piece itself.
It's not as if you were going to buy it. No offense, Bush has turned many artists into policeman or soldiers.

This painting has a special significance to me. Not simply because I am a Chicagoan or live close to Chicago and Halsted, but because my father used to work across the street from this site and once in a while after my sister and I's piano and violin lessons he would drive through the site and explain the inner workings of a true industrial compound and then he would take us out to breakfast. That would make up for missing Saturday morning cartoons...

Marvelous!

Bio
Marcellous Lovelace is a African American Political Artist from the Dirtiest Area's of the South Side of Chicago his works shows the depth of Reality in Thought, Nationalism and Social Awareness through Right Knowledge. A Nubian Painter with over 24 years of experience, most of Marcellous's Art comes from reality and not fantasy world, "The greatest expression you can imagine is what really happens and what you will create".

After seeing a couple of his pieces on Facebook I decided Lambert Says Art had to know more about this man. Months after this interview he released a video he directed and edited. It was in perfect synch, full of content and original. Just like his art work.
The colors of his work are not too loud and blend in a rich unison. The texture and tones of his paints will melt your heart in tandem with the subject matter. Too much of his soul has been invested into the work and it hurts to look at it too long. Here some his words and images anyway.
Interview with Quishenta Joans.

Q.J.
How long do you spend blending your colors?

M.L.
Well for me to mix colors it only takes a few minutes. Most of the time I mix directly on the surface and other times I have to add tints etc .. It's not a hard process when I make Art its really easy going and not really time consuming. I create all the time its a random problem to solve.


Q.J.
If you had more money to spend on art, what would your next move be?

M.L.
With more money to spend on Art hmm well I'd open up an Art Foundation and Gallery to Support African Art Culture Worldwide, including all the lesser known groups of African peoples from Russia, Asia, South America etc.. And develop a better knowledge of who these people are. The Indigenous African World needs to be taught on a wider angle and more detailed scope.


Q.J.
Does your craft affect your attire?

M.L.
Not really I'm none materialistic and I don't care About how I dress anyway. What ever I where I paint in, be it a Suit, Jordans, under wear or what ever. I'm bound to paint any way shape form or fashion.



Q.J.
When do you have to pull yourself away from a piece?

M.L.
I do not really pull my self away I normally get done before I exit the studio I'm painting in. If I'm away from my home studio I will just pull out the wrap it up box and leave and return another day. But that world is mostly for those that don't get done, I need to finish my work its my life.

The Orange

If this does not take your mind off everything...

Before there was Obama, there was Harold...

Who knows what you'll find traveling through the cold streets of Humboldt Park at 4 in the a.m. Perhaps a park dedicated to the late great Mayor Harold Washington. This may not be the best Harold portrait, but it gets the job done, just like he did.

Emma Bektic, the lighting up the scene...

Tania Sofia put me on to this incredible work. It is progressive and retro decor. This theme is obviously asian influenced, but the content is not so easily placed. These cross culture pieces are more than multi regional pieces, but multi faceted and serve multi purposes. I will refrain from the 'M' word now.

Peanuts Gallery

Charles Schultz will never be forgotten. This year a national publication chose Franklin as a symbol for a Calendar noting Black History Month. As insignificant as some of you may find that factoid; you have to acknowledge the Peanuts Gang foot print on pop culture when the idiosyncratic traits from your characters are used as archetypes for smash sit coms.
Satire is a form flattery and a sign of success. Or some form of acknowledgement at the very least.

Private party

I swear to Doug, I was surfing on Facebook when I saw a friend of a friend of a friends pic of her friends apartment. I thought this was a doap way to personalize your living space with out putting a hole in your wall or going over board.
Quaint, subtle and classy. Style mags will be on this in 2010.

Peter Drake: All the Kings Horses

War is/was reflected upon as an equestrian activity for the latter part of humanity. Horses propelled some armies into unstoppable forces that changed history. In the modern era some influences of the impact of horses on society are still apparent; such as the Clydesdales used to sell beer, Mounted Police at special outdoor events, commemorative statues and art. Some statues commissioned by the government uphold special aesthetics to symbolize the level of honor attributed to the subject matters accolades.

All these genres are represented in Drakes work. He incorporates the propaganda and grandiose imagery of war in toys and figurines and period statuettes by printing and digitally altered photos with some hints of oils or acrylic sparsely brushed on the incredibly large canvas. The work is epic in size and delivery. The pallette is so vibrant and controlled. The idea is so clear and realized he even included CGI animated shorts on screens to further illustrate his concepts.
Linda Warren picked a winner in my opinion. Very DOAP.
Kudos to the bartender Kelsie for telling me about the show and the merlot.

Face it, you've been tagged...

The tagging is out of control. It is a perfect example of how subcultures arise. Even though there are over tones against it. People post photos of cartoons, celebs, historical figures and all kinds of unauthorized images as their avatars on social networks.
Hence it did not surprise me when the tagging option introduced; people deliberately mis-tagged their associates. Now it has evolved into secret codes and pop culture name games and it is only going to expand. This only goes to show that human nature is to extrapolate every option in any format until a whole new meaning comes from it.

coming soon:

As appreciation for all human life and culture increases I predict the visual codes of sign language will become increasingly more popular and absorbed more throughout contemporary society. This will be facilitated by the print media and/or sign language key/index/legend posted in plural in plain sight.

Then we will see more art coming from the hearing impaired and more areas of our life designed to include them. Then not only will the advantages of knowing sign language be beneficial, but many people will incorporate aspects of sign into art and business to give it depth and variety.

Cultured Walls

Murals can capture the most subtle nuances of human nature. The exposure of a mural changes the perception of the subject matter. Muralists are a special breed of artist. The perspective of a piece is also influenced by the subject matter and the location of the work. The artist has to keep elements in mind that other methods need not apply. Size can make a piece look 'grotesque' if it is not balanced properly. The human eye can not always adjust to unnatural settings.

This mural is on Milwaukee and Chicago Avenue. I happen to recognize the people in the mural. I grew up seeing them in the neighborhood. I always feel connected to Chicago when I see it. I wonder what happened to these people.

Art in film

This is a classic. I'm so glad this movie took the time out to appreciate culture in Chicago. It actually captured the emotions that people go through in the Art Institute. Can't mess with the 83. John Hughes was DOAP!

Architect/Artist

I have never separated artists from architects. Nor should you. This piece is the product of the unification of the two. form and function. I couldn't tell you where it's from because it happened to pop on screen randomly while I was looking for futuristic examples of opulent design in that field for this post. Unfortunately no tags or i.d. were sited. Please comment with any information you may have to the origin of this building and it's location.