ZEN Part II: Since When is This Not Mine?

ZEN  C.T. Rasmuss,  Lucid Mosaic (July 2014).

 

Here is ZEN, finished after 6 months of work, from Janurary to July, 2014.  I'm not sure how long it took as far as actual hours, but I can at least estimate it in the hundreds...still a few lose ends to deal with, driving those hours up even more..

 

Today I encountered an argument as to why artists should recieve royalties here in America on their work, once it reaches the auction houses beyond original sale(where the real value for priceless creations start), "Congress will consider the American Royalties Too (A.R.T.) Act, which would give artists five percent of the purchase price when their original works are resold at auction...The first droit de suite" law passed in France almost 100 years ago and similar laws exist in more than 60 countries."

 

I suffered in many ways to get this passion of mine, ZEN realized(lack of income, eye/physical strain, emotional/physical stress and agony), so, should I just recieve a mere possible $1,500(which at 250 hours =$6/hr) if I'm lucky or even less and be done with this piece, "my baby" forever..??  N then say it sold someday at acution, entering the prestige of a museum possibly for $80,000, should I just be able to attend the auction and not have any part in its official acceptance into the artworld.

 

Musicians hold the rights to their music beyond their death, authors too, so why not Aritsts??  This is my creation and if someone else profits, I'm happy for them, but if they make a fortune of my labor, and give me not my due respect, a mere %5 for inventing it in the first place; that's like saying Musicians, Writers, Filmmakers, Athletes etc. hold all the value in our culture vs. artists slave in the gutters of our culture?? 

 

I think not!  I slave today so that tomorrow can be better, not just for others, as its not right for someone to "low ball" me just because I'm desperate for more materials.  I'm cornered into a profession that takes time to develop, with out any real income up front, I hope our congress respects us and sees us as equals to other respected professions, by passing the law, as our co-partners in freedom/democracy, France has; the country who gave us The Statue of Liberty, created by Frederic Auguste Bartholdi, an artist.

 

P.S. Why is it not acceptable for the buyer to scratch out my name and replace it with theirs?..

 

Link to: 'Artists Deserve Royalties'

 

 

Here is a sneak peak of the next of my Lucid Mosaics already in process as of August 5th, 2014:

 

A Provencal Garden, Letters to Bernard   C.T. Rasmuss, Lucid Mosaic in progress (2014).

Link to ZEN: Part I

Sunflowers for Mork from CHAD

Sunflowers for Mork  CHAD, Pencil (Aug. 11th 2014).



 A few days ago when I drew this Floral Still-Life, it was like any other day, specifically, one in which I was semi-satisfied with what I had accomplished for the day; this was at about 3pm I believe..

So I went outside and looked at my Sunflowers that had started to slouch over, began losing their pedals to the wind, and it's seeds to the birds; after a mix of being a spectator and "what more can be done?" Duh - what was my goal in planting them....Eureka!!

So I cut the ones that did their due and took them up stairs, where I put them into a carafe and wallah!
But why the title?  Well sadly this was the day the great comedian Robin Williams died...I found out this horrible, horrible news, just after finishing this drawing; no sooner than I confirmed it was true, I intuitively dedicated it to Mork, my 1st favorite person/actor when I was young, and now he's gone n all we can do is mourn..

Ode to Peter Pan and Bicentennial Man  CHAD, Marker (Aug 2014).

And the only way I know how to mourn is to honor the dead through my art, hence the title of this piece I did with marker today, its a photo copy of the original 'Sunflowers for Mork'. 

Kinda weird, I just realized that I signed the original drawing using my first name CHAD, marking it very personnal for me, and before I heard the news as I said before, making this all to surreal, very sad.   As these will not be from me the artist but strictly the kid inside who loved everything he did, and why I'll continue to sign them in this manner.

My intentions in mourning over the loss of this great artist, is to keep with the same original drawing and apply different methods and mediums to every copy, I will be dedicating each piece of art to my favorite Williams' characters, perhaps all of his roles, since he was JUST THAT WONDERFUL:(

Amen



My 1st Book Cover Arrives: A Lacanian Approach with Artwork by C.T. Rasmuss.

 

My book finally came in the mail today, about a year after being asked for the Copyright to my watercolor/gouache painting "Kandinsky Trial 1".  Of course I didn't write the book, so technically it's not my book, not sure really what it is, but the author signed it to me, which makes this specific copy very special!

 

I was excited to see it on my door step and after opening it, but for some reason I strangely felt empty inside; it's as if my sense of accomplishment went out the window after bringing the book through the door!  I feel so disconnected from this piece of work, not that I'm dissatisfied with it, but perhaps it's because I have no one to share it with..

 



Other than my selfish pity and ego aside, I sincerely believe this book will be a great success, now that I'm experiencing a sudden turn in mood: I recall a book by Jacques Lacan himself, the psychoanalyst that Jonathan Redmond, the author bases his analysis upon; the book found below is graced by M.C. Escher's 'Moebius Strip II'. 

Escher has been an idol of mine in every sense of the word 'art', he is the very 1st artist who's artwork I can ever remember having a sense of appreciation for.  The coincidence of Escher's artwork being on the cover of a book by Lacan, and my artwork being on the cover of a book based on a Lacanian approach; was something I had discovered just last month searching the web(in anticipation of receiving my personalized copy).

 



So now that it's here and in my hand, I will try and do everything I can to be happy with it, and no matter how big or small the accomplishments also, from here on out; as today is the day a childhood hero of mine(the world over) took his own life...Robin Williams, who I'll always best know as 'Mork' from "Mork & Mindy", a show that will always remain pure in my heart.

I say this because I believe Robin's bright searing flame spattered to a spark, and his severe depressive state extinguished it. I can empathise with him to the extent that on a road of one accomplishment to the next, life can be very hard and disappointing, especially during the down times, which accompany the peaks.  I also think of how funny and fitting that these two types of books are just what a person like him & myself could use some studying of.  It may be too late for him but it's not for me, goodbye Mork, we'll miss you, but hello to more success, I hope, and the down times that accompany them.

Link to see: 'Kandinsky Trial 1' painting from Artist Integrity blog.