December 9th, 2023

Happy Saturday! Art Basel Miami is in full swing, and I’m wishing I was soaking up some Florida sun and amazing art right now with everyone who is attending. But the FOMO is tempered with the planning and scheming for when my wife and I land in New York City for NFT.NYC in April.

Escaping the Midwest for a week of art and dining can’t come soon enough. We’ve got quite the list of places to see and food to indulge in but if you have a must try spot please let me know!

Speaking of escaping, let’s travel back in time to the early 1900’s and explore an artist who was caught in the middle of a radical revolution…

Artist Spotlight - Lyubov Popova

Career

Lyubov Popova was born on April 24th 1889 in Ivanovskoe, Russia. Born into a wealthy family, Popova had the opportunity to travel and receive an extensive education in the arts. This period was characterized by a flourishing of Russian culture and an openness to European influences. Her initial exposure to European artistic movements like Impressionism, Cubism, and Futurism played a significant role in shaping her early work. The pre-revolutionary Russian art scene was vibrant and diverse, allowing Popova to explore various styles and techniques.

The 1917 Russian Revolution was a pivotal moment for Popova. The revolution's ideals of building a new social order deeply resonated with her, leading to a significant transformation in her artistic focus.

Contributions to the Art World

The post-revolutionary period was one of both opportunity and challenge for artists. While there was an initial surge of creative freedom and experimentation, it was also a time of political upheaval and uncertainty.

Popova embraced Constructivism, an art movement that arose in post-revolutionary Russia. Constructivists believed that art should have a practical, socially useful role, in line with the revolutionary ethos. This marked a departure from the idea of art for art's sake, prevalent in her earlier work. During this period, Popova began to view her art as a tool for social change. Her work increasingly reflected the industrialization and modernization ideals of the new Soviet society. She became involved in industrial design, particularly in textile and clothing design, seeking to bring her artistic principles into everyday life.

The Soviet regime began to exert more control over artistic expression, pushing artists to align with the state's agenda. Popova navigated these changes, adapting her work to fit within the new socio-political context while remaining true to her avant-garde roots. Popova's work during this period contributed significantly to the development of Soviet art. Her integration of artistic innovation with practical application mirrored the revolutionary spirit of the era and set a precedent for future Soviet artists.

Style

Popova's style is a reflection of her journey through various artistic movements and her response to the socio-political changes of her time. Her work, characterized by its bold experimentation and fusion of art with practical application, marks her as a significant figure in the Russian avant-garde.

Initially, Popova's work was influenced by Impressionism and Symbolism, visible in her use of color and subject matter. This period reflects her formal art education and her exposure to the European art scene. During her travels in Europe, especially in France and Italy, Popova was deeply influenced by Cubism and Futurism. She began incorporating the fragmented forms and dynamic compositions characteristic of these movements into her work. The influence of artists like Pablo Picasso and Giorgio de Chirico is evident in her paintings from this period.

Upon returning to Russia, Popova became increasingly involved with the Russian avant-garde. Artists like Kazimir Malevich and Vladimir Tatlin, with their abstract and geometric approaches, played a significant role in shaping her style. Moving towards Constructivism, Popova's work became more abstract, emphasizing geometric forms and architectural elements. This shift reflected her belief in the artist's role as a constructor of space and form, resonating with the Constructivist emphasis on materiality and construction.

In her later work, Popova explored the interaction of color, texture, and shape. Her paintings from this period are characterized by bold colors, clean lines, and a sense of depth created through overlapping geometric forms.

Popova's work in textile and costume design for theater and industry reflected her commitment to integrating art into everyday life. Her designs were innovative, combining artistic principles with functionality, and were in line with the Constructivist ethos of serving the needs of the new Soviet society.

Influences and Lessons

It’s important to unravel what the Constructivism movement was all about to fully understand the influences behind Popova's work. Constructivism rejected the traditional notion of art for art's sake, advocating instead for art as a practice directed towards social purposes. It aligned with the revolutionary spirit of the time, aiming to contribute to the construction of a new socialist society.

The movement viewed the artist as a constructor of new environments, often using industrial materials and techniques. This was a shift from the artist as a creator of aesthetic objects to an active participant in the building of a new societal framework. Constructivists believed in merging art with industrial production and technology. They sought to break down the barriers between artistic disciplines and industrial design, emphasizing functionality and utility.

The movement focused on abstract forms but also on the material reality of the medium. There was an emphasis on geometric shapes, bold colors, and the use of modern materials, reflecting the industrialization of society.

In her paintings, Popova embraced the geometric abstraction characteristic of Constructivism. She explored spatial arrangements using simple shapes and lines, often creating a sense of depth and dynamism.

In her textiles, her work reflected the Constructivist ideal of merging art with industrial processes. She designed fabrics with bold geometric patterns and worked on theater sets and costumes, applying Constructivist principles. She sought to create designs that were utilitarian and accessible, contributing to the construction of the new socialist society.

Constructivism symbolized progress, modernity, and the belief in a technologically advanced future. Popova’s work, with its emphasis on modern materials and techniques, reflected these ideals. Her work reflects the belief that artists can play a crucial role in shaping and reflecting societal values and processes. Popova’s art is a testament to the power of art to not just mirror the world but actively participate in its transformation.

Style Representation

Collectors Corner

Speakingtomato - Am I a person with a horse's face or a horse with a human body?

Artist Highlight - Thomas Art

I first ran into Thomas on X back when the AI art world was a heck of a lot smaller than it is now. We DM’d a few times, sharing tips and tricks for Pytti and Disco Diffusion. He started an awesome community collection project on Objkt called ‘Lightbulb Community’ which brought together collaborations between more than 70 artists. You should check it out and enjoy a delightful journey through the progression of AI tools.

Earlier this year, Thomas shifted to generative art and it’s been great to see how his art has evolved since then. As someone who also dabbles in generative art, I was looking forward to hearing about his transitional journey.

Bio in his own words:

Thomas is a generative artist using code to create. He has a bachelor’s degree in mechatronics and works as an engineer in the automotive industry. He is living with his wife and his kid in Austria.

The journey of Thomas started in September 2021. He wanted to invest in crypto and did some research. Throughout his research, he came across the topic of NFTs which evoked his fascination. He started to deal with art, downloaded the first free drawing programs and did his first experiments. After some time, he discovered artificial intelligence and was thrilled. It opened completely new possibilities for creating artworks. He dived deeper into the subject and was able to make a name for himself as an ai artist. His works have already been exhibited in several physical galleries all over the world (New York City, France, Rome, Austria).

At the beginning of 2023, he discovered generative art and the passion for coding. Since then, he has invested every free minute in improving his coding skills and in creating generative art.

Thomas, can you share a pivotal moment in your life that profoundly influenced your artistic journey and the themes you explore in your work?

I started with art in September, 2021. First I created some hand drawn pieces but I quickly discovered AI. After around 2 years I saw a work from a generative artist on twitter that changed everything. After this moment, I was fascinated by generative art and started to deal with this topic. Since this moment, I invest every free minute in improving my coding skills and coding!

What do you tap into for inspiration when you are starting a new coding project? Do you do any research for new ideas or take inspiration from the world around us?

A huge inspiration is definitely the generative art space... the latest project I created (the one that will drop soon) was inspired by a work of a genart artist I admire. I also get my inspiration sometimes from commercials I see on tv or IRL stuff like buildings, etc...

In what ways do your artistic practices and processes serve as a dialogue with your own identity, culture, or the larger issues of the world today?

This is a hard question and to be honest I don’t really know an answer. All I can say is that I have a technical background and the coding is also useful in real life.

Art often requires a balance between discipline and spontaneity. Can you discuss a time when a spontaneous change of direction in your work led to a breakthrough or a significant change in your approach?

Yes, as mentioned above after I saw the work of a generative artist on twitter everything changed. I stopped with AI and started to focus on coding.

If you could have a conversation with one artist, past or present, who has significantly inspired you, who would it be and what would you ask them about their own creative practice?

Tough question because there are so many! Maybe Tyler Hobbs. He is a genart superstar and his Fidenza and QQL series are next level. I would ask how they develop their processes. How they get inspired...

Are there any pieces or collections that you want to direct readers to check out?

At the moment I’m working on my new generative project "Silent Archetypes". It will be released soon. 150 sample outputs can be checked here:

Silent Archetypes by Thomas Art

Final Thoughts

Before I hit send on this, I’d love to share my latest drop on Emergent Properties OpenMarket. Fields of Color is a long form exploration of the color field movement combined with p5.JS code to guide the AI across the canvas using noise and random pallets. Some of the generations will be literal fields, and others will be more diverse natural scenes.

Minting now, 4 XTZ and edition size of 50.

As always, if you enjoyed this edition I would really appreciate if you shared it. Just hit the share button below. And if you’re not following me on X yet, I’d love to follow you back.

On that note, I’ll leave you with a quote that expresses the permanence of art perfectly:

Enjoy your weekend, friend!

P.S. If you have feedback I’d love to hear it! A reply to this email goes directly to me.