Spring

Spring, originally uploaded by eyobart.

This is the second time I had painted this piece. It allows me to come out of abstract and do a more impressionistic painting. Instead of thinking so much, this painting allowed me to relax and just paint from life. Usually when I do an abstract piece, I tend to get lost in my own world and disappear from reality. This type of painting allows the painter to go back to the starting point but lets them add realistic elements. The painting must have to be a balance between subconscious mind and consciousness but also can be used individually in a mental sense and reaction.
Abstract or impressionist artists aren’t artists that only do abstract and impressionism. The fact is: Abstract is more expressive than realistic art. Though this might be true, it shouldn’t mean that there should be a limit on the knowledge you should have on art.
Sisi and her cat are my neighbors. Sometimes Sisi comes to the studio alone and sometimes her cat comes alone. Nevertheless, every time I see them, they enlighten me with three different kinds of ideas. A message revolves to me by an inner voice which also accounts for the beauty of this work for only that is beautiful.

Axumite

 

Axumite, originally uploaded by eyobart.

This is a painting I am working on about Axum, a historically indispensable town in Ethiopian history, religion and in fact  of African Civilization as well.  Axum is the place where the Queen of Sheeba reigned during the height of her empire, this where we have the Ark of the covenant and this is where we have the Axum Obelisks ( the ones I tried to put in my paintings as well). Axumite civilization still has a visible effect on Ethiopian history, religion, architecture and arguably political landscape. Currently, Axum is one of the most famous tourist destinations in Ethiopia.Traveling to Axum is one of the most inspiring things to me, both as my Ethiopian/African heritage and also as an artist.  At this time, I am taking all the experiences I got  from my last trip and integrating it into my art.

Koch Hazard: At My Show

Koch Hazard: At My Show, originally uploaded by eyobart.

Carl Grupp, originally uploaded by eyobart.

Carl Grupp at my show. He is a great artist and one of my favorite drawing teachers. I consider him a good friend.

Click here and here for some of his work.

Show's Night

Harmony and Balance Band, originally uploaded by eyobart.

This is the band at my show.

Gift of Tongues

Harmony and Balance is an upcoming show that was prepared by, a good friend, Edward Thomson and I. I have a lot of appreciation for Edward and collect his art pieces. We have been arranging this for the last three months and are anticipating great results.

Background

As an artist, my inspirations come from many sources that include music, nature, books, and religion. They are inspirations that have a positive outlook and a potential to form a change in the art culture and bring an awareness of the mystery of sense. My medium is often a mixed media of oil paint, drawing, and watercolor. I enjoy playing with the composition and the colors of my pieces. I believe the composition is the basis of the spiritual essence and idea within them.

Harmony

To me, the goal of this show is to create a sense of awareness with beauty among the public. As an artist, my goal is to create imaginative elements that viewers have never seen or thought to see before. My paintings convey a sense of joy, healing, music and the power of creativity. All of these concepts have the potential to bring a positive outlook or perspective to the viewers by using creative tools to break some of the laws or art.
My pieces have been inspired by mostly two famous painters: Caravaggio and Henry Tanner. In most of their work they use radical naturalist and realist styles which combine a close physical observation with dynamic, even theatrical, approach to chiaroscuro, which is the art term for the use of light and shadow. Thus, it is much easier to focus on accurate depictions of subjects. Out of the many artists I have seen, these two are the ones that have clearly displayed a strong ability for composition and drawing. For many years, I have grown up painting with inspirations as these that seem to always serve as the foundation of the many styles of art I have grown in.
Since the last eleven years, I have constantly researched many different periods of art inside and outside this country by reading, traveling, sketching and painting. By teaching myself these concepts I have developed an artistic form of language and signature within my pieces that creates a sense of accountability for me as a painter. As an artist, my goal will always remain to bring a different, though knowledgeable, perspective on the roots of traditional and cultural art that is able to capture the essence of nature.

Concept

At this time, art has come into in accordance with the laws of the inner force. The spiritual subject lives, it has its own powers and actively modifies the spiritual atmosphere. But painting is not a pointless activity but a power that helps to refine the soul. The soul is like a daily bread, but how ever the artist should have a message to convey. A message revolves to him by his inner voice which also accounts for the beauty of his work for only that is beautiful.
The greatest external diversity (external form) becomes the greatest internal identity. Thus, realism is equal to abstraction, and abstraction to realism. True art can be achieved by both methods.
The fact that a painting can be represented as a secret mathematical form or number but there are numbers of all kind and why should we narrow the range of the artistic expression?

Harmony and Balance
Koch Hazard Gallery
2nd floor window

Nov. 23, 7:30 PM along with the Parade of Lights
Exhibition: Monday-Friday 8-5pm through Jan.5th 2008

The Cello Dream

The Cello Dream, originally uploaded by eyobart.

Every morning when I wake up I feed human bread to the ducks outside my porch. When I don’t wake up and feed them they tend to scream at my window and disturb me very much. Amusingly, they give me inspiration. Their voices may sound raw and dreadful to many but remind me of a saxophone and the sound you get when you are manually ripping a piece of cloth. At the same time, other birds flee to this scene and sometimes rabbits and squirrels come. It gives me a child-like experience filled with simple and common fun that some take for granted.
The Cello Dream was basically inspired by these bird encounters at my window. I took the song-like voices of the birds and depicted them as floating people under the moon. The songs of the birds merge with the cello player and his dreams of the full moon.
I do many paintings like this because it helps my mind enter into a state of refreshment after a long and motivational art piece or set.

More musical paintings at…eyobart.com

Born of the Water and of the Spirit

 































































































 Born of Water and of the Spirit, originally updated by Eyob

                 After a loooooooooong trip to Ethiopia the last few months, traveling an adventurous and exciting trip across that great historical country, I am now back in town! The last few weeks, I have kept myself busy with the painting for the new Avera McKenna Hospice. I have actually used the knowledge gained from my trip in this work of art. Before I made my visit to Ethiopian churches, a lot of my inspiration was from mostly my imagination and sacred art. After my visit, some of my imaginative elements were confirmed and new ideas were raised. My art is delightfully taking a new turn towards a modernized dimension of Ethiopian art. By following and concentrating on the roots of Ethiopian art I believe my viewers will see a hidden and sacred language that cannot be spoken but seen in my art. Here is a brief description of the paintings.

Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. John 3:5

Description:

                   This painting is meant to represent baptism so as to symbolize Hope, the feeling of Healing and Salvation. It is meant to give a sense of comfort, sense of healing, sense of re-birth. Extending from the past through the present to the future, it is meant to guide the minds of people to explore the spiritual world in an artistic language and form both in the form of Water and Spirit as in the words of Jesus. Artistically, the spiritual elements representing different concepts radiating towards one universal theme, were depicted using dynamic composition. The blue painting is “born of water” and the red is “born of the spirit”. All in all, this painting is generally aiming to give cultural awareness from the perspective of art.

Symbols:

                    Several elements are included in the two pentaplet canvasses. The Child symbolizes a sense of re-birth and represents baptism as in The New Testament; The Dove represents Spirit, The Ten Commandment represents the past (taking us back to the Old Testament) and the influence of which transcends to the present; the Umbrellas symbolize protection from the Sun. The ancient Cross icons symbolize the sacrifice Jesus Christ paid on the Cross for the salvation of humanity. All the above elements are chosen and included to give a sense of healing, hope and salvation for the needy!