VC PROJECTS

Beyond the Canvas: The Artistic Journeys of Pollock and guffogg

Jackson Pollock and Shane Guffogg have each made significant contributions to art history through their unique studio practices, redefining the artistic process. Both artists have independently sought to reveal universal truths rooted in the collective unconscious

the future as past is present

It’s always fascinating how Shane Guffogg approaches his work. His titles, like The Future, as Past is Present, draw you into his world. They aren’t just clever phrases; they represent Shane’s reflections on time, space, and the essence of existence. His fascination with time is unmistakable, a theme that has guided his artistic practice for over three decades. Much of his thinking has been shaped by T.S. Eliot’s Four Quartets, an exploration of time and transformation that Eliot began writing on the cusp of World War II.

Transcending time and space | reflections on shane guffogg’s artistic journey in venice

THIS YEAR MARKS THE 60TH VENICE BIENNALE, AN EVENT HELD EVERY TWO YEARS IN VENICE, ITALY. WITH A HISTORY DATING BACK TO 1895, IT IS ONE OF THE OLDEST AND MOST PRESTIGIOUS CULTURAL EVENTS IN THE WORLD. THIS YEAR’S BIENNALE, RUNNING FROM APRIL 21 TO NOVEMBER 24, 2024, IS OFTEN COMPARED TO THE OLYMPICS OF THE ART WORLD, WHERE THE MOST INFLUENTIAL ARTISTS, CURATORS, CRITICS, AND COLLECTORS CONVERGE.

STEVIE KINCHELOE | A SENSORY ODYSSEY OF TRUTH AND CONNECTION

STEVIE KINCHELOE'S CREATIVE PRACTICE IS A TESTAMENT TO HER COMMITMENT TO EXPLORING TRUTH THROUGH A MULTITUDE OF SENSORY EXPERIENCES. DRAWING INSPIRATION FROM LITERARY GIANTS LIKE VIRGINIA WOOLF AND SYLVIA PLATH, SHE INFUSES HER WORK WITH RAW EMOTION AND DEPTH, INVITING VIEWERS TO ENGAGE WITH HER JOURNEY OF SELF-DISCOVERY AND UNDERSTANDING. THROUGH FILM, PHOTOGRAPHY, SOUNDSCAPES, PERFORMANCE, INSTALLATION ART, AND WRITING, STEVIE CREATES A RICH TAPESTRY OF EXPRESSION, CAPTURING THE ESSENCE OF EXISTENCE IN ALL ITS…

GUFFOGG | EXPLORING TIME, SPACE, AND IDENTITY

GUFFOGG'S SOLO EXHIBITION, "VIBRATIONS," OFFERS A COMPREHENSIVE EXPLORATION OF HIS ARTISTIC EVOLUTION FROM 2009 TO 2023. FEATURING A DIVERSE COLLECTION OF ARTWORKS INCLUDING OIL ON CANVAS PAINTINGS, WORKS ON PAPER, AND MURANO GLASS SERIES, THE EXHIBITION HIGHLIGHTS PIVOTAL MOMENTS IN GUFFOGG'S CREATIVE JOURNEY.

SHANE GUFFOGG | AT THE STILL POINT OF THE TURNING WORLD - CONVERSATIONS THROUGH TIME

THE FULL-LENGTH EXTENDED ESSAY

THE POEM, FOUR QUARTETS, IS T.S. ELIOT’S DESIRE TO FOCUS ON THE PRESENT MOMENT, THE ORDER OF THE UNIVERSE, AND ALL THINGS THAT CO-EXIST. SHANE GUFFOGG SHARES THIS DESIRE. IN APRIL OF 2023, THE ARTIST BEGAN CREATING TWENTY-ONE PAINTINGS, INSPIRED BY THREE STANZAS FROM THE FIRST CHAPTER, BURNT NORTON. THE PAINTINGS ARE A VISUAL EXPLORATION, THROUGH LINES, AND COLOR, THAT REPRESENT THE EXCHANGE OF THOUGHT THROUGH TIME.

NOW AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE

SHANE GUFFOGG | CONVERSATIONS THROUGH TIME

the summary (short text)

"IN FOUR QUARTETS, T.S. ELIOT EXPLORES THEMES OF THE PRESENT MOMENT, THE COSMIC ORDER, AND COEXISTENCE, A SENTIMENT SHARED BY ARTIST SHANE GUFFOGG. COMMENCING IN APRIL 2023, GUFFOGG EMBARKED ON A CREATIVE JOURNEY, PRODUCING TWENTY-ONE PAINTINGS INSPIRED BY THREE STANZAS FROM BURNT NORTON, THE FIRST CHAPTER OF ELIOT'S WORK. THESE ARTWORKS, EMPLOYING LINES AND COLORS, PROVIDE A VISUAL EXAMINATION OF THE EXCHANGE OF THOUGHTS ACROSS TIME…

CONVERSATIONS | EXPLORING THE CREATIVE PROCESS WITH MICHAEL LINDSAY-HOGG FOR ART CONFIDENTIAL

PART I

MICHAEL LINDSAY-HOGG NEEDS LITTLE INTRODUCTION BECAUSE WITHOUT HIM, MUCH OF WHAT HAS SHAPED OUR WORLD MAY NOT HAVE HAPPENED. THIS ARTIST HAS HAD A FASCINATING CAREER IN SHOW BUSINESS AS WELL AS THE ARTS. ON STAGE, HE DIRECTED PRODUCTIONS OF AGNES OF GOD ON BROADWAY, AND NORMAL HEART AT PUBLIC THEATRE IN NEW YORK ALONG WITH RECEIVING A 

BEST DIRECTOR TONY NOMINATION FOR WHOSE LIFE IS IT ANYWAY? 

AT THE AGE OF TWENTY-FOUR, HE WAS DIRECTING THE BRITISH LIVE ROCK N’ ROLL TV SHOW, READY, STEADY, GO, 

IN HIS OWN WORDS…

SHANE GUFFOGG | PART 5, THE LIFE OF THE ARTIST AND THE CREATIVE PROCESS | "CERTAINTY AND TRUTH"

IN PART 5, WE ARE SHARING SHANE’S DAILY ROUTINE AND HOW ONE THOUGHT LEADS TO THE NEXT AND, YES, THERE IS SOME CERTAINTY AND TRUTH HERE.  I HAVE HEARD VISITORS TO THE STUDIO SAY ON MANY OCCASIONS, “SHANE, THIS IS AMAZING, THINGS JUST SEEM TO LINE UP FOR YOU.” HOW DOES THIS UNFOLD?

CONVERSATIONS | EXPLORING THE CREATIVE PROCESS WITH MICHAEL LINDSAY-HOGG FOR ART CONFIDENTIAL

PART II

IN CONTINUATION FROM OUR PREVIOUS ISSUE, VICTORIA CHAPMAN SAT DOWN FOR PART TWO OF A DISCUSSION WITH PAINTER, AU- THOR, AND DIRECTOR MICHAEL LINDSAY- HOGG. AS A CREATIVE SOUL IN NUMEROUS FORMS OF ART, MICHAEL EXPLORES MORE OF HIS CREATIVE PROCESS AND HIS NEWEST FORM OF EXPRESSION AS A PAINTER. 

YURI BOYKO | OPEN TO INTERPRETATION | ART CONFIDENTIAL

PHOTOGRAPHER YURI BOYKO EXPLORES RECOVERY AND HARMONY IN HIS LATEST SERIES

YURI BOYKO GREW UP IN KYIV, UKRAINE, AND ATTENDED THE BRITISH HIGHER SCHOOL OF ART AND DESIGN, DEPARTMENT OF PHOTOGRAPHY IN MOSCOW. HE TOOK UP PHOTOGRAPHY IN EARLY CHILDHOOD WITH A SIMPLE LOMO CAMERA AND, ENCOURAGED BY THE FAMILY, SET UP A PORTABLE DARKROOM IN THEIR URBAN APARTMENT. 

SEVEN CONVERSATIONS IN COLOR

COLOR HAS ALWAYS FASCINATED ME. BUT SHANE GUFFOGG'S ARTISTIC LANGUAGE, OFTEN DESCRIBED AS 'VISUAL HARMONIES' (THE ARTIST HEARS COLOR AND SEES SOUND) THROUGH MODES OF COLOR, AND TRANSPARENCIES OF PAINTED LIGHT, INVITES THE VIEWER TO CONTEMPLATE THE INFINITE DIMENSIONS OF COLOR THAT CAN SEEMINGLY BE FELT. SHANE'S EXPLORATION OF COLOR IS TRANSCRIBED BY CONCEPTS RELATED TO TIME AND SPACE. HIS UNIQUE VISION IS PARTIALLY BASED ON CAPTURING WHAT IS OFTEN CALLED 'THE ETERNAL MOMENT.' HE THINKS OF HIS ART AS A LENS THAT LOOKS AT HUMANITY FROM THE PAST AND PRESENT AND VIEWS TIME AS THREADS CONNECTING ALL PEOPLE;

FRANCESCO TORI AND LINDA ZAMBOLIN | ECHI SERIES

HAND-TINTED WAX PHOTOGRAPHS

ECHI (ECHOES) SERIES CONSISTS OF SIXTEEN PHOTOGRAPHS HAND-TINTED AND WAXED BY BIELLA-BASED ITALIAN PHOTOGRAPHERS FRANCESCO TORI AND LINDA ZAMBOLIN. THE ARTISTS SET OUT ON A PROJECT TO CAPTURE A PATH DIVIDED INTO DIFFERENT SECTIONS THAT ASCEND TO THE TOP OF A WATERFALL. THIS WAS DONE THROUGH THE LENS OF VICTORIAN AESTHETICS. ECHI SERIES WORKS TO CAPTURE WATERFALLS THAT REMIND ONE OF THE FLUIDITY OF THE ELEMENT ITSELF. 

THOUGHTS AND CONVERSATIONS WITH SHANE GUFFOGG | 2017-2019

I BEGAN DESIGNING MONTHLY NEWSLETTERS FOR THE INTERNATIONALLY ACCLAIMED ARTIST IN 2015. OVER TIME, I STARTED TO ASK QUESTIONS ABOUT THE THINGS I WAS NOTICING IN THE STUDIO AND COMMENTING ON THE WORK GUFFOGG WAS MAKING. BY 2017 MORE THOUGHTS AND INQUIRES BEGAN TO FOUNTAIN. GUFFOGG HONORED MY CURIOSITY AND WAS ALWAYS WILLING TO LISTEN AND ENGAGE IN DEEPER CONVERSATION. AS A GRADUATE OF ART SCHOOL AND ONE WHO HAS WORKED IN MUSEUMS AND ART GALLERIES, THERE WAS MUCH TO ABSORB WHILE…

SHANE GUFFOGG | PART I | THE LIFE OF THE ARTIST AND THE CREATIVE PROCESS

THE ARTIST’S JOURNEY IS NEVER A STRAIGHT PATH, THERE ARE COUNTLESS TWISTS AND TURNS. SHANE AND I BEGIN A NEW DIALOGUE ABOUT THE LIFE OF THE ARTIST AND THE CREATIVE PROCESS. THERE IS ALWAYS SO MUCH TO ASK SHANE ABOUT HIS STUDIO PROCESS AND HOW HE CONTINUES TO BE INSPIRED TO MAKE WORK. WE THOUGHT TO SHARE THIS NEW DISCUSSION AND A SERIES OF PAINTINGS THAT INITIALLY BEGAN IN 1989 AS CHARCOAL DRAWINGS CALLED THE “NUMBERS” SERIES. LAST YEAR, SHANE REVISITED THIS BODY OF WORK AND THEN STARTED MAKING OIL PAINTINGS. THIS SERIES IN OIL IS NOW REFERRED TO AS “THE COUNTING OF DAYS”, IT’S AN INTRIGUING BODY OF WORK BASED ON HUMANITY AND LIFE ITSELF. 

SHANE GUFFOGG | SELF PORTRAITS | PART 4

PREVIOUSLY WE DISCUSSED THE WORK OF HENRI MATISSE AND PABLO PICASSO. IN PART 4, WE DIVE INTO SELF-PORTRAITS BY FRIDA KAHLO AND FRANCIS BACON. THIS IS AN IMPORTANT DISCOVERY IN THE HISTORY OF PORTRAITURE. GUFFOGG AND I WEAVE IN AND OUT OF EACH ARTIST'S LIFE, UNDERSTANDING HOW THEY ARRIVED.
 
ANDRE BRETON, WHO WROTE THE SURREALIST MANIFESTOS, LABELED FRIDA KAHLO A SURREALIST, HOWEVER, SHE VEHEMENTLY DENIED THAT: SHE WAS PAINTING HER TRUTH. A LOT OF YOUR SELF-PORTRAITS SEEM TO DRAW FROM THE SURREAL; ARE YOU PAINTING YOUR IMAGINATION OR YOUR REALITY?

SHANE GUFFOGG | SELF PORTRAITS | PART 3

IN PART 3, WE ENTER THE WORLDS OF HENRI MATISSE AND PABLO PICASSO. I SPENT TIME RESEARCHING THE ARTISTS AND SOME OF THEIR LIFE EXPERIENCES THAT SHAPED MANY COMPOSITIONS AND SELF-PORTRAITS. I HAD MORE QUESTIONS FOR SHANE GUFFOGG, WHICH HE CAREFULLY SHARED HIS PERSONAL TAKES ON, GIVING ME A DEEPER UNDERSTANDING. THIS LED ME TO DRAW CURIOUS PARALLELS BETWEEN THE ARTISTS OF THE PAST AND GUFFOGG, PARALLELS THAT REVEAL MORE AND MORE ABOUT HIS WORK.

SHANE GUFFOGG | SELF-PORTRAITS | PART 2

WE CONTINUE THE DIALOGUE BY EXPLORING THE WORK OF VINCENT VAN GOGH, EDVARD MUNCH, AND PAUL CEZANNE. WE SHARE THE DEVELOPMENTS OF WHY THESE ARTISTS MADE IT THEIR SOLE PURPOSE TO CREATE ART.

VC: VINCENT WILLEM VAN GOGH (1853 – 1890) WAS AN ARTIST WHOSE PERSONAL HISTORY AND LEGACY IS JUST AS FAMOUS AS HIS PAINTINGS. THE SON OF A PASTOR, VINCENT GREW UP WITH CORE RELIGIOUS AND SPIRITUAL BELIEFS THAT FOLLOWED HIM THROUGHOUT HIS TURBULENT LIFE. FLOATING FROM ONE OCCUPATION TO ANOTHER, HE WORKED AS AN ART DEALER, TEACHER, MISSIONARY AND FINALLY FOUND HIS TRUE CALLING AS AN ARTIST. HOW DO YOU THINK THIS PLAYED OUT IN VAN GOGH'S ART?

SHANE GUFFOGG | SELF-PORTRAITS | PART 1

THE HISTORY OF SELF-PORTRAITS DATES BACK CENTURIES – THEY ARE EASY TO SPOT IN EARLY EGYPTIAN ART, GREEK/ROMAN MYTHOLOGY, AND MORE. IT’S NO SURPRISE THAT UPON EXITING THE MIDDLE AGES AND ENTERING THE 15TH CENTURY OR EARLY RENAISSANCE – WHEN ARTISTS BEGAN TO SEPARATE FROM KINGDOMS – THE SELF-PORTRAITURE BECAME MORE COMMON IN SEARCH OF IDENTITY AND QUESTIONING OF HUMANITY.

SHANE GUFFOGG: COLOR Part 7

In Color Essay 6 we talked about women artists from the Abstract Expressionist movement starting with Helen Frankenthaler’s absence of color to the bold brushstrokes of Lee Krasner, and onward to Joan Mitchell who taught us how to see differently. Then there were the spiritual missions of Agnes Martin and Hilma af Klint. In Color Essay 7 we continue to explore the movement and talk about how these courageous women develop their own independent voice during this revolutionary period in art history.

Shane Guffogg: color part 6

Guffogg: “The first artist to come to mind is Lee Krasner (1908 – 1984). She was doing some bold work but purposefully took a back seat to her husband, Jackson Pollock, to help guide and manage his career. I have walked into many museums and seen her work, not knowing it was hers, and done a triple take because of the energy of the gestural marks she was making. For instance, look at the painting titled, THE EYE IS THE FIRST CIRCLE from 1960. The brushstrokes evoke the clarity of an artist who has arrived at a place they can call their own. The dark lines are almost figurative, almost pointing towards a landscape, almost suggesting something organic, but it is instead an extension of her mind and body fusing into a moment of truth that transcends the identifying labels.”

SHANE GUFFOGG | COLOR | PART 5

VC: WE FINISHED PART 4 ENTERING THE UNCHARTED WATERS OF ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM, A MOVEMENT THAT INCORPORATED BEAUTY AND VIOLENCE. I WAS AWESTRUCK WITH THE OPENING MONOLOGUE OF EMILE DE ANTONIO’S ART DOCUMENTARY FILM; PAINTER’S PAINTING – THE NEW YORK ART SCENE 1940 -1970

THE MONOLOGUE BEGINS …

“THEY SAY THE PROBLEM OF AMERICAN PAINTING IS THERE WAS A PROBLEM OF SUBJECT MATTER. PAINTING IN AMERICA KEPT GETTING TANGLED UP IN THE CONTRADICTIONS OF ITSELF. WE MADE PORTRAITS OF OURSELVES WHEN WE HAD NO IDEA WHO WE WERE. WE TRIED TO FIND GOD IN LANDSCAPES, AND…

SHANE GUFFOGG | COLOR | PART 4

AS WE CONTINUE WITH THE DISCUSSION ON COLOR, IN PART 4, WE LOOK AT COLOR OPENING NEW POSSIBILITIES AT THE BEGINNING OF THE 20H CENTURY. DURING THE EARLY 1900S, PABLO PICASSO AND HENRI MATISSE WERE KNOWN TO BE RIVALS. MATISSE WAS LEADING THE CHARGE OF FAUVISM, THE TERM THAT TRANSLATES TO “WILD BEASTS” AND REPRESENTS THE MOVEMENT’S VIBRANT USAGE OF STRONG COLOR. DURING THIS TIME, PICASSO HAD ABANDONED THE BLUE PERIOD, LAUNCHING HIMSELF INTO A NEW PALETTE, COINED THE ROSE PERIOD, ONLY TO BE FOLLOWED BY YET ANOTHER SHIFT IN HIS WORK, DUE IN PART, TO MATISSE. HENRI MATISSE RECEIVED A LOT OF ATTENTION FOR THE PAINTINGS HE WAS CREATING – SOME OF THE CRITICISM SCATHING…

SHANE GUFFOGG | COLOR | PART 3

“COLOR IS A POWER THAT DIRECTLY INFLUENCES THE SOUL.” – WASSILY KANDINSKY

VC: HAVE YOU EVER THOUGHT ABOUT WHO CREATED THE FIRST ABSTRACT PAINTING AND WHY? TO ME, ABSTRACT PAINTING REPRESENTS SOMETHING CEREBRAL. THE COLORS OFTEN PORTRAY A SIGNIFICANT ROLE, WHICH THEN GUIDE OUR EMOTIONS TO THINK OR FEEL A CERTAIN WAY. IN SOME CASES, THERE IS AN INTERWEAVING OF BORDERS THAT ARE MADE OF DIVISIONS OF COLORS OR SHADES OF NON-COLOR. IT CAN BE A TYPE OF LANDSCAPE WAITING TO BE DISCOVERED OR A JUNCTION WILLING TO BEGIN A NEW PATH. I OFTEN WONDER, HOW DOES THIS COME ABOUT? I ASKED SHANE AND HE ANSWERED ME BY EXPLAINING…

SHANE GUFFOGG | COLOR | PART 2

IT'S HARD TO BELIEVE BEFORE THE 1800'S ARTISTS WERE FOR THE MOST PART USING COLOR AS AN INTRINSIC PROPERTY OF AN OBJECT. DURING THE FRENCH IMPRESSIONIST ERA, THIS CHANGED, AS ARTISTS BEGAN TO USE COLOR AND LIGHT TO INVESTIGATE EMOTION. CLAUDE MONET'S PAINTINGS OF HAYSTACKS ARE A GOOD EXAMPLE OF THIS. BEING PRESENT IN THE FLUTTER OF THE MODERN WORLD, IT'S UNIMAGINABLE TO THINK THAT WHAT SEE TODAY HAS NOT ALWAYS BEEN, BUT RATHER, IT EVOLVED WITH THE PASSAGE OF…

SHANE GUFFOGG | COLOR | CONVERSATIONS ABOUT COLOR AND HOW IT HAS INFLUENCED THE ARTIST’S WORK

ABOUT SIX MONTHS AGO I LISTENED TO A PODCAST ABOUT COLOR AND IT REALLY GOT ME THINKING ABOUT THE HISTORY OF ART AND GUFFOGG’S PAINTINGS. WORKING AMONGST THEM IN THE STUDIO, I STARTED TO CONTEMPLATE HOW THE ARTIST USES COLOR TO CREATE HIS VISUAL POETRY. THE SUBJECT OF COLOR IN ART IS VAST. I BEGAN TO RESEARCH IT FROM THE BEGINNING AND THE PARTS I BECAME PARTICULARLY INTERESTED IN, I WROTE NOTES ABOUT, AND PROPOSED QUESTIONS TO THE ARTIST. LIKE ALWAYS, I HAD A GREAT DEAL OF INQUIRIES RELATED TO SPECIFIC ART MOVEMENTS AND HOW THEY MAY HAVE BEEN RE-TRANSLATED INTO GUFFOGG’S WORK. THE ARTIST’S KNOWLEDGE OF ART HISTORY…

SHANE GUFFOGG | AT THE STILL POINT OF THE TURNING WORLD | PART 2

FEBRUARY WAS A BUSY MONTH FOR LOS ANGELES – THERE WERE MANY ART FAIRS THAT TOOK PLACE AMONG THE FOREVER SPRAWLING AND BUSY CITY. I WENT TO MOST OF THESE FAIRS HOPING I MIGHT SEE SOMETHING NEW, SOMETHING THAT WOULD GIVE ME INSIGHT ABOUT THE WORLD AND REMIND ME WHY BEING ALIVE IS SO IMPORTANT. ISN’T ART SUPPOSE TO IMPROVE ON WHAT ALREADY EXISTS? OR AS PICASSO WAS ONCE QUOTED: “ART WASHES AWAY FROM THE SOUL THE DUST OF EVERYDAY LIFE”. IN THESE TIMES OF GLOBAL CHANGE AND THE ONGOING SLEW OF TRUMP ERA POLITICS, I WAS SEARCHING FOR ART TO GIVE ME SOMETHING MORE. NOTHING I SAW MOVED ME. INSTEAD, I SAW ART THAT WAS DULL WITH NO NARRATIVE OR CONTENT.

SHANE GUFFOGG | AT THE STILL POINT OF THE TURNING WORLD

HOME IS WHERE ONE STARTS FROM. AS WE GROW OLDER
            THE WORLD BECOMES STRANGER, THE PATTERN MORE COMPLICATED
            OF DEAD AND LIVING. NOT THE INTENSE MOMENT
            ISOLATED WITH NO BEFORE AND AFTER,
            BUT A LIFETIME BURNING IN EVERY MOMENT
            AND NOT THE LIFETIME OF ONE MAN ONLY
            BUT OF OLD STONES THAT CANNOT BE DECIPHERED.
            THERE IS TIME FOR THE EVENING UNDER STARLIGHT,
            A TIME FOR THE EVENING UNDER LAMPLIGHT
            LOVE IS MOSTLY NEARLY ITSELF
            WHEN HERE AND NOW CEASE TO MATTER.
 
–T.S. ELIOT, FOUR QUARTETS (EAST COKER)

SHANE GUFFOGG | LETTER FROM UKRAINE

I OPEN THIS WITH A COPY OF A LETTER RECENTLY SENT TO SHANE. AS HIS STUDIO MANAGER, I HAVE A UNIQUE POSITION TO WITNESS WHAT HAPPENS WITHIN THE WALLS OF HIS CREATIVE SPACES. IN WRITING THESE NEWSLETTERS, IT IS ALWAYS MY GOAL TO SHARE THE WORK WITH AS MANY PEOPLE AS POSSIBLE. AND AS A “FLY ON THE WALL”, I BELIEVE, “LETTER FROM UKRAINE” IS SYMBOLIC OF THE TIMES WE LIVE IN. IT IS A TESTIMONY TO US ALL, THAT IT DOES NOT MATTER WHERE WE LIVE OR WHAT LANGUAGE WE SPEAK. GREAT ART HAS THE ABILITY TO BRING US TOGETHER AND SHARE COMPARATIVE THOUGHT.

SHANE GUFFOGG | ART AND SPIRITUALITY | THE SEARCH FOR TRUTH | PART 3

I AM BEGINNING THIS MONTH WITH THE MENTION OF CIRCLE OF TRUTH, A GROUP EXHIBITION CURATED BY LAURA HIPKE AND SHANE GUFFOGG, WHICH OPENED TO THE PUBLIC ON OCTOBER 18TH AT THE NEW MUSEUM LOS GATOS. FROM THE INCEPTION TO THE OPENING, THE EXHIBITION TOOK GUFFOGG AND HIPKE 9 YEARS TO COMPLETE. THEY CONTACTED SPECIFIC ARTISTS TO CREATE WORK BASED ON THE ESSENCE OF TRUTH AND ITS CONSEQUENTIAL VISUAL LANGUAGE.

IN SEEING THE EXHIBITION FIRST HAND, I REALIZED GUFFOGG IS NOT ONLY INTERESTED IN SPIRITUALITY, BUT ALSO TRUTH.

SHANE GUFFOGG | ART AND SPIRITUALITY | PART 2

A QUESTION I HAVE BEEN ASKING MYSELF, AS OF LATE, IS, WHAT IS SPIRITUALITY? AND HOW DOES AN ARTIST DEFINE THIS THROUGH HIS/HER WORK? MY QUESTIONS OFTEN LEAD ME TO DO RESEARCH, IN HOPES OF FINDING AN ANSWER. MY LATEST QUESTIONING LANDED ME IN THE AGE OF ENLIGHTENMENT, BUT I NEEDED TO LEARN WHAT CAME BEFORE, AND WHAT WAS THE IMPETUS? THIS TOOK ME BACK HUNDREDS OF YEARS, TO AN ERA THAT WAS THE OPPOSITE OF ILLUMINATION. IN THE DARK AGES OF MEDIEVAL ART, READING WAS FORBIDDEN BY…

SHANE GUFFOGG | ART AND SPIRITUALITY

SOME ARTISTS SPEND COUNTLESS HOURS – EVEN LIFETIMES – DRAWING AND PAINTING FROM LIFE, DOCUMENTING THEIR EXISTENCE THROUGH PHYSICAL FORMS AND REALISTIC SUBJECTS. OTHERS CREATE IMAGINARY WORLDS BASED ON ABSTRACT THEMES, ALL THE WHILE INTERPRETING LIFE IN THE WAY THAT THEY SEE IT AND FEEL IT. SHANE GUFFOGG IS AN ARTIST THAT ENCOMPASSES BOTH FACTIONS, BUT ALSO (FROM THIS WRITER’S PERSPECTIVE) CREATES AN AGENT FOR THE SOUL, TAKING THE VIEWER ON A JOURNEY TO A SPIRITUAL REALM.

GUFFOGG SHARES A JOURNAL ENTRY ABOUT UNTITLED #70, A PAINTING THAT WAS BASED ON THE FLIGHT PATTERNS FROM A RADAR SCREEN AT THE DALLAS/FORT WORTH AIRPORT.