Discovering Bill Traylor

I recently had an opportunity to view some work of a talented artist, Bill Traylor.  Traylor, a Black American folk artist is mostly known for his drawings.   He created many drawings containing a variety of subject matter.    Bill Traylor was a Southern artist that created work depicting mostly the activities of animals and people.

What is fascinating about these artists is that a lot of his early work was created while he was homeless.  He began with pencil drawings and eventually moved to painting.  He did not begin his artistic career until the age 85.  The work of this self-taught artist did not become widely known until the art exhibit in 1981 of Black Folk Art in America.

If you like storytelling combined with art, you will enjoy Traylor’s work.  Most would agree that Bill Traylor’s work tells us a story.   A great deal of his work can be found in both private and public collections. 

Art and Beauty

I recently had an opportunity to view a very exciting exhibit of Islamic art.  I did not anticipate enjoying this exhibit as much as I did.  My goal is to learn about all art and to increase my knowledge of various forms of art.  I decided to take a tour of the exhibit guided by a docent at the museum.  I was pleasantly surprised.

The exhibit, Beauty and Belief, was much more than I had anticipated.  Just listening to the docent discussing some of the objects in the exhibit was an education in itself.  The exhibit featured more than 250 objects dating from the 7^th century through the present day.  The items displayed in the exhibit were taken from various public and private collections in the U.S. and around the world.  This was not an exhibit about religion.  What I learned is that there is some commonality to art and beauty in the world.

Although there was not a lot of metal or jewelry on display, there were plenty of items that interested me.  The exhibition begins with an introduction on the history and geographical background of Islamic art.  Many items included have a direct or indirect connection with nature.  Some of the objects were items used in everyday life. The ceramic pieces, the carpets and the tiles were beautiful. 

This exhibit was educational as well as inspiring.  If you have an opportunity to see the exhibit, Beauty and Belief – Crossing Bridges with the Arts of Islamic Culture, you will not be disappointed.