Ah, retrospect. This is how I kicked-off the year. On the precipice of 2021, we now know the answer is “less of 2020.”
Friend — destinations to digest the horrors of 2020 are legion… worry not! This is a happy place.
So grab a cocktail (you deserve it), kick back, and let’s have a look at some quarantine-driven creativity.
Only 113 days remain in 2020. This 366 day lap around the sun is about ceding control. And so, while creating the 12th work in my 20-year Guggenheim Painting Series — I embraced our new reality, and went rogue. This was painted entirely with my left hand. First with a brush, then with a palette knife. There was no plan… like 2020? It simply happened.
Sometimes you eat the bear, and sometimes the bear, well, he eats you.
https://www.facebook.com/JasonBorbet/videos/10108198608120410
Being surrounded by the wondrous art created by my children, the importance of spontaneous creativity is palpable. Art, like life, is about routine, protocol, strategy… and sometimes, you must eschew the standard, and simply create.
Back in 2011… I created a painting for Advertising Week on commission. The work ran as full-page ads in Ad Age, Ad Week, Bloomberg’s Business Week and was animated for play in the back of NYC Taxi’s. During that whirlwind week… Lord Matthew Scheckner, Global CEO of Stillwell Partners, rolled out the red carpet.
We spent an evening with Daniel Lamarre, CEO of Cirque du Soleil (I took notes); attended countless cocktail affairs, and sat front row to witness Cirque’s Zarkana at Radio City Music Hall.
On our way in… I looked up, and snapped this picture… one I would paint nine years later, living in Idaho. Of course, when I kicked-off this 60″X60″X1.5″ Acrylic on Belgian Linen canvas on January 21, 2020… I had no idea what the world would look like on May 5, 2020… when it was completed.
On July 2, 2009 — I became a full-time artist. My first sale? A 30″X30″ painting of The Guggenheim, created on 5th Avenue, in front of The Guggenheim. When the desire to paint Frank Lloyd Wright’s masterpiece struck again, it felt too opportunistic… unless. Unless it became something grandiose… a benchmark for my career.
So, I decided to paint The Guggenheim, each year, for twenty years. Back then, as a dude living in NYC with a steady girl and a scary new career — it felt impossible. Today, I find myself living in Idaho, married, with three kids and nine Gugg’s to go.
https://www.facebook.com/borbay/videos/447765162478080/?__xts__[0]=68.ARDbNoYgkDNWlVqjCcvVj6SwzwzDYTKuRmxyIudSnhQqaQfxSr7eGf0OF-6JUIsfQXR_udbCCsaHEhCfqh2QJIYA6vvaGhMhyspdQ-ZOrYINaSnOu6nB8JsK4wsnZzVjmW1scin0wm4xccyfaWwcPUXQqN_imp7nLSGtAtY9jIqPeWCXjlquvnqbNWWk93RhPeYJyMudMcBEUo94yMJDQLYjzr9Ol5Rd7I0NvzA11np2frM1YMdNv_lIVqfF-OdYrEZ8Ey-LxEHCRMcKt5n6wIG8ddMG54QgzvBzd6deSlMeRhM4YwZotUnuIHIQPFQCTSdWUJXeoOaMRoiFdrTVzTJoG3h8DL2pIKs&__tn__=-R
For this year, I went clean… and shared the time lapse with some explicit beats, courtesy of my boy Louis Metric. Not only is this guy a microphone assassin — he is a total beer-league sniper… listen, follow, and watch him ascend.
You can move a New Yorker to Idaho… but the heart of a New Yorker is forever on the island of Manhattan. And, so, I was delighted to share my life story with New York Lifestyles Magazine!
Oh, yes, and do click on any image for a closer inspection.
Frederick Law Olmsted was a genius of unfathomable proportion. This gentleman saw the center of a bustling island, and envisioned 1.317 square miles of trees, hills, bridges, lakes and pathways — and invented Central Park.
Having spent 12 years living in Manhattan (10 of which, were on the Upper East Side) — The Park was my home away from home, through which I ran 1000’s of miles, played 100’s of hockey games, and spent countless hours exploring, thinking, enjoying… being connected to my inner self.
So, when longtime collector, Debbie Paul, commissioned me to create this 48″x56″ acrylic on canvas painting — it became a most welcome time warp… and, eventually, my greatest creative challenge to date. You can view the time lapse immediately above… and click onward for the stroke-by-stroke recap.
Introducing the 10th Guggenheim in my 20-year-series… aptly titled, “Guggenheim 10”.
By all accounts — this painting was a journey. After kicking-off the under-painting of this piece in June, I noticed the canvas was warped, so I slashed it to bits, and started over. Following that, I found myself traveling around the world… Vegas, Paris, Antwerp, Amsterdam… then, I received a beautiful wave of commissions. As a result… this piece took much longer than anticipated.
https://www.facebook.com/borbay/videos/1742170359261720/?__xts__[0]=68.ARAwFRgK3x4DdX-anpFNVtFqJeEgkYpfylSvLhdFOb_S22wT27g5dNruy2atma005gyHL7ZZjqI8Jj1ZuyfF-BhwxIZ6UvAG6bmxZ0ZRfMDYjXG7lP7eh296iR4Plt5ja0Q_2vXEuTpEyw2JXFrEdaK68sQPaA50_v1pRAliahbGoyXwMu2ItFO4p2u5KdjkwD15U8sS1uvUAhP2U7PX7Bhw6WcIQBsI1OVZ2fbjlDo0Km8_TkXEHq1kJHeW9dScFlmMyH2UZRnwKHL8fmyP3JSoVg4UET_GDszp8RZdJPV3NDhiO6D9YpNK-zFpx63PYt7cbp1n4dXLg_h-CpcoMYKOZbGaatKmw-E&__tn__=-R
Whenever I return to Manhattan, I find myself wandering the streets… memories, flowing like wine. In November, I met good friend, Tony Black, for a pint of the dark stuff at Old Town. Before leaving, I told the owner, Fitz, “I’m going to paint your sign.”
They say, “do what you say you’re going to do,” so I did… and here was my source image.
My legally issued artistic license allows for interpretation. If you’d like to see the entire process in one minute in time lapse, narrated by yours truly… view this video… more of a photo and commentary person? Read on dear friend.
The neon train continues with this 14″X18″ canvas of Fedora — a West Village staple (now gratuity free).
This painting wasn’t going to happen. I was focused on moving our family from Minnesota to Idaho, when I completed packing five days early. A blank canvas taunts a painter like a blank page tortures the writer — so, I got to work.
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