6 Days left

I know this blog is supposed to be about art but with only six days left to the most important election in my life time, I find myself focusing on the candidates and well art. There is nothing an artist loves more than someone who likes their work enough to purchase it. With the economy tanking art purchases have surely dropped. And worse than that, the funding for the arts in the last eight years has declined. While that declines, Exxon/Mobile has just posted another record gain $54 Billion in one quarter alone.
So, which candidate is going to support the artists, who is going to put money back into art education, who is going to put money back into NEA? Barack Obama
From Obama's website:

Our nation’s creativity has filled the world’s libraries, museums, recital halls, movie houses, and marketplaces
with works of genius. The arts embody the American spirit of self-definition. As the author of two best-selling books – Dreams from My Father and The Audacity of Hope – Barack Obama uniquely appreciates the role and value of creative expression.

He has a platform in support of the arts where as the Mccain campain hasn't even mentioned the arts.
So this is my soap box and I am standing on it right now asking for anyone out there who reads this blog, who is interested in seeing the arts in America to grow and flourish, please read Barack Obama's platform and then make sure you VOTE Next Tuesday, November 4th.
http://www.artsactionfund.org/pdf/artsvote/Obamaarts2.pdf

Super Monday Workshop

On Monday, October 27th I will be teaching a photography workshop in my studio.
This is a one day workshop in which participants work with female models in various lighting situations and poses. This class will be geared toward the photographer, who uses photography to express themselves and to create aesthetically pleasing images.
The participants will learn:
• How to light and pose the model for various artistic effects.
• How to use your photographic equipment and lenses.
• That respect for the model is a building block to a great image.

There is still room for a couple more photographers so if you are interested, please drop me an email to: michael@baronephotoart.com

MY VIEWS ON RELIGION

The other day someone actually asked me why I was an Atheist. If I believed in any god and how it came to be. So I directed them to my website which has my rant on religion which I copied below:
As a child I grew up in an Italian-American household. Roman Catholic icons were all over my grandparents house. I went to Catholic school for 9 years and did my duty as an altar boy. Needless to say, religion was a big part of family life. First Holy Communion. Confirmation. Church on Sunday. No meat on Friday. No goodies during Lent. These were the rules that were going to get me into heaven. I got married in a Catholic church, teaching love, honor, till death do us, etc. But then it happened, I got divorced. A Roman Catholic doesn't get divorced, it's a sin. I'll go to hell. No wait, all I have to do is go to confession and it's all better. Neat trick!
After a few years I tried the church again. I went to church with a very devout Catholic girl. During the mass, the priest stood in front of the congregation holding a blow-up sheep trying to talk about something or other. I sat there thinking, "What the heck is the priest talking about?, this is religious enlightenment?"
After many years of pondering religion in my life, trying to get something out of a church service, I have come to realize that organized religion is like a crutch. It helps you when you need it, and when everything is ok, you can discard it. In recent years the talk of God has flooded the media. People killing in the name of religion, saying it is "God's will". A young child is struck down by a stray bullet from some crack dealer's gun, and they say, "God works in mysterious ways".
No matter what happens God has a perfect record.

So here is my belief; Life is what you make it, not what some spiritual deity has destined it to become. You set your course and you determine the outcome. It's not pre-planned, it's not fate. Like the T-shirt says "Shit happens".

Now, I have no problem with people who believe in a higher power, just as I have no problem with people who wear ugly shoes. Just don't ask me to wear your shoes. And please stop trying to convince me I am wrong, when I die I'll find out... or not!

Below are the lyrics to a song that came out in 1976, that I think is still relevant today.

If There's A God In Heaven (What's He Waiting For?)
Written by Elton John and Davey Johnstone
Lyrics by Bernie Taupin - Available on the album Blue Moves

Torn from their families
Mothers go hungry
To feed their children
But children go hungry
There's so many big men
They're out making millions
When poverty's profits
Just blame the children

If there's a God in heaven
What's he waiting for
If He can't hear the children
Then he must see the war
But it seems to me
That he leads his lambs
To the slaughter house
And not the promised land

Dying for causes
They don't understand
We've been taking their futures
Right out of their hands
They need the handouts
To hold back the tears
There's so many crying
But so few that hear

If there's a God in heaven
Well, what's he waiting for

If there's a God in heaven
What's he waiting for

My new digs

Hello all, It has been some times since I have last posted a blog. The reason is that I have moved my studio into a new building. The new space is a wonderful 1925 building and I have about 1/2 of the upstairs. The upside it is a beautiful space, the downside is it is about 1/5th of what I had! I didn't realize until this move how much crap I have accumulated. I was reminded of George Carlin (RIP) skit called "A Place to put My Stuff" the bigger the space the more stuff you put in it, and I definitely did that.
But now that I am finally moved and my gear is all out of the boxes I can resume shooting. I want to let everyone who reads this that the Red Chair Project is alive and well and I am still looking for people young and old, male or female, straight or gay to pose for this project. If you are interested, please check out my website for some samples.
The New Studio Address is: 101 N. Fifth St., Perkasie, PA

Art House Lounge Exhibition

Hi all, just a quick bit of news. I just received notification form a new gallery in Harrisburg that one of my photographs, "La Pieta, revisited" will be a part of their first annual 2D and photography exhibition featuring artists from Pennsylvania and Maryland.
Their website is ArtHouse Lounge
The exhibition begins August 10th with the opening reception Friday, August 15th from 5 to 8pm.
I hope some of you can make it to Harrisburg and support the local art!

Erotic debate rages on...in my head

This is a continuation of the previous post. In fact after much personal debate I have posted the first series of erotic images on my website. The series is entitled "Innocence Exposed" and you can view it by clicking HERE.
Please make sure you are over 18 years of age and I really would appreciate any comments about this body of work. I want to know if you love it, hate it, or if you think I should not have done this at all.
If the response is positive then these images will be posted on another website, but lets take it one step at a time.

Please, let me know your thoughts!

Erotic vs Pornography

Hi everyone, it has been a while since my last post so I thought I'd jump right in with something that is very pertinent to my artwork.
recently I was approached by the website Michelle7 to give them more photographs to use on there online gallery. I was one of their featured artists in the past and I really like their site. During our emails the curator commented that their erotic site was getting much more hits and would I consider posting there. Now I typically do not shot work that is more erotic in nature, not that I am offended by it or anything like that, I just haven't done so. I have thought a lot about it in the past and always wanted to see how far I could push things until it became, well blatant pornography. Thus rises the debate, where is that line,. what is pornography. Forget the Supreme Court, their decision years ago was that we'll know it hen we see it. Thanks for the clarification! And frankly I don't care about their views, but I do not want to loose my base of people who like my work, but I do think that there are a lot of people who like things a bit edgier, me being one of them. So I have searched and the debate still rages on. I found an interesting interview between Ken Taylor, a Professor and Chair of the Department of Philosophy at Stanford University and Anne Freire Ashbaugh, a Professor of Philosophy, Colgate University. Interview link You would think that with two Philosophy professors we would get a definitive answer to this question, right? OK I was only kidding about getting an answer. Of course there is no answer it is all perception. We all see things differently, you may see a beautiful nude statue and say that's obscene, where I see a religious symbol in a government building and find that obscene. The point I am making is that there is no substitute for good taste and if I am shooting more erotic images and feel like I am doing them justice, great but as I am shooting, if I feel kind of icky about them, then stop. I crossed a line somewhere along the way.
So I will leave it up to the viewer as I always have. In coming months you will see a link on my website to some more erotic images as well as postings here when the images will be on Michelle7. Please, I urge anyone who reads my blog to give me some feedback as to your thoughts on my new body of work and my attempt at pushing myself toward what I feel will be a liberating artistic experience for myself, my models and hopefully you, the viewer.