Mab Graves
Dorothy Darkly
Image from mabgraves.com. Used with permission (thank you, Mab! -ed.).
Let's Start a Revolution.
Okay. I think you are smart. I'm giving you the benefit of the doubt.
I think you may even be a bit brilliant.
I don't think you really need to see blood, or knives, or penises to get the message.
For centuries, good art has always been a bit shocking. Even the Great Masters got the ol' eyebrow from time to time.
The problem? As our society becomes more and more desensitized, our art becomes more and more vulgar. While it may be amusing now and then, so often beauty is replaced by creepiness and that's a hard thing to have living on your wall. And face it; if we continue to include organs, fetuses, and killer Barbies in our art, eventually no one will take us seriously.
Let's start a revolution.
Let's make things beautiful. Let's keep it subtle. Adopt irony. Let's make it about the mood, not the blood. I think we would be surprised at how many people still get the message.
For me? The greatest compliment is when someone comes up to me and tells me there is something slightly creepy about my painting but they just can't put their finger on it. My job is done.