Countermeasure, 2004, Alan Magee, (b. 1947), acrylic on canvas, H. 50 x W. 75 inches, James A. Michener Art Museum. Museum purchase funded by the Janus Society. Copyright 2004, Alan Magee.
Alan Magee does many things in addition to the paintings he creates for museums and galleries. Alan creates an occasional book or magazine illustration and designs note cards and t-shirts. He also does folk art and makes puppets for animated films.
Alan creates an occasional book or magazine illustration and designs note cards and t-shirts and enjoys working in a variety of media and methods. He finds it all challenging, and he thinks it is a nice way to combine the high art museum and gallery experience with everyday art that is available to many people.
Alan really enjoys seeing people wear the t-shirts he designs. He feels even that is an artistic experience, where the artist and the wearer of the shirt work together to make something creative happen. Alan once said: “I love to see somebody walking around with one of my more outrageous t-shirts on; we share the joke at that moment even though that person doesn’t know I’m seeing him. It’s a nice feeling that’s quite different from seeing my painting on a gallery wall or having that painting purchased.”
Did you ever imagine that when you wear a t-shirt you are an extension of the artist who made it? Did you ever imagine walking down the street and seeing or being seen by the artist who made your t-shirt? Read More
Alan Goldstein: Merging Architecture with Nature
Alan Goldstein, b. 1938, Upriver from Lumberville: Walking Bridge II, 1984, oil on canvas, James A. Michener Art Museum, purchased with funds provided by Anne and Joseph Gardocki.
Alan Goldstein is an abstract painter who works predominantly with paint, ink and mixed media. He has experimented with diverse media, including tar, rope, steel, and fabric.
Goldstein started his formal schooling by studying architecture, the art or practice of designing and constructing buildings. Do you see anything in Upriver from Lumberville that reminds you of architecture?
Architecture continues to inspire the things Goldstein includes in his work. After looking at this painting, look at some photographs taken of local Bucks County buildings. Better yet, travel around the county. Do you see any elements in the buildings that look like they could be part of Goldstein’s painting?
In addition, the natural beauty of Bucks County inspires Goldstein. He enjoys traveling around the countryside finding views of hills, rivers, stonewalls, meadows and forests that interest him. Sometimes he sketches his ideas, sometimes he photographs them, and sometimes he simply remembers the images for a future work of art. When Goldstein photographs his work, he often combines different photographs in a collage. He then uses the collage as a basis for his paintings, a technique used in Upriver from Lumberville. He finds patterns in the repetition of roads, rivers and trees. His colors come from nature, though like any artist he changes the colors in order to have a successful composition. Look carefully at Upriver from Lumberville. What in nature can you find in this painting? How is this painting a landscape? Read More »