“The emotions are sometimes so strong that I work without knowing it. The strokes come like speech.” – Vincent van Gogh

Yes! We all feel a thousand emotions in our lives, and some of us get affected by it a bit too much, and as artists, they create a new direction in the art scene. Atom’s art has a lot to say about the same. Atom Hovhanesyan was based in New York City, a young, talented, and passionate artist truly in love with painting and drawing.

Atom’s father had seen him painting for more than 24 hours tirelessly until the last days of Atom’s life in his studio in NYC, which is also supposed to be the place where he left this world. Atom had called his style of art “Post Divisionist and Abstract”. It truly justifies his artworks. Born in Armenia, where his father Ara Hovhannisyan was an electrical engineer and his mother Gayane Davtyan was a personnel manager in an urban trade corporation and also created artworks as a hobby. Well, it was Atom’s mother from whom Atom inherited his artistic skills. It was in July 1997 when Atom’s parents along with Atom and his sister immigrated to the USA.

Atom was based in New York since the age of 16 in 1997. He was an academic learner in the field of fine art, He studied at the Art Students League, National Academy of New York and Grand Central Academy. Atom seems to be inspired by every art movement as can be distinctly seen in his art pieces. Atom’s realistic anatomy and portraits could be related to Renaissance, and his abstract works to Cubism, Impressionism, Divisionism to Post-Impressionism; Van Gogh looks like his favorite. These were the words by Atom, while he explained his medium of works, “Traditional choice of materials and medium, grind my colors. In the abstract works: my goal is to create a unified atmosphere and sense of luminosity. Bits and pieces of forms from memory are utilized as building blocks for constructing the composition.” 

Atom’s professional life was a combination of varied professions. He had also pursued economics at St. John’s University. Atom started working at the age of 16 and paying his expenses. He was also appointed as a General Manager at Prime Grill, Beverly Hills, CA, one of the most luxurious restaurants that attracted famous Hollywood celebrities. Atom worked there from 2006 to 2008 which was the only time he had spent outside New York. It was in 2009 when Atom decided to pursue his passion and love for art as a full-time artist.

It is good to know that Atom’s every artwork and writings are being well preserved and highly valued by his family, which now manages everything he left behind, which are more than 200 artworks. Atom’s father shares that Atom had gifted many of the artworks, which shows he was a kind-hearted soul. His artworks are also in private collections. Atom studied anatomy, figure drawing, portraits, and life drawings under the guidance of various mentors namely; Phil Michelson, Michael Grimaldi, Tom Torak, and Dan Thompson. Atom studied works by different artists right from Cubism, Impressionism, Divisionism to Post-Impressionism including artists like De Kooning, Kandinsky, Picasso, Seurat, and Cezanne and Van Gogh. Atom visited museums, bought the monographs of the masters, studied and combined the study of different art movements in art history including the era of Leonardo Da Vinci and Raphael to excel the human anatomy and realistic rendering style which could be seen in some of the portrait paintings made by Atom.

The decade of Atom’s artistic career had many art exhibitions. He exhibited at Pechersky Gallery, Moscow, Russia in 2014; Novomoskovsk Art Gallery, Russia 2014-2017, Annual Exhibition Art Students League of New York 2015-2016, Kunstmatrix.com online exhibition Berlin 2018, Artpal online exhibition New York 2018 and Jose Art Gallery 2018. Atom also participated in multiple private art shows in Manhattan, NY in 2016 and 2017. He was also represented In various events organized and managed by “FED” Inc. Harlem, New York City, from February to July 2019. His works were also exhibited in San Diego Expo May 2019 and Clio Art Fair Exhibition March 5-8, New York 2020. Atom’s artworks have been featured in Artist Portfolio Magazine, Issue 38, 39, 41, 42, and 43. Also featured in SPOTLIGHT ART Magazine Issue 15 and 16 along with the Important World Artists 4 Book May 2020, 4 pages in Premium Presentation.

Atom shared a good bond with his family. Atom’s mother accompanied him to museum visits and his father always insisted to support him financially. But as Atom always wanted to be independent and not to burden anyone, he resisted any financial help from his family. Atom also helped his sister Ellen Davtyan with the interior design of her house and gifted her many of his early Artworks. As we begin to talk about the roller coaster of emotions that flooded Atom’s life, it is noted that he had been through heartbreak and betrayal in both his personal life and professional life. Atom’s beloved girlfriend and many of his business colleagues had betrayed him which had broken his trust many times; he who saw the world as transparent and value being true to everyone did not see this happen with him. The time when the real world hit him hard, he had unconsciously gotten those trapped feelings into his artworks. The paintings of a woman, the dark colors of his palate, and the endless strokes say it all. One day something deep inside had given him the courage to take his own life. Maybe he was in search of a better world with the honesty which he deserved!

Atom would always be remembered for the unique style and presentation of concept as a unique artist of the current art world. The style that combines different eras, yet in harmony. Atom isn’t physically here with us today, yet his presence and energy is still alive and resides in his every art piece.

For Atom’s original artworks, artist statement and bio visit www.artbyatom.com

Email arahov62@yahoo.com (Ara Hovhannisyan, Atom’s father)

Instagram @artbyatomhov (original works updated by Atom’s parents) and @atom_hov (created by Atom)

In collaboration with Grishma Khodaria

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SEGMENT EPISODE! Nintendo announced that they’re finally getting into the film-making business, the animators on the “Warcraft” movie were told not to change anything about the mo-cap performance, and Paul Johnson (otaking) is back with another awesome fanimation!

Preorder my book coming out in July 2016

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Topics & Timestamps:

Media Referenced During this Episode:

Thanks to Greg Pugh for this awesome promo GIF for my book!

“Chubby Dumpling” moment at 1:20 of the video below
*very very minor “Captain America: Civil War” spoiler in the video before the “chubby dumpling moment*

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We finally got to see what Chris Farley’s SHREK would’ve been like in an early story reel which surfaced this week. His passing in 1997 was a big shock to us so there’s a lot of discussion surrounding this topic this week. But that’s not all because there’s a “Bob the Builder” reboot with a new character design who looks… symmetrical, a new Mr. Peabody and Sherman Show coming to Netflix which is 2D (!) and the rights have been secured to make a Dungeons & Dragons movie. That last story also contains the skit this week is Stephen reading excerpts from Ice-T’s description of his experience recording the D&D audio book (starting at 1:03:24)… so enjoy that! There are technical discussions as well surrounding the new Windows 10 and a blog post which tried (and failed) to properly compare the budgets of live-action VFX to that of fully CG Animated Films. The questions this week comes from a listener wondering if we’re going to CTNx this year, which ticket we bought, and if that’s right for her. This is another 2hr podcast so let us keep you entertained while you trudge through the middle of another work-week!

Annotations:

 
Chris Farley as Shrek from early story reel before his passing

 
Stephen’s favorite Chris Farley SNL Sketch “Colombian Coffee Crystals”

 
“Bob the Builder” reboot trailer

 
Explainer video for Disney’s Hyperion renderer

 
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This is the most nostalgic episode we’ve done yet! Power Rangers bootleg film, Leonard Nimoy’s career, Inspector Gadget reboot, DuckTales reboot, Adventure Time movie, and Pat is officially back! We also talk about that crazy “Mystery Dress Color” fiasco that happened last week which fascinated artists and annoyed everyone else… that’s kind of nostalgic. So curl up with a bowl of Cap’n Crunch and let us deliver the dulcet tones of nostalgia into your brain.

Annotations:

OK, about this #TheDress fiasco. I inverted the colors in Photoshop (right). What do you see? pic.twitter.com/qSnZNS6b5P

— Stephen Brooks (@rubberonion) February 27, 2015

More on #TheDress… I adjusted the brightness/contrast in Photoshop (right). What do you see? pic.twitter.com/me9NbWqTvi

— Stephen Brooks (@rubberonion) February 27, 2015

 
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Stephen and Rob try to work through what happened at Charlie Hebdo last week in Paris, but also discuss less heavy topics like the Peanuts animation style and Wacom’s new 27 inch Cintiq. Join a very sick Stephen and a very uncomfortable Rob for over 2 hours of chatter… because if you’re looking for real information you might have come to the wrong podcast.

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Robin Williams, long-time friend to and lover of animation and a comedic and dramatic role model for many left us this week. We talk about what impact his life and career had on us and the field of animation as a whole. Other stories we cover in this episode are a survey which shows that YouTube stars are more popular than mainstream celebs among US teens, Golden Globes changing the animation rules, and what’s going on with the Legend of Korra.

Annotations:

“Back to Neverland” feature with Robin Williams

Check out more of your hosts:
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A Father, A Son, An Artistic Legacy. Remembering The Artist Robert De Niro, Sr., the HBO documentary about the brilliant and original impressionist painter is a cautionary tale about an artist left behind in the wake of his initial success. Narrated by his son, his contemporaries and excerpts from his diary, the film introduces us to a world where artists were beginning to achieve renown before their deaths, not after.

Caught up in a whirlwind success as an American Impressionist, De Niro Sr. failed to recognize the moment when the movement he operated in was starting to become passe, and had been eclipsed by Pop Art. He refused to conform, he saw himself as a superior to Jackson Pollock and shunned the new school of art.

De Niro Sr. found himself alone, and out of favor, in more ways than one. Alienated by the Pop Art Movement, after his marriage to school mate Virginia Admiral ended, as revealed posthumously in his diaries, he sadly failed to ever find the love and companionship he yearned for as a closeted gay man.

De Niro Jr. serves not only as a narrator in the documentary, but also as a son, hoping to rewrite the pages of New York’s art history to include the life and legacy of his father, the artist. After the documentary premiered on June 9, one of De Niro Sr.’s paintings sold at Sotheby’s at $35,250, far surpassing its estimated value of $5000-$7000, according to Jennifer Samet on Hyperallergic. A collection of his works were also on display at DC Moore Gallery, in an exhibition that ran till July 31 this year.

Remembering The Artist is directed by Perri Peltz and Geeta Gandbhir and produced by Jane Rosenthal Sheila Nevins.

Written by Keziah Quek and Cojo “Art Juggernaut”
Pictures courtesy of HBO Documentary Films

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Legendary surrealist painter who’s Oscar winning special effects defined the look of Ridley Scott’s Alien, H.R. Giger, died today at the age of 74 in a Zurich hospital in Switzerland, resulting from injuries he sustained in a fall.  If you’ve never had a chance to delve into his amazingly dark techno-organic work outside of the Alien / Poltergeist / Species film franchises or Dark Seed video games, he is one of our 10 Surrealists every art lover should know – and I highly encourage you to do a little googling.

I remember in the 90s the New York club The Limelight, which was a nightclub built inside what was once an old church, commissioned Giger to create a VIP H.R. Giger Room.  I had been to the Limelight a few times during it’s heyday and unfortunately never got access to the room.  The Limelight is now a mall.  According to io9 there are still a few Giger bars in existence.

His sculptures, drawings, and paintings are all insane marvels of technological futuristic wizardry, combined with living matter, muscles, tendons, vaginas, cocks, bones, exoskeletons.  If you aren’t into aliens fucking but you do want to add H.R. Giger to your art book library you may prefer his hyper-future architectural vision of New York he created in a book chock full of insanely intricate cityscapes, 1982’s  H.R. Giger N.Y. City (long out of print, good luck finding it).  For anyone else who isn’t intimidated by a little hi-tech eroticism, here is a full list of his books of his collected works.

Enjoy this small gallery sampling some of his insane future landscapes, brooding creatures, and erotic inter-species sexual depredation (some images are not safe for work):

Giger’s Alien, 1979  via vikisecrets

HR Giger at Work, 1978  – Photo credit: Mia Bonzanigo via vikisecrets

“Erotomechanics VIII” 1979 via Whatculture

Lilith, 1977 via vikisecrets

via gabinetelynch

Birth Machine Babies

via system 75

via Steve Gray

via dark planneur

via wackymania

Written by Cojo “Art Juggernaut”

[source: swissinfo.ch]

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René Ricard died on February 1st 2014, he is dead. There, it’s been stated. I don’t want to talk about his life – that is the natural evolution thanks to online blogs and Facebook posts. Let us talk about Art.

I discovered René Ricard in death, actually through writing this article. I am enthralled. It is not because of his poetry which began his name in art circles, nor his later projects of transferring his poetry to a visual medium, an inversion of the ekphrastic poem. I am drawn to his ideas of art and its relevance not only as a commodity but as means through which language is transmitted. René’s art was this language of transcribing Art.

There are borders between what is acknowledged as Art and that which strives to achieve something new, to rise above the vernacular of the current culture. His writing in Artforum Magazine allowed his role as critic to dissect Art. It was here that his 1981 essay “The Radiant Child” presented Basquiat to the world as an artist which spoke in a new vernacular. His graffiti origins moved beyond just tagging in an attempt to offer a critique and insight. René was keen to this.

So Art is different from art. The capital “A” an implication of a poem, painting, or film that looks to create to press on the preconceived and accepted. He argues the public “need[s] recognizable evidence of our existence. Something has happened and we need, if not advice, at least a demonstration of the situation…”  Quoting Socrates “an intelligent word graven on the soul of the learner…knows when to speak and when to be silent.”

Yet again another boundary appears upon which Art’s constantly shifting form must be careful to straddle and never tumble into the disposability of consumerism or the often obscurity of too much of an Avant-garde.

A better view is the paradox that it needs to be porous and passive but also reactive and solid. The critic’s role, which René excelled at, was to find the work that spoke to something other than itself and then present it so others may experience it.

Sadly his voice will be unable to lead us towards new words that present the reality of existence.

Written by Chris Caruso

Rene Ricard’s Artwork Is Represented by Vito Schnabel.  Featured Photo by Rita Barros

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It’s a sad day in the acting community as they mourn the untimely death of Oscar winning actor Philip Seymour Hoffman, who passed away this morning from an apparent drug overdose in his West Village apartment.

I was fortunate to have seen him perform on stage as Iago in an avant-garde version of Othello at The Skirball Center for the Performing arts a few years ago.  My girlfriend Molly was working there during the run of the show.  I remember at the time that she said it was funny that he would ride his bike to the theatre every day – while smoking.

Hoffman has played some great roles, here are just a few memorable scenes that come to mind which have cross overs into the fine art world.

How many artists and writers watched Hoffman playing Lester Bangs in Almost Famous and didn’t wish they had a mentor like this.  One who recognized your talent early on, had seen it all, and was there to guide you on your artistic path?

And later having to console William, by explaining that most real artists are “uncool,” which is one of the key catalysts for making great art.

How about his role in Synechodche, New York, a film of Being John Malkovich weirdness where he plays husband to a painter of miniatures, whom after she leaves him receives a theatre grant with an ever expanding budget, creating a life-size replica of his life (and New York City) in a massive warehouse, for a show which is in a constant state of being written.

Or that scene in Along Came Polly where his character takes Ben Stiller’s character to an art opening, which ends abruptly when this happens.

I have long been a fan of Hoffman, and it’s because of him I coined a term “Oxtra”(a word I made up which didn’t get any legs) based on his career. The tongue-in-cheek term comes from the combining of the words Oscar and Extra, and is defined by an actor who wins an Oscar, who was previously a character actor who was essentially an extra for a huge part of their career before breaking away to being a leading man.

OXTRA ORIGINS:

Hoffman was one of the very few character actors who beyond all odds (and by way of his amazing acting ability) propelled himself from being an extra, to being an Oscar winner.  Thus making all of his past film work bumped up from extra to oxtra performances, and as thus they should be re-watched with a new eye.

Few may remember back in the early days of high speed internet there was a humorous website called Fametracker, which lasted from 1999 – 2007.  I enjoyed the site, and one of their more popular sections was titled “Hey! It’s That Guy!” This was an alphabetical list of character actors, and what you would know them from, and why they will never be anything but a character actor.

They had funny metrics as to why their theories held (actor goes by three names, etc.) and I remembered back in 1999 Philip Seymour Hoffman was one of the Hey! It’s That Guy! listings. It stuck out in my mind because I agreed with most of their list, but I thought that he would probably be bigger than just a character actor. Thanks to the Wayback machine, here is the page:

I remember the day Hoffman was nominated for an Oscar in 2005 for Capote I checked Fametracker to see how they would react, if they would eat crow and apologize, and take his name off the list.  Nope, they ignored it.  When he took home the Oscar, they ignored it as well.  They just kept the 1999 summary up.  No wonder their site failed.

Rest in Peace Chubby Gen X flotsam.  You will be missed.

Written by Cojo “Art Juggernaut”

[via NY POST]

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