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Inspiration from Artists wk148 theme for the week Folk Art

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Paul (Dixie) Dean

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Welcome to this weeks thread , as we are covering the New Year I thought it best to have a theme rather than selected artists in the hope that more people will join in . This week I thought we could look at Folk art , not something that is very easy to define as there are several descriptions on line , I go with that  Folk Art is painting or other type of artwork that is made by people who have very little or no formal art training and is often quite naive, well that me and hundreds of others . I pick several at random but made sure I had some older pieces included as it’s very much your interpretation as to what Folk Art includes. please do feel free to post other descriptions of what Folk Art  is and examples are more than welcome.

Norrette Moore

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This is Grandma Moses.  Sugaring off.
With Sarah, Phil, Ellen, Rose the dentist, and the granddaughter whose name I forget.

Robert Jones, Napa

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Some glorious pieces there, not all of which I'd have identified as folk art - but as Paul said, it's hard to define.  Grandma Moses certainly does qualify, her canvases recalling the work of Brueghel (which probably she had never seen): full of characters in their own small worlds doing all sorts of things, definitely part of a scene but oblivious of each other so wrapped up are they in their particular activity.  She (and obviously he) had a highly fertile mind. The difficulty of defining it reaches a peak when we come to L S Lowry: I have heard his work described as folk art, but I think very few would define it in that way - would you?  It has so many of the features we might associate with folk/naive painting, but a key difference lies in his informed ideas about composition; you can usually find deliberate patterns and colours chosen by the eye of a practised artist; are they not obvious too in Grandma Moses?  Well yes they are (said it was complicated....); but there's just something different, in the skill and technique of composition and application - with GM, I get the strong impression of a natural picture-making talent, untramelled by any formal training, limited by nothing more than her individual judgement as she inhabited every inch of her canvas. And that makes it sound that I appreciate her work more than Lowry's, which - actually, I don't: I think they were both superb in their quite different ways; it's when you try to analyse what that difference is that you feel like just handing the whole thing over to the academics, while you just enjoy the works.  
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Paul (Dixie) Dean

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A few more I’m trying to find more traditional ones or what we think might be traditional probably they are just older .

Jenny Harris

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A Folk Art exhibition was held at Compton Verney some years ago and these are from the collection on their website.  A lot of the paintings are listed as ‘artist unknown’. George Smart Gunner Baldie (this is wool and silk) W H Ruggles John Newton Listed as unknown artists

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Lewis Cooper

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Lots of interesting work here.  I agree it's hard to provide a firm definition of what it is.   Old, unknown artists, with varying degrees of painting know-how might fit.  Good point about Lowry.  When I look at some folk art, his work seems to fit right in, yet we know he could definitely paint.   I particularly like folk art 'objects' rather than paintings.  Often made as shop signs in the old days...there are still a couple of these in Winchester High Street. Things like these... Old toys often fit the bill... Here's an oddly titled painting....'Returning from a bad market,  butter only one and ninepence.'   Dated around 1815, artist unknown.... There are modern artists labeled 'folk artists'.   One is a British artist...Anna Pugh...born in 1938, I can't find her own website.  At her age she probably  doesn't have one, and has been labeled 'folk artist' by galleries flogging her work.  Her work sells well, especially in America.   I'm not surprised, I think her work is a delight. Apparently 'folk art' has had a revival in many Eastern European companies.   Here's a couple I found a while ago... I'd call these 'fantasy art'.  If it matters. What I didn't like was a website crammed with 'folk' art, with no artist's name give, all apparently new.  Here's an example... I don't know, but I suspect it's AI stuff.
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Paul (Dixie) Dean

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Happy New Year to you all , I’m looking forward to seeing the work of many more artists this year , and your own work on the gallery. The more I look at this genre of art call Folk Art I get more confused, it seems if  don’t know where to put it call it Folk Art , so many described as folk art and so many different styles. I did a search and typed in Traditional British Folk Art , the results below. This one is held by the Tate and is in the Folk Art collection. This is what prompted the idea of a folk art thread , so weeks ago  I leave it to you  to recall the discussion at the time .

Genevieve Watson

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Folk art is such an inspiring theme! Have you explored traditional styles like Scandinavian rosemaling or Mexican alebrijes? Incorporating their patterns and vibrant colors could make for a wonderful project this week. Academized https://academized.com/dissertation-help for help. Their dissertation help service was exceptional. The writer was highly experienced in my field and provided me with a well-researched and meticulously written dissertation. The communication was seamless, and they met all my requirements. I’m so grateful for their expertise and would recommend this service to anyone in need.

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Tessa Gwynne

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Dixie- this was the whale guy we discussed yes? Can’t remember his name but it was his type of work I thought of when you first mentioned Folk Art.
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Paul (Dixie) Dean

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Yes Tessa , a retired Builder Steve Camps , some moans etc as he made £24, 000 in a few months selling his work to tourists .

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by Paul (Dixie) Dean

Jenny Harris

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Paul, yes, it was Steve Camp’s whale paintings that initially prompted this thread - his work has been described as both folk art and naive art - there often seems to be little distinction made between the two.  (I decided not to post one of his whale paintings here as didn’t want to wind Robert up again!)

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Tessa Gwynne

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Yes I remember. 🤣
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