Alan Gordon Illustrations-Artist Statement

I am addicted to Art (Illustration in particular) to the point of obsession. I buy , look, listen, feel, and I am influenced by it. I am thinking about it when I go to sleep, and when I wake. If I were to attempt to describe this feeling, it's if I am stalking the perfect art form. Not so much a David Berkowitz; there are (as of now) no talking dogs, yet something inexplicable is pushing me forth- egging me on to find some sort of answer in the work that I produce.

I have two forms of work. The first form is my Painted and Illustrated imagery. This work often entails a more intensive preliminary design stage, and has often covered a wider range of subject matter in presentation. The second form is my sketchbook. My sketchbook generally is focused on my work within the field of Social Services (Mental Health & Developmentally Disabled), as well as a variety of cultural subjects. My sketchbook is never a planned image, but rather a spontaneous free-flowing birth spewing forth from a twisted relationship of culture, politics, and emotion.

To categorize myself would be cancerous. I love Illustration, but detest the business-bastardization of the work. I love the modern world of Art, but often find it senseless and devoid of communication. I am drawn to the Art world as a whole, and pushed away by the lack of self-esteem it portrays, or by the bloated self worth. I am not an "outsider artist", not a black clad antichrist, artisan, shock artist, visionary, Painter, or Illustrator...just an artist journaling and filtering my existence through the everyday chaos around me.

In the age of incredible technology, digital masterworks, and $2.00 technical machines that can sketch your likeness or caricature in malls and movie theaters...I ask myself- what am I doing? Many artists have the skills to match machines, but what's the point? The point for me is this: It's my point of view and interpretation that makes it ART. My unique view that presents humanity through me. It's not about skill, it's about the thought, the moments of time, and the experience captured by a human being. It's about being connected to the world, and attempting to make some sense of it through the visual arts.

I approach each subject as an individual path to a work of art. Each subject carries it's own emotions, concepts, and definitions. I react to those elements, and that in turn effects my style. I am not an art purist, but it is something that I feel to be a lost fundamental in art. Any approach to creation that becomes a good for everything formula, lessens the impact of my emotional subject. Subject choices mean something to me, some more than others. My artwork begs to question what is Illustration and what is Fine Art? If Fine Art is about depth and concept, then that is what I am. If Illustration is about the narrative, then that is what I am. I am both, and at the same time- neither. I look for inspiration in every area. I try to avoid limitations of approach, technique, style, and concept. I am inspired by the human condition, what drives those who have hope, but little else. My purpose is to convey the human experience, and in particular- I am inspired by challenges through adversity. All of my images are a mix of planned conceptual development, and spontaneous decisions. I always try to approach a viewer with a balance of the visual and emotional components. To me this is beauty.

There is further information on my artwork on the "what is sketchbook?" page.