Two pieces of music themed art. On the right, a gravel art piece of a musician strumming a guitar. I think calypso when I see it. Maybe it’s the capri pants, or the relaxed stance of the player (man? boy? girl? with capris and earrings and lithe daintiness, it’s unclear).
On the left, a stylized stringed instrument made of wood blocks on a green burlap background. The “strings” are gold twine. I got this at a flea market, and the story was that it was a craft project made by an inmate at San Quentin. While it may be a tall tale, I like it as a back story.
Oddly, in both pieces, the “guitar” has three strings.
Also in the picture is my very classy network cable routing, passing from my office, through the rehearsal room, and out to the garage where the servers live. Do hack computer installations count as kitsch yet?
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Allee Willis
I was going to ask you to submit the gravel art unisex musician separately so I could award it a Certifikitsch Of AuthenKitschity but as I read your description I realized that both pieces qualify. Upon first glance I thought the guitar made of wood chunks was a little conservative but after learning that it was a crafts project of an inmate at San Quentin, which I choose to believe, and the fact that you’ve managed to find two art pieces that depict guitars with only three strings I’m awarding a Certifikitsch to these as a collection.
I can tell you about the three stringed guitar thing being an artist who has painted or constructed out of found objects so many guitars. You start out thinking you have enough room for six strings but as you proceed with thick paint strokes or pieces of string and wire you inevitably come to the point where you must decide whether you’re going to change it to a bass with four strings or use the fact that you’re an artist to justify the fact that your interpretation of the instrument is that three strings work just fine.
As for the gravel art piece, this looks slightly more female than male though so much of the 1950s and 60s calypso art endowed males with totally elongated and fragile female looking limbs and appendages. But I think the earing would’ve only been on one ear in those days and maybe the bangs wouldn’t have been quite so happy if this were a male.
Cheetah Velour
Really gorgeous art!! Thanks for sharing this with us! One of my favorites.
I believe the San Quentin story! There is a gift shop at San Quentin, but I have never seen it open. I’ll bet there’s some interesting handmade art in there.