Monday Guest Lectures –
Craig Burnett – Craig talks about his book on Philip Guston and his work ‘The Studio’ in 1969. The thing that really struck me about this talk was Craig’s in-depth analysis of the artwork. He hadn’t just analysed it on a surface level but he likened it to other artworks that may or may not have influenced Guston. He even superimposed other images on top of Guston’s work and even more interestingly he removed elements from Guston’s work to see how that impacted the piece. He removed the smoke from the painting and commented on how its removal rendered the painting ‘boring’. He showed how the work of other artists and poets and writers may very well have influenced Guston particularly the work of Barnett Newman. He also gave a quote from Newman regarding abstract art:
‘The whole attitude of abstract painting, for example, has been such that it has reduced painting to an ornamental art whereby the surface picture is broken up in geometrical fashion into a new kind of design-image. It is a decorative art built on a slogan of purism where the attempt is made for an unworldly statement.’ Barnett Newman 1943 -45
More about Craig’s book can be found here: Craig Burnett on Philip Guston’s The Studio: Lecture and Book Launch.
A selection of Craig’s books can be found here: Author: Craig Burnett | Apollo Magazine
More specific information can be found about Craig’s Philip Guston writing can be found here: The literary lineage of Philip Guston | Apollo Magazine.
A Selection of Slides
Below are a selection of slides by Craig Burnett from his talk. These slides include the quote from Barnett Newman and also superimposed images showing how Craig analysed the ‘The Studio’ artwork by Philip Guston.
