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American Art Collector
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WHAT'S ON LA: Pick of the Week
ADILETTANTE Feature
January 13, 2023 | By Joseph A. Hazan
In what can only be pronounced as quintessentially fine, Mr. Christopher Murphy introduces us a novel form of refinement in his capture of human life as an after effect of COVID-19 with his Tangleopening at Billis Williams Los Angeles. The plethora of multiplicity in human subject matter is its own commentary on the health of social interaction, if not cooperation. Yet the technique of the artisan is of such high caliber, we must laud the work for that very essence as sufficient to merit its exquisiteness.
And this exquisiteness is found most prominently in the textured detail of each composition. The apparel is of the most original texture in each of the artworks. After all, what is so vital, upon consideration, in being socially interactive is the need to move ourselves beyond our body’s electrical signaling, which can impose acts upon the mind which disjoin it from its continuous action in the polite and hopefully fun conduct with others. The playfulness with the meticulousness of brush strokes enlightens us towards knowing fuller: what is fine art?
Fine artistry must contain such elements of preciousness. Of delicacy. And of action on the palette which is difficult to fathom from virtual or digital representation. It must be experienced. It invites a necessary idea of beauty as something which is naturally resonant.
Never mind the tasteful choice of colors to complement each gradient of tones, Mr. Murphy is not looking to indulge us with hues which are bombastic. His are just as consummately thought-out as his precision with his masterstrokes; strokes which are original within not simply every canvas, but in the textile, landscape, and ultimately entire color wheel he elects within each object of study.
And here his objects of study may be open to interpretation as healthy or not. I think it curious to view the works as not obligating us to be more social; to invite other lives into ours. To, not simply join forces, but make peace. And what is peace but the necessity of harmony? Even if it has an element of militancy, such as suggested in Tangle?
Peace needs discipline? It is not care-free? Carelessness needs security, however. It needs prudential guidance away from hazards which can harm the soul’s experience of the body. It needs someone who is capable of being idiosyncratically daring, such as I Thought We Settled on Florals, yet can handle the embarrassment, the anxiety of being distinct from others, to promote greater certainty of human happiness. And this needs discipline.
This is the difficulty in being social. In needing to be more than quarantined, yet also more than a herd animal. Such nervous system impulses which cause conformity can be hazardous to the successful extension of peace, and ultimately, freedom. Freedom from? From body enslavement by others.
Let us celebrate, therefore, the freedom Mr. Murphy has in promoting good sense, in giving us the wisdom of being social while needing to retain one’s independence of mind.
And this exquisiteness is found most prominently in the textured detail of each composition. The apparel is of the most original texture in each of the artworks. After all, what is so vital, upon consideration, in being socially interactive is the need to move ourselves beyond our body’s electrical signaling, which can impose acts upon the mind which disjoin it from its continuous action in the polite and hopefully fun conduct with others. The playfulness with the meticulousness of brush strokes enlightens us towards knowing fuller: what is fine art?
Fine artistry must contain such elements of preciousness. Of delicacy. And of action on the palette which is difficult to fathom from virtual or digital representation. It must be experienced. It invites a necessary idea of beauty as something which is naturally resonant.
Never mind the tasteful choice of colors to complement each gradient of tones, Mr. Murphy is not looking to indulge us with hues which are bombastic. His are just as consummately thought-out as his precision with his masterstrokes; strokes which are original within not simply every canvas, but in the textile, landscape, and ultimately entire color wheel he elects within each object of study.
And here his objects of study may be open to interpretation as healthy or not. I think it curious to view the works as not obligating us to be more social; to invite other lives into ours. To, not simply join forces, but make peace. And what is peace but the necessity of harmony? Even if it has an element of militancy, such as suggested in Tangle?
Peace needs discipline? It is not care-free? Carelessness needs security, however. It needs prudential guidance away from hazards which can harm the soul’s experience of the body. It needs someone who is capable of being idiosyncratically daring, such as I Thought We Settled on Florals, yet can handle the embarrassment, the anxiety of being distinct from others, to promote greater certainty of human happiness. And this needs discipline.
This is the difficulty in being social. In needing to be more than quarantined, yet also more than a herd animal. Such nervous system impulses which cause conformity can be hazardous to the successful extension of peace, and ultimately, freedom. Freedom from? From body enslavement by others.
Let us celebrate, therefore, the freedom Mr. Murphy has in promoting good sense, in giving us the wisdom of being social while needing to retain one’s independence of mind.