Conceptual Painting, Ideas and Art Making in 2D & 3D

Augustine Boyce Cummings

Augustine Boyce Cummings

Class Description

Every painting starts as an idea. It is when the idea behind a painting is as important or more important than the piece itself, that we enter the realm of conceptual painting. Conceptual painting asks the viewer to consider the meaning behind the ideas; to question what is and what is not. The artist Joseph Kosuth once presented a painting of a chair and a written description of the chair alongside the actual, physical chair itself. Is this a triptych? Are they all valid as works of art?

In our studio we will focus on the concepts behind your art making. Ideas come from everywhere, some are purely aesthetic, some are process-oriented, some are socio-political. Wherever your ideas come from, we must consider the concepts behind them. How is “concept” integral to the making and understanding of the piece?

With a focus on artistic intent, we will work together to bring forward your most thought-provoking work.

About the Instructor

Originally from Denver, Colorado, Augustine Boyce Cummings is an artist living and working in New York City. He is a recipient of The Rome Prize and has been a Fellow of the American Academy in Rome since 2006. Cummings has exhibited nationally and abroad, including at the New American Talent 19 at ArtHouse Texas / The Jones Center. Mr. Cummings’ undergraduate studies were at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, where he was a Merit Scholar. He earned an M.F.A. from the School of Visual Arts in New York City.

Cummings has received grants from ARTISTSPACE in NYC and the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council and was the recipient of the Stacey S. Sussman Traveling Fellowship from the School of Visual Arts. His work is in several prominent collections, including the collection of Agnes Gund, president emeritus of MOMA, among many others. In the fall of 2017 he took residence as a Fellow of the Civitella Ranieri Foundation in Umbertide province of Perugia, Italy.

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