El Dorado. 2/7/2016

El Dorado.44x54"
Mixed media on canvas.

Despite more technology at our fingertips, more information at our disposal, more options for what to do with our future, and more ability to move from place to place than every before in the history of humanity, many find ourselves yearning daily for what is just beyond our reach. We seem to have every possible avenue for happiness, yet we continue to search for something beyond.

El Dorado takes inspiration from the age-old tale of the search for the lost golden city as a metaphor for our constant desire for what's next. Conquistadors came, conquered, and destroyed civilizations, yet, for centuries, they continued to arrive simply wanting more but often leaving in worse shape (or not at all). After obtaining virtually everything, they found only an insatiable desire for more.

El Dorado is not arguing that you should not seek to improve ones circumstance...it is not saying that you should be content where you are. It is arguing that if you are to move onto the next thing, that that new thing be worthwhile and not simply done out of restlessness.

Many continuously think "better" is just somewhere that they are not...and that's the crux of the issue. When change is simply an avenue to encounter something "better", that avenue must continue as those new places become familiar and, yet again, boring. If change is an avenue to improving the self, the change itself ceases to be the goal and a destination can be found.

Auction Blocks. 4/5/2015

Auction Blocks.
60x48″
Acrylic on canvas.
Auction prices for modern and contemporary art has skyrocketed in recent years while the majority of the general public watch in confusion, even horror, as the equivalent of a large business' annual budget is spent on a painted piece of canvas. We are awed more by the "value" than the work itself...but is that the fault of the work, the artist, the viewer, the dealer, the market or everyone involved?

Auction Blocks is about cultural and monetary value. When our world is largely run by an ability, or lack-there-of, to pay, is the value of art dependent on it’s dollar worth or it’s ability to inspire? And in a world so focused on profit and power, is there much of a difference?

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Check out more of Daniel's work at the links below or send him an email with questions or inquiries.
http://www.dflemingart.com/
http://danielflemingart.tumblr.com/archive

Wren Boys. 2/24/2016

Wren Boys.
40x30″
mixed media on canvas.

Wren Boys is inspired by the many traditions and practices of “Wren Day” and, more generally, the somewhat contradictory methods of remembrance we’ve come to treasure. 

Celebrated in a number of cultures around the world, Wren Day is largely meant as a symbol of rebirth and the coming renewal of spring. To symbolize the renewal, a group kills and present a wren as an offering, hoping to bring luck, life, and a good new year. 

Interestingly, the wren is seen as a positive symbol in most traditions and is considered an animal of nobility, cooperation, innovation, and progress. Somewhat ironically, celtic traditions even consider the bird as a reminder to be kind to others because of its caring nature. Despite this and the honor often bestowed upon the bird, its namesake day revolves around their ritual stoning and eventual killing.

In a more general and modern sense, we as humans ignore much of the life around us, only “honoring” that which has been driven from existence. A certain bird in your backyard may be a nuisance until it makes an appearance on the endangered list, then, instead of scarecrows you’re setting up bird feeders. Even an animal with cultural and symbolic attachments becomes a more important icon when dead in many instances. 

Do we, through our traditions and memorials, actually remember and honor those that have been lost or are we simply hoping the life that we value so much for ourselves doesn’t leave us as well?

Join the conversation over on Facebook and Instagram

Check out more of Daniel's work at the links below or send him an email with questions or inquiries.
http://www.dflemingart.com/

http://danielflemingart.tumblr.com/archive