Reality TV

Whew! After about a month and a half of being completely swamped, I'm back. I was coaching high school track for a while, which definitely put me behind. Since that responsibility ended in mid-June, I have jumped nose-first into paints and canvas and haven't come up for air since. Now, I have just one more Magic card to get done by the middle of July and I can take a vacation for a couple days. I probably should be concerned that I have nothing else lined up in terms of work, but right now I'm so tired I don't care.

I was watching tv on Wednesday night and decided to watch Work of Art, Bravo's new show. A handful of contestants, artists all, compete to see who is the "best" artist. This week, the artists were assigned a classic novel to illustrate. They were given a day to complete the art. The winner got published by Penguin books.

I almost fell out of my chair. I wanted to jump right into the TV and show these chumps what-for. Most of the episode was difficult to watch, considering many contestants were butchering an easy assignment. However, I was happy to see that they showed the artists working, including sketches, reference photography and buying supplies. If anyone watches this show, they will at least learn that images don't simply emerge from the ether, but in fact must be crafted by a specific process.

The results were mixed; reminiscent of college critiques. Some artists knew they blew it. Some tried their best to B.S. their way out a complete train wreck. And some actually created something interesting. The winner was an illustration of The Time Machine. It had a retro pop feel to it that reminded me of some of the old 1960 - 1970 Society of Illustrators annuals I have in my possession. It was whimsical and I liked it.

Not sure if I'll watch it this week.

Oh, who am I kidding. Of course I will.