Senior Art Exhibit 2007: Dougie Mann

Dougie Mann

Hello, thank you for looking at my paintings, and thank you for even getting interested enough to read the little caption.  My paintings may catch your eye because you think they are funny, it may be because they are bright.  Whatever the reason I would like you to look at them further, without forgetting these initial reactions.

During the creation of these paintings a lot of things were going through my mind.  I am drawn to painting gritty people.  It is because people who are hard on their selves create a feeling and aura about them that I can relate to the building up of paint.  An underlying feeling and build up of hard times and harsh realities in life as opposed to layers of mistakes, reconsiderations and ideas in painting.

So even though these paintings take on the look of something comical; as you continue to look you will see someone you know, or have seen who resembles the grimy feeling connected with these works, and the lack of rationality with which they choose to live their life.

They are basically nude, however some have clothes covering, or seemingly covering their hard traveled bodies; bodies that exercise has forgotten, and good diet has never been introduced, where abuse has been running at large since they first discovered its' release.

They are intended to be bright and funny, because in the end we cannot take ourselves too seriously. Seriousness is what has happened to these people and they are now objects to laugh at.  They have either allowed reality to throw them off course or never analyzed reality enough to bend it in order to make it accommodate their needs.

The time and thought put into the paintings is another satirical remark on people who spend their lives trying to break themselves apart; while I have given a part of my life to build them up and put a large image of someone who sees themselves as having no impact on society onto a gallery wall in front of many distinguishable people.  Thus pushing the reality that they are always in the back of our minds, and always influencing our thoughts and actions.

For most of us our history is masked in our day-to-day lives, while these kinds of people have chosen to wear their history pinned to their forehead.

Thank you,
Dougie Mann

Father's Office. 2007

He has just come home from a long day of work.  He works 9-5.  He does not even bother to take off his suit before he simply loosens his tie and has some drinks to relax.  Tonight is going to be fun; it is Friday.  He and a couple of guys from the office are meeting at Chili's (Or maybe Applebee's, or was it Trophy's) for some Mexican food, but mostly for the margaritas.  Tomorrow he will have off; maybe he will go to Pottery Barn with his wife and do some 'interior decorating' then stop off at his friend's pool party.  They just bulldozed all the grass and trees from the backyard and put cement down with a pool, man is it sweet (he also has a big screen).  After having a couple of beers there, maybe they can drive the hour and a half to the beach, there is a bar right along the water there, it will probably be crowded, but he does not care, he likes to party.

Roommate. 2007

This is a piece that is a result of experiments with ideas, which ultimately worked.  It was used to loosen up before the larger pictures, but it follows the same ideas.

Model Man. 2007

This little guy is an experiment with the same ideas incorporated with the figure that I used in the paintings, he is simply made into a three dimensional form.  I wanted to create gesture without fully constructing his limbs.

Beach Easy. 2007

The beach is a strange phenomenon for this human being. So many people around means it is safe.  The lifeguard is on duty; everything is a-ok.  If his daughter and son go out too far they will bring them back in.  He works in an office, he is much more important and successful.  He can just sit back and poor beers into his plastic cup inside the cooler and sip on his no-taste Bud Light without the lifeguards getting mad.  Then again, there is that sweet beach themed bar along the boardwalk if he feels like people watching, and getting an authentic beach experience.  "Man, there sure are a lot of weird people at the beach."

Gayson. 2007

This teammate of mine from my water polo team, that is his nickname, he chose it himself.  He is Jason.  We hung out on Thursday from about 10-2, before his dance class. So, I painted him.

No Name. 2007

A small head of a guy that I continually worked on as I created the larger pieces, it turned out well enough that I included it.  He is from my imagination.