Ray Beldner is the media artist and the sculptor who in a short period of time has become internationally recognized. His works may be found in many public and private collections. Ray Beldner is the type of the artist whose works can hardly be referred to the definite art style. As the artist says “Like many artists, I make art from the stuff of everyday life: clothing, cash, stolen items” (“Ray Beldner”).
His works of art are the incredible mixtures of the sculptures, the digital medias, the leaded panes. Looking at the artists work, there is a feeling that any ordinary thing can be transformed into the masterpiece of art by the touch of the master. The Beldners artistic vision is “frequently derived from conceptual ideas that deconstruct hierarchical systems “high art” versus “low art”, “intrinsic value” versus “commercial value”, and so on with the ironic humor”( Ray Beldner par.2).
The attitude of the artist towards the contemporary art may be expressed by his picture This is Definitely not a Pipe.
This reproduction is the allusion of the painting by Rene Magritte This is not a Pipe, which is the typical example of the representative art. The Magrittes work is based on the contradiction between the life and the reality. The subject of the painting is a pipe, but written in French on the painting are the words “This is not a pipe” (Frank 9). By describing his pipe, which is made completely from money, Beldner shows that the modern artists are so popular and their incomes are so high that they are “completely made from money, as well as this pipe is”(Frank 9).
At the same time Beldner assets that every artist is not completely free in the vision of the reality, rather they rearrange the reality in accordance to their personal vision.
There is practically no such a sphere, in which the artist is unable to create. The range of his artistic interests is very wide. Here we may see the collages, made with the traditional old-fashioned methods, and the portraits, the abstract effect of which is achieved by means of Photoshop. The special attention in the wide row of his artistic works is given to the theme of money. Apart from Beldners Pipe this theme is also presented by The Money Ball and The Big O.
Speaking about the Beldner as an artist it is impossible not to mention his sculptures. The typical example of it is his work With My Language in My Game. It has been presented on the exhibition in the National Portrait Gallery.
This plastic work was inspired by the artistic work With My Tongue in My Check by Duchamp. Ray Beldner has borrowed some elements of this picture, creating at the same time his own visage. The work is partially drawn in pencil and partially in plaster. The theme of money is also revealed in this picture. The plaster part of the cheek is “flocked with ground money dust, with the result that the work, as Beldner jokes, looks like a moldy version of the original”( “In the Gallery: Artist Ray Beldner”). The artists attitude towards money may seem strange in a certain manner. Sometimes the banknotes are the main building materials for his works. By neglecting the financial value of money, Beldner gives his works another perception.
In a way of conclusion it is possible to say that Beldners artistic work is rather difficult for understanding. In his works, he reveals his attitude towards the main events and the problems of the society.
Works CIted
Frank, Patric. Prebles’ Artforms. London: Pearson, 2013. Print.
“In the Gallery: Artist Ray Beldner”. National Portrait Gallery. 2009. Web.
“Ray Beldner”. Raybeldner.com. n.d. Web.
Ray Beldner. Bio/statement. Charlie James Gallery. n.d. Web.