Artists statement No 2.

I believe strongly in the importance of the artist’s intuition. My belief is that an artist working naturalistically has an infinite amount of resource from his or her everyday encounters with life. An artist’s intuition will tell him or her if things “look right.” The trick is one’s ability to listen or hear the voice of one’s intuition. In my studies of structurally based drawing, I have worked extensively with the cube. Using this regular and simple form I have sought to hone my intuition by drawing from memory, drawing and redrawing cubes in multiple positions, and using my peripheral vision as an aid to tapping my intuition.
This emphasis on intuition by drawing structurally creates a wellspring of awareness and understanding of the subject matter. Through a well-developed understanding of simple forms such as the cube, I find a more keen and potent relationship to my subject matter. I try to take this context and allow it to free me up creatively. I try to express this through the subtle use of color, such as juxtaposing cool and warm temperatures.
I attempt to use my structural drawing exercises to help build a strong illusion of depth and space. It is my desire and intent to charge this space with a mood or atmosphere. I have started with simple spaces in which I attempt, using color temperature relationships, to give a setting for a simple clay or wax figure.
I select my subject matter with the intent of creating a specific meaning that is somewhat obscured or not completely clear to the viewer. I try to draw the viewer into the subject matter with room for the viewer to create his or her own narrative.

Artist statement No.1

In the account of Creation after the Lord had created something Scripture says, “And God saw that it was good.” This is a profound example of creating. God created and the very existence of the created is good. This high standard of making, for its existence to be good, warrants an artist’s best efforts.

I believe that the most valuable art is made in response to the Creator. It is my personal desire to make art that mirrors or speaks of life. I see life and vitality in Creation that can even become a catalyst to worship. As a student in Florence, Italy, I had substantial exposure to the art of Michelangelo Buonarroti. In particular, his marble sculptures carried something of a concentrated allusion to life that was captivating to say the least. As an artist who is attentively aware of the distortion of sin and the persistence of death, I take pleasure to work at finding life in even the most common, trite, and dispensable things.

I believe that Creation can be well used and utilized as a pattern for beauty.
The fact that God saw Creation and said that it was good is a compelling event. Beautiful trees, mountains, and wild life are spectacular examples of what God saw when he spoke. One of the often forgotten members of Creation is air. I particularly find awe and intrigue especially in the space between and the volume of the Created. I try to reflect this by making my paintings and drawings show depth and presence. I try to boil things down and un-clutter my paintings to emphasis the air and space.
As an artist I want to glorify God with my talents; I want to encourage people to seek after God, and I want to communicate something of God’s beauty.

Bowling No.2

I don’t know what I can say about bowling. It is interesting how in a world of very consistent gravity, and me who is as solid as a rock, the pins sometimes explode in submission to me and other times I cower at their impenetrability.
And where is the bowl in bowling? I’ve heard of drinking associated with bowling, three teams compete, two play, one team drinks and they switch.
A man of more impressive stature than me taught me by example that a ball thrown hard makes a frightening crash against the pins. I thought that a hard throw was a friend of the gutter. This man taught me NO! So I, though solid, am to this man, puny like a raisin is to a grape. I threw and threw with no success. The prized, elusive crash of pins was no where to be found, except at the hand of my friend.
I have a sad story to tell, you may have heard it, you may have witnessed it. It is of one who was so obsessed, so bent on success in his sport that he took performance enhancing drugs, steroids even. Why is it that bowlers never get accused of taking steroids? “Frank I’m worried about the size of that beer belly, last season you were half your size. The drug testing committee might get suspicious.” Nope that just never happens.
You know when I type my name in word and I get a dreaded red underline because the computer doesn’t know it, I think, with budding tear, how can my computer not know who I am?
Bye for now love Braden Joshua MacIntosh Lorenzo Williams

Love lessons with Manny

I learned a lesson today. I saw my grandmother-in-law see my wife after an extended absence. Her unashamed, almost vulgar excitement at her beloved granddaughter, made me feel strange. “She only loves her grandchildren so much because of their relation to her not because of their character, or the kind of person they are,” I thought. My initial distaste over this motive for love dissolved with the realization that God loves people in this way. With an unashamed, almost vulgar love, God loves us because we are his creation.

Remembering

So I was talking with some people about what was on our minds. One was worried that all of his and our hard work/ progress/ momentum would unravel. Another was overwhelmed with friends- wanting them, wanting to be a good friend, concerned of the kind of friend that she was being. I was bogged down with sickness and wanting to live my life effectively, productively, and directionally. Yesterday I, being fed up with sickness, devoted four hours to seeking God, by prayer and bible reading. God came. He showed up. He gave us understanding about my sickness and how to treat it, minutes after I finished praying. God has done this before but I’d forgotten.
Now to the other struggles I shout, “Does God not say that he loves us? Does he not know even the hairs of our head? Does he not love us so much that he wants to live among us, as he wanted to live among the Israelites even when they constantly rebelled? He is the only god who wants to live among his people. Who is it that we love enough to want to live with, only our spouses or a few others who treat us well? God wants to be with us when we don’t treat him well. Now does a god like this say, “Tough luck”, to any struggle? Doesn’t he even tell us to have joy?
I can hear some say, “Well what about…” fill in some hard situation. To which I say, “I don’t know, but what I do know is that I believe in the god of the bible who seems to be as stated. And when I believe in him the way he says he is, he shows up that way. Remind me in my next struggle whom God is so I can let him live among even my smallest struggles. Test and see that the Lord is good.
that is all for now
love braden jm williams

Bowling No. 1

Here is some news... (it is a little old)
I went bowling recently, but I bowled a 54ish. Some people like the way the ball fits nicely in the gutter. Feeling I should be a better American by wanting to be the best, you know win, I made use of a certain lucky hair clip, by clipping it to the bottom of my shirt. I think my competitors were wearing counter-lucky hair clips. Ain’t no thing.
When I lived in New York I encountered a pious woman who could not conceive of a Christian using the word, you know, the “L” word. So we came up with the term berries as a substitute. I feel so berries to be writing to you today.

There is a cat sitting here by my feet, he wants to go outside and it is snowing, which I think that we should say no-ing because I know of a lot of people are getting tired of the snow and when they talk about it they can say, “It’s no no no-ing again.” And I can say, “ Psh! I’m knowing.” Okay that was kind of dumb.

I like the snow, all of those wet socks, wet pants, yellow-ishness. I don’t know what is worse snow on the road or SOLID ICE. We were stuck on the road, well half on the road. I call me a man of steel, sheer muscle, bulked out to the L. I. M. I. T. with extra chiseled mass hanging out in my back pocket. I pushed, literally pushed, “me push car sideways” back onto the skating rink called conservation ave. my arms are gynormous. I tried pushing it later on our snowy drive, I think that I forgot my mega muscle drink that day.

On a lighter note, us working folk get hit hard with rising gas prices, visiting relatives is harder to do, running from the police, it takes a lot of gas to go 80, 90 mph. Me, I’ve started peeing in the gas tank.
Sincerely Yours braden joshua macIntosh Williams

What am I being told?

So I'm excited that I'm over 18 because that means I can start chewing or smoking Marlboroughs when I am ready to become a real man. I'll wear tight wranglers, ride a horse… I can't wait to get the chiseled physique and ridged jaw line. I'm not sure I'll have any friends but, psh! That Marlborough man doesn't need friends. Yep, when I am readyto be a real man I'll be able to do it all on my own.
It sure is easy living in this day and age because if I do want friends, I'll pick up a Bud. Every one seems to be happy with beer-friends. I might have to ask the women who come over to put some clothes on though, Michigan is cold and they don't seem to own more than bathing suits. I guess bathing suits do come in handy for all that mud wrestling and hot tubing, I wonder when my pit and tub will bedelivered.
I'm sure an advertisement theory prof. would tell you that the shirts and skirts that claim to instantly slim you is just a gimmick, a product of our instant everything culture, playing off of fears of obesity and the over emphasis on pencil thin models and actresses. All you'll hear me saying is: "Let me try that on! How does my buttlook?"
That is the news for now
love braden joshua macIntosh williams