Bailin Studio

The Archive

1977 – 2007

Drawing and Painting Series: 1985 – 2007

Drawings • 1999 – 2007

…Bailin's anonymous but expressive figures interact directly with the elements, often at some peril to themselves. For all their mystery and even ominous surreality there is an antic spirit to these drawings. In fact, in more than a few of his rough-hewn but detailed charcoals, Bailin sets up man (and woman) as the fall guy for nature's own slapstick brand of humors.

— Peter Frank, LA Weekly, 12/27/2002-1/2/2003

Testament Series • 1991-1999

Bailin's drawings … remain complex and not easily deciphered.…In the end, his works are contemporary: the new context he provides for these psychologically—charged fragments, juxtaposed one against the other, reflects one of the major problems of modern life—the anxieties that arise from the stream of highly-charged emotional situations that arise daily, the desire for the simple life, and the complexity of the questions that arise when one is finally alone.

— Ruth Pasquine • In Search of a Hero • 2004

Early Drawings • 1985 – 1997

Bailin’s paintings are informed and intelligent works of art. Works of art that question the viewer’s knowledge and perception. That question art itself. And, isn’t that exactly what I asked for? […] Bailin’s paintings are heady stuff, powerful and thought-provoking images.

— Cory Dugan • David William Bailin • Number: Spring 1988

Theater and Performance Art: 1977 – 1985

Proleptic Productions: 1979 – 1984

"Disparate Acts" is an attempt at a form of music theater in which all elements of performance – language, dance, music, gesture, lighting, sets, and space are part of an integrated event, with no element relegated to a secondary or decorative role. The production's structure of abrupt, isolated scenes has been chosen in part to dramatize those unexpected, fleeting moments of sudden realization which occur in daily life.

— John S. Patterson • The Villager • 1979

Performance Art: 1977 – 1979

I moved to New York in the summer of 1976 and I completed a number of large scale paintings dealing with memory, location and material. But I soon came to realize that narrative art in the conceptual 1970s was problematic. As a result I developed several performances that brought my painting ideas into a theatrical space and permitted me to explore in depth image and language. The following performance works were presented during that period at various locations around New York City.

— David Bailin, Theater Promotional Materials • 1978

Observation

Epiphany from the studio

All that comes before informs us

I have taught art appreciation since 1997

Masaccio • The Tribute Money Fresco • Brancacci Chapel, Santa Maria del Carmine, Florence, ca. 1424-‘27

During that time I talked about Masaccio’s The Tribute Money. Then, in the early 2000s, while analyzing the perspective and how the narrative unfolds through the composition, I discovered a Fibonacci Sequence. Now the narrative unfolding before me took on a surprising impact and depth. No wonder his breaking up the composition into three distinct cells worked so well.

I have always loved art history. When I was younger, my tutors always included an art history component to my studio lessons. My first books were pictorial surveys from prehistoric to contemporary art. I poured over my Time Life Library of Art flipping through the 28-book set constantly. I always learned something new.

When I taught art appreciation and history, I would talk about the art from an artist’s view. And sometimes, I would get an epiphany, and goosebumps would cover my arms as I pursued a visual ambush.

This is what I saw when I was reviewing the Tribute Money:

Tribute Money Fresco with Fibonacci Sequence overly

I knew that Masaccio was a pioneer in Renaissance painting and that he was aware of Brunelleschi’s early 15th century rediscovery of perspective, but that Masaccio would also be aware of mathematical developments at the same time, and apply them, was a revelation.

Along with enhancing the visual narrative with the sequence on the two-dimensional plane, in The Tribute Money the Sequence also is implied (loosely) when, imagined by the viewers, the figures were seen from above in three-dimensions!

Possible placement of figures from above

Rough placement of Tribute Money figures from above with Fibonacci Sequence overlay.

Knowing art history as an artist has been a central part of my artistic life. As I mentioned before on this blog, I may begin facing a blank piece of paper alone, but when I’m finishing, I’m having a party with all the artists that have informed my drawing.