Pollock and fractals

["John Klassen" <jaklassen2001@zzzzzzzzzzzz>]

Hi Norman,

What a great topic.  When I was younger I worked with a glassblower making
the metal stands for the handblown glass and learning to handle the molten
glass.  It was a challenge to rein in my own creativity(keep my mouth shut)
and learn to make the work with his certain details.  What some people would
think of as nothing actually meant a lot to him.   It took a lot of effort
to be
able to work the glass with the same hand as another artist.  First you have
to learn why the person works in this way and then how.  Not easy when the
person is talking to you and probably impossible when the person has passed
away.  He had a signature way of splashing molten wax on metal and then acid
etching it for different items.  Very tricky and we could always tell which
one of us did each piece.  Just splashes of wax you say?

The term Fractal seems kind of strange(for me) when referring to an artists
hand techniques and methods of work.  Maybe I'm not understanding the
inference. The term Integral would probably be better suited in my humble
opinion.  What would Jackson Pollock say if he viewed a copy or forgery of
his work?  I'm sure he would spot a hundred differences in no time.  Don't
these minute details make the work a piece of art?

Getting back to stone.  There has been discussion about sending models away
and having other people do the carving.  As well as having famous artists
train assistants to do the work.  It is an interesting question when the
artist is not actually making the work and not even present during
production.  What happens when the artigianni has tackled a particular
problem in a way that the artist himself wouldn't have? Do you start the
piece over?  Somehow, I doubt it.  Just sign it and sell it?

Cheers

John