Appreciation for everyday life as a digital art form blogging in WordPress

*Obnoxious Liberals*, Jean-Michel Basquiat 1982

Art Appreciation Day

It’s the weekend after Thanksgiving and I am still feeling grateful. Therefore I am making today my Saturday art appreciation day. Some of these cut-outs and cut-ups are from original photographs that I took Wednesday afternoon at The Broad. Other images were ripped right off of the Internet. These cut-outs are inspired by the cut-out of Charlie Manson at The Broad. I took one look at the cut-out of Charlie and I said to myself, “I can do that.” And so I did.

December 1, 2021: Charles Manson at The Broad, 221. S. Grand Ave., Los Angeles, CA

appreciation elvis mao manson basquait — *Mao Rising #1*, Dean McAdams 2021

art appreciation day december 4, 2021 — *Mao Rising #2*, Dean McAdams 2021

Cut and Paste

The running thread in the movie Val, is Val Kilmer sitting on the floor with his scissors and glue pots. Throughout this intimate movie experience we see snippets of Val at home working on his vast collection of scrap books, collages, and the tons of paper that they encompass. Rooms filed with potential mixed media. Vault’s chocked full of Val’s video tapes. Imagine what Val could do if he digitized his entire collection photographs, newspaper and magazine articles, posters, etc.

When I was a kid I used to do the same thing that Mr. Kilmer is doing. Until very recently I was still creating small collages. Now here I am learning how to do all of that with the simple paint program that comes with Windows. In a way I am doing what kids are doing with images on Snap Chat and Tik Tok. Everybody is creating funny images to amuse themselves with. Here I am shredding Basquiat:

Shredded Basquiat

Basquiat and Banksy created public art as a statement against the commercialization of art. Now the works of both artists sell for $40 million a pop. Pop art explosion. Non-Fungible Tokens NFT. Crypto psycho digital free for all.

Zen Appreciation Day

I am feeling better than I have ever felt before in my life and it is mostly due to the practice of mindfulness. These days I try and observe myself as if from a distance. I have learned to practice self-awareness. All my life I have been studying Zen but never really practicing the art of being calm until now.

Basquiat appreciation — *Bisquick,* Dean McAdams 2021

Not For Sale

Now that my post-Covid world is opening up and I am socializing a little bit, I appreciate my yoga and meditation practice more. For the past two or three nights I have not streamed any of my shows. I just sit with my headphones on meditation vibrations and am in total bliss. Then after I get my second wind, I create these cut outs in the evening: