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| kennethagnello
kennethagnello
♂️
[29988685]
[2014-02-01 04:10:16 +0000 UTC]
(United States)
# Statistics
Favourites: 40; Deviations: 227; Watchers: 28
Watching: 13; Pageviews: 4660; Comments Made: 106; Friends: 13
# Interests
Favorite visual artist: Max Beckmann, Egon Schiel, Oskar Kokoschka, Edvard Munch, Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, Francis Bacon, Otto Dix, Luwig Meidner, Rick Prol, Michael HafftkaFavorite movies: GodFather I and II, Back to School, Few Good Men, Gladiator
Favorite TV shows: Honeymooners, All in the Family, Odd Couple
Favorite bands / musical artists: Bob Dylan, Rolling Stones, John Lennon, George Harrison, Byrds, Neil Young, Van Morrison, Jackson Browne
# About me
***ALL ART IS AVAILABLE THROUGH BIDS. ALL OFFERS ARE CONSIDERED, SO PLEASE SUBMIT OFFERS TO PURCHASE ALL ORIGINAL ART--PAINTINGS AND DRAWINGS. NOT SET PRICES ARE INTACT...PLEASE MAKE OFFERS***I first woke up to art in late high school, aroused but unsure as to why it should lead somewhere. Driven by a need to express myself, I discovered the power of visual expression as a legitimate sister to the music that from an early age had captivated my particular interests. It is the music first that ignited my thought-process; at a young age a young mind was receptive to the sound of the generation. The message of the visual artists came later. The fact remains that the communication in my art could not have taken its shape had it not been for the ever-influences of the music of the times. The meaning of Dylan, Jackson Browne, Neil Young, John Lennon, Van Morrison, George Harrison, the Byrds, the Rolling Stones, the Beatles, the Doors—indeed, the list is endless—stimulated my thought process like no other. Through their story I learned the power of sensitivity, that singular self-containment of the outspoken mind, that which comments on life’s relationships, politics, emptiness, disappointments, and frustrations, but also that which can speak of great heights, accomplishments and resolutions. These musical philosophers resonate through the essence of my personal points of view, where mood and theme are unleashed through a visual rapture of distortion, criticism, and drama.
**********
Too much decorative art wanders out there…too many craftsmen with a certain skill wield a technical flare, but have little to say. What happened to 20th-Century commentary, that voice which so characterized the music of the 1960′s, that story-teller who now seems lost in hibernation for fear of being criticized, or, worse, lynched for speaking out about those issues, thoughts, and demeanor that are perceived unpopular, or better left “unsaid?” The emotional roller coaster that transports us from day to day needs once again to be pushed in motion, either by words or through thought-provoking art. Let the decorative artist of innocuous, immaterial life satisfy calendar tops. We need the spirit of real life, of real controversy. Get the painting off the wall that hangs because it matches the color decor. Replace it with a piece that moves, even shatters the peaceful mood, if necessary, so that the observer awakens. Let him go back to sleep when flipping through the latest calendar.
**********
Take a deep breath, I thought. You can say it; you can do it, and avoid following bandwagons. They are not what you are after. The cutting edge, to speak about people, about relationships, and to comment on all we witness—fears, shame, joys, and suspicions—this is your motive. Follow social and emotional commentary, but not too directly. Avoid the pitfall of too political a stance. Generalize messages, make their meaning universal, and modify personal specifics, so that the overview triggers a wealth of possibilities and varied interpretations. Leave the photojournalist to capture the historical moment. Save one-dimensional appeal for magazine cover girls, fashion models, and moneymakers. Transcend the times as you live them. And do not fear your audience is too small. Your goal is not to humor the passive tastes of the casual masses. Remember, too, that where the art world is cold, rejection is guaranteed, but just for the moment.
So the evolutionary cell in my thought process was planted at an early age: rooted in deep ties to the classic rock music stars of the age and then carrying on to the modern artists who focused on art for “people’s” sake. A seriousness of presence is the energy—a credo hungry for the narrative, the thematic, and the real within the real. Executed through paintings (oil on canvas) and charcoal-pastel-pencil drawings, the mediums of choice, sometimes the real is twisted, turned inside out or upside down, but is never dismissed, and I have never created a fully non-objective abstract work.
Colors may vary in intensity and application, ranging in value or schemes. Broad passages of open color, applied much like a primer, are the first backdrop, the foundation on which images emerge, off which a scene unfolds. Paint is often applied thickly, slashed-about with thick brush or knife, or manipulated with fingers. Then, too, thinned paint is applied through more fluid arrangements, or is allowed to drip spontaneously, creating rainbow or rain-washed effects. As colors move, merge and overlap, the finished product is often one of chance, but controlled by the artist’s wielding hand. Drawings, too, assume a similar development, as pencil and pastel smears, washes, and line-incisions are applied with layers and overlays, modeled on a paper surface.
Be true to your experiences, true to yourself, and don’t flinch. Paint it like you meant it.
# Comments
Comments: 50
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Hi again Kenneth!! Hope you are fine, buddy!!!
Wish you a happy birthday!!
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HI Ken! Yes we are well for now, fortunately..
Still, Belgium is in a almost complete lockdown; as I work in a hospital I still have to work..
How is it in your region?
Stay safe and healthy!
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yes, it's surrealistic
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Hi. Yes, still around. What’s new with you? I’ve been involved in minor art shows recently...Orange County, NY. Still no sales and no real progress...the large work is quite a labor effort to transport. Still alone, but functioning. What’s the good word with you?
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wish I could say there was a good word, but I am too tired to bullshit you..life sucks
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How far are you from Port Jervis, ny. You should show you work. Life sucks but I keep trying to find a Way to discover something wet!
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NY...probably more than 6 hours, and no car...I have one but it is on its last legs,and no money to get a new one, that's for sure...put $1850 into it and then found out the head gaskets are shot
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That sucks. I sympathize with your problem. I hope things get better for you. I’m doing my best to hang in there but I don’t have the financial problem that you’re having. We share the same sense of loneliness, however.
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oh yeah, that is always hanging there, like a cancerous cloud...
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Congrats with your birthday in the coming weekend, Ken!!!!
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BOB DYLAN
THE BEATLES
LED ZEPPELIN
THE ROLLING STONES
PINK FLOYD
THE BYRDS
THE BEACH BOYS
NEIL YOUNG
JETHRO TULL
BOSTON
BLACK SABBATH
DONOVAN
...to name a few
amen!
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I was really taken in by your essay critique of the state of art. It spoke to me and I certainly feel a calling like you to make art that has a message...it’s a task that preoccupies me constantly and I’m proud to be taking my first baby steps in that task...
Your art certainly speaks to me, and I’ll have to take time to visit your gallery here. I wish I could see your pieces in person to experience them properly but this will have to do.
Thank you for the inspiration. Best regards!
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Have a great birthday, Kenneth!!
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I'm truly honoured by the watch, Kenneth!!
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Truly remarkable! You are writing a beautiful fascinating way as if you knew me for a long time, my secretly trials and tribulations. All my life is in my paintings, my body, soul, blood, nervous system. The whole truth about me. I'm paralyzed - you're a painter, and mystic like Beckmann, you've got expressionist passion and
intuition in your mind and blood. Wonderful.
Your every word, every picture tells me about that...And extraordinary sensitivity, empathy, imagination, disturbing and wildness
I'm really moved and happy that we meet each other that you found me...
All the best, Katka
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Katka,
The pleasure is mine. I am refreshed when I see work from someone like you, which addresses the core of real feeling and is not comfortable with decorative niceties. Your articulate pathos is not found too often. I exhale a breath of relief when I view your portfolio--meaningful subject matter, found in people who bleed real blood, cry real tears, and suffer undiagnosed or unknown fears, gives live to an art that may wake up an otherwise bored, stagnant public. True expression is not dead after all!
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I'm really pleased and honoured by these faves and your comment about them, Ken!! Thank you!!!
I wish you an inspiring and great year-end!!!
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Your work is something extra in my eyes. You have earned a place on my watch-list.
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Thanks for the attention and good words.
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HI Kenneth!! Hope you are having a good year-end...
Every time I see your work I'm so impressed by the colouring and forms and the intense emotional character!!
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I think I have reached a point in my life where work can only modestly "evolve." Mostly, in recent years, I have revised and revived old abandoned paintings and drawings, bringing them up to current "standards," achieved from 35+ years or personal artistic evolution. I have written a book over the past few years--called AGNELLO BY AGNELLO: STRIKING THE HEART OF AN ARTIST'S CONFESSIONS. It is a near-300 page narrative with some 275 images, and it appears in Barnes and Noble NOOK and Amazon KINDLE. At this point, the uploading of the file is weak--spacing distortions and alterations have upset the presentation, rendering the text confused, scarcely readable. I have to work out a converted manuscript re-upload.
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Interesting to hear!
So many years of experience!!! Wow!!!
Would you like to let me know me when your book is ready, please?
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Really appreciate your kind and supporting words fro this work, buddy!
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Thanks for the good words!
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Wish you a birthday to enjoy tomorrow!!
Still love your work, mate!
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Thanks for the fave Ken, your not posting much work anymore are you still painting?? or just not posting on here
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Hey...what's happening. Yes, I am still working, but haven't had much new work to post. I never was all that prolific. The vast volume I have uploaded was created over a 35 year period. While I usually complete paintings and drawings rather quickly, I don't produce a great deal each year...I sit back and re-analyze, and then finally varnish paintings and take photos....time just goes by too quickly and sometimes you sit back and wonder "what have I done with all this time?"
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
I would be glad to have 35 years worth of work to look back on, my only regret is i started painting to late in my life and dont have to much stamina to continue to paint, from what i have seen of your work you have a fantastic body of work and i enjoy looking at your gallery.
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Thirty-five plus years of work means 35+ years of age--and 35+ years of inventory that I can't unload. I'd like to buy back the years and start again...oh, to be 20 or 25 again!
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I suppose you won't be surprised when I say I really like you work. The clearly expressionistic signature (which reminds me a bit of the Flemish expressionists of the years 1920-40 which I love very much) is very touching.. Glad to know you!!!
And I want to thank you once again for your interesting comment on my work 'To the winter wedding party'
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I thank you, too, for your good words. Keep up the good work. In this age of computer-generated visual art, we need to remember the great painterly tradition. Expressionist? Whatever we call it, it's refreshing to see evidence of real hands moving around paint, pencil, pastel.
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You are really welcome!!
And yes we bring honour to a great tradition!!!!
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I like your gallery and what you wrote in your profile page. Truthful thoughts. Contemporary art has direction to the Form, not the Substance. And surely it's not only about painting, it's about music, cinema and literature as well. From photorealism we can feel the breathe of carrion, spiritual stagnation... of course, it's not about all photorealistic art, but still...
I'm going to investigate your gallery in details, there's a lot to learn from you.
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Thanks for the good words and the attention you paid to my work and throught process. I might add, too, that I have viewed your gallery and am most impressed. I, too, will be studying your work more carefully--to absorb one's art requires careful time. I will make comments relative to your gallery as well. Please stay in touch.
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you are most welcome! thank you too!
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You have an amazing gallery and i await more artworks, ive added you to my watch, pleasure meeting you
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I love the artists you love, especially Kokoschka and the German Expressionists such as Kirschner.
You should look at the work of Erich Heckel - his works like The Barber Shop - he was a German Expressionist in Die Brucke with Kirchner etc. His work is similar to yours with strong outlines and his early works had intense colours (although he used muted palette after the First World War)
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Thanks....I am going to write a critique on your work---looks good too!
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