“Outsider art, synonymous until the 1980s with art brut, any work of art produced by an untrained idiosyncratic artist who is typically unconnected to the conventional art world—not by choice but by circumstance. The “classic” figures of outsider art were socially or culturally marginal figures. They were usually undereducated; they almost invariably embraced unconventional views of the world, sometimes alien to the prevailing dominant culture; and many had been diagnosed as mentally ill. These people nevertheless produced—out of adversity and with no eye on fame or fortune—substantial high-quality artistic oeuvres.” ~www.britannica.com~
I have spent most of the day reading about and poring over the life and work of Adolf Wölfli (1864-1930)- an artist who just came to my attention this morning. Initially it was the musical notation embedded in the artwork that grabbed me- the particular image that I first saw was so intricate that I thought it must be a fresco on the ceiling of a huge building. No, he would not have had access to a ceiling as it turns out- just paper and colored pencils. He was so prolific that by the time of his death the volumes filled with his autobiographical writings and artwork stacked one atop the other stood almost 6 feet high.
My friend who had posted the original drawing that had so enthralled me did not know the location of the particular piece of art and thus began my journey. I was soon in tears seeing the genius come to life- his early life was plagued by misery with the death of his parents, followed by abuse in foster homes, time spent in prison as he grew more violent and ultimately the last half of his life spent in an institution.
How could it be that I had never seen his work? In his lifetime, the last 35 of which were spent in a mental asylum as a patient suffering from schizophrenia and severe hallucinations, he composed an imaginary autobiography of over 25,000 pages of art, poetry and musical notation in which he is the sole traveler, transforming a childhood of misery into one of magic and adventure.
The musical notation in his artwork initially appeared to be decorative but was in fact playable. Apparently he would sometimes play it himself with a paper trumpet he had made. You can listen here to his musical cryptograms analyzed and played on the violin by Baudouin de Jaer. They are lyrical, mysterious and beautiful: Analysis of the Musical Cryptograms of Adolf Wölfli.
I am also posting a fascinating article of a summary of the life of Adolf Wölfli with many more pictures of his art included. Adolf Wölfli by Paul Greer, originally posted on March 25, 2014.
Die Skt-Wandanna-Kathedrale in Band-Wand, 1910
Musiknotation, 1930
General View of the Island Neveranger, 1911
Ah, synchronicity is a beautiful thing! My friend Keith Bernard, who posted the original picture this morning that led me down this path of discovery, just sent me the photo as I was about to publish this page!
Circumscribe… (unable to find a date for this work)