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Artist Statement:
In the early 1990's Stephen
Mead's poems began appearing
in such journals as Onionhead,
Bellowing Ark, and Invert, but
upon moving to Provincetown,
Mass., Stephen decided to
concentrate more on visual
work. It was in the year
2000, after moving back to NY,
that Stephen started seeking
publication ...
Further Information
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Artist Exhibitions:
The Social Justice Center,
Albany, 1987
Russell Sage 'Flower' Show,
Troy, 1988
Gay & Lesbian Community
Center, Albany, 1990
Cynthia Van Horne Ehrlich
Gallery, Provincetown, M.A.,
1992-95
The Romaine Brooks Gallery,
1998
Spencertown Academy of Art,
1998
Mother Earth's Cafe, 1999
Art on Lark, 1999
Morningside Gallery, Golden
...
Further Information
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Artist Galleries:
March ’06, work accepted for
www.promiseland-productions.com
April '06, work published by
RIRoads Magazine,
riroads.com/members/200512.htm
April '06, work accepted for
the SMR
April '06, work accepted for
Big Pond Rumours
April '06, work accepted for
Yen Relish
May '06, work accepted by The
Knoxville ...
Further Information
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Collections:
Coming Soon!
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Commissions:
Coming Soon!
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Artist Galleries:
March ’06, work accepted for
www.promiseland-productions.com
April '06, work published by
RIRoads Magazine,
riroads.com/members/200512.htm
April '06, work accepted for
the SMR
April '06, work accepted for
Big Pond Rumours
April '06, work accepted for
Yen Relish
May '06, work accepted by The
Knoxville ...
Further Information
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Collections:
Coming Soon!
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Commissions:
Coming Soon!
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Reviews for Stephen Mead:
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First Amazon.com 4 Star Review for "Our Book of Common Faith"
4.0 out of 5 stars A unique and intriguing compilation, October 18, 2009
By Trudie Barreras - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
I really didn't know quite what to expect with this book, but having encountered the author on a blog (Jesus in Love) that I have found valuable and meaningful, I decided to see what the book was like. I found it to be both unique and a worthwhile addition to my library. The visual images are well reproduced, and the poetry is insightful.
Gay Artist Links Body & Spirit
http://jesusinlove.blogspot.com/2009/02/gay-artist-links-body-and-spirit.html
Sexuality and spirituality unite beautifully in the work of gay artist Stephen Mead of New York.
Gay angels enfold each other in glittering wings as they make love in “Angels Consorting” (see above). Another pair sleeps wrapped in each other’s arms with naked vulnerability in “Angels Sleeping Unawares”(see below). Angels are usually presented as neutered, asexual beings. Mead delights the eye and does great service by showing that the messengers of God can be erotically alive.
Both angel paintings are part of “Blue Heart Diary,” a meditative series about the universality of struggle, both global and personal. Like much of Mead’s work, it fuses art and poetry. The actual written work is over a thousand lines long with several hundred images spanning over two decades. A video sets some of the images to music, creating a meditative experience that is both soothing and thought-provoking. The angel paintings also appear on his DVD “Captioned Closeness” at Indieflix.com.
Mead presents a different view of embodied spirituality in “Sponge Christ We Anoint You” (see below). Taking care of a dying man becomes a sensuous, holy experience in the evocative painting. The work is a glowing embodiment of Christ’s own words, “Whatever you did for the least of these, you did for me.” Both the anointer and the anointed become one with Christ.
In the poem that accompanies the work, Mead writes:
Sponge Christ,
We anoint you.
Whatever modern day soul
Your skin christens
& the sponge, a host
For the innocence
Without martyrdom
Save the humanness
In being a triptych
Of vision, blood and bone.
“Sponge Christ We Anoint You” is included in Mead’s series “Washing the Body,” which is dedicated to the patients from Mead’s 15 years in the healthcare field.
Self-taught as an artist, Mead acknowledges that his art has been heavily influenced by both surrealism and expressionism. In the early 1990s his poetry began appearing in such journals as Onionhead, Bellowing Ark, and Invert. He moved Provincetown and began to concentrate more on visual work. He returned to New York in 2000 and started seeking publication again for both his writing and his art combined.
Since then, his work has appeared internationally both in galleries, in print and in cyberspace. Mead has done films, CDs and e-books, including the award-winning “We Are More Than Our Wounds.” His current project is “Swan Songs,” a film series that superimposes live footage over his images while using his own singing voice as a soundtrack.
http://www.poststar.com/articles/2008/10/21/ae/today/14013048.txt
Area galleries offer unconventional beauty, expression
Published: Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Art is subjective.
Like clothing, art is merely an expression -- a way of speaking without using words.
Art that elicits questions on what it could possibly be, like a Jackson Pollack or a Wassily Kandinsky, is expressionistic.
The work is done based on not what the author sees, but rather, what they feel. Once you realize what feeling they are trying to evoke, you feel a connection to the painting.
I experienced this last week when I visited bjsartworks gallery on Lawrence Street in Glens Falls to view an exhibit on domestic violence. Although many of the pieces were mixed-media and unconventional, they were incredible.
A favorite piece of mine was "The Reclamation" by artist Stephen Mead. The work, which was an accompanying piece to another display, comprises paint, hair, beads, pearls, paint, pieces of sponge and a small doll.
At first glance, the piece was a little hard to read. But after stepping back and really looking at it, it was easy not only to understand but to also feel for the woman in the picture. It is powerful, to say the least.
I also attended the Third Thursday Art Walk in downtown Glens Falls. There were so many different types of art, anyone's artistic appetite could have been satisfied. Shows featured pottery, paintings and even work done by local children. The work was eclectic, but it proved the point. Even though pieces were vastly different, each one was beautiful to someone.
One of my top choices was an art display at Achenbach Jewelers on Glen Street. Artist Carrie Philon created labyrinth designs that she put on square blocks. The blocks were flat, and she designed the art to be interactive. She told me that by doing labyrinths, it gives the brain a chance to calm down and reduce stress. There is also a positive saying on the bottom, since Philon believes that people, particularly women, are too negative toward themselves.
Taking two minutes out of your day to do the labyrinth can change your mood and your outlook, according to the artist. It was an incredibly innovative idea, and I thought the pieces were unconventional but beautiful.
Later during the walk, I also encountered photographer Joe Kaye, who owns Laminate and Frame on Ridge Street. While explaining his photographs, Kaye said, "They can't tell you what makes a good picture." It's true. Art is made to be enjoyed by those who see it, and the definition of "good art" tends to vary based on the person you are talking to.
Just because a piece isn't an easy-to-recognize portrait or landscape doesn't mean it isn't beautiful in its own way. Next time you see a piece of art, whether it be in a gallery or out in the world, take a minute to consider it.
There is beauty in everything, conventional or not.
E-mail Jordan Reardon at jreardon@poststar.com.
From http://newgreatbooks.blogspot.com/
Art and Poetry Combined: Book Offers Moving Example
By Peter N. Jones. Ph.D
Director and Editor: Bauu Institute and Press
(http://www.bauuinstitute.com)
Selected Works: The Poetry and Art of Stephen Mead
The other day I reviewed a powerful poetry book by Jerry Fagnani, noting how poetry can still have a profound impact in today's world. Well, that got me to thinking, what are some other powerful mediums. Visual imagery is one, ranging from painting to photography, from video to film. Coupled with poetry or other narratives, visual images have the power to evoke certain tones or qualities that are then perceived by the reader.
I wanted to find a book that would did this - used imagery with words to create an overall feeling in the reader. Going down my stack of "to read" books, I pulled out "Selected Works" by Stephen Mead. This was just what I wanted. Stephen is an artist and writer living in New York. Working in a variety of visual mediums, including pencil, black and white, acrylic, and oil, Mead incorporates a wide body of original art work along side his poetry. The overall presentation and reader experience is wonderful.
Included in "Selected Works" are the award winning "Heroines Unlikely," "Body as Landscape" and my favorite "Drag." The latter is a series of poems and black and white portraits all centered around the cigarette. Similar to the classic images of Rita Hayworth in Gilda, the portraits in "Drag" utilize the smoke of the cigarette to evoke an image in the readers mind. Coupled with the stirring poetry, "Drag" and other collections in "Selected Works" offer the reader a unique opportunity to see what the author might have been visualizing when he wrote the piece.
I'm glad I pulled this book off my "to read" pile and delved in. The visual imagery coupled with the idiosyncratic prose was completely rewarding. It is these kinds of books that make you constantly hunt for the next great reading adventure.
From The Poetry Market E-Zine, Review By LB Sedlacek
POETRY REVIEW
"Selected Works"
The Poetry and Art of Stephen Mead
by Stephen Mead
119 pages
ISBN: 978-0-6151-4160- 2
Publisher: StephenMeadArt
Print: $22.38
Download: $7.95
http://www.lulu. com/stephenmead
http://www.absolute arts.com/ portfolios/ s/stephenmead/
Review By LB Sedlacek
"Selected Works" is a book of six poems and art
expertly synced together by Stephen Mead. A
writer and artist, Mead is able to use his art
to express his words and vice versa.
"Washing the Body" is a purely organic
experience with obvious religious overtones --
powerful yet subtle. "Drag" seems to be
an overt homage to cigarette smoking;
however this piece invokes celebrity
assistance with references to and drawings
of Marilyn Monroe, Marlene Dietrich, etc.
From "Drag" <13:
"Rain on the tongue, / Such bovine innocence, /
Such sweetness, girl, / Your delectable skin /
Edible as buttermilk bread. / Was Norma Jean
slaughtered / In you like a lamb / For the
Hollywood homes, / Each a fled orphanage? /
Dead or alive / Your glamourous myth lives /
with new rumours yet ...."
"Heroines Unlikely" appears to be an
honorary piece to women ranging from a
girl's innocence to the protection of a
mother and to adulthood. It even touches
on the mythological with an ode to a muse.
"From The Sea of Myths" carries the
mythological even further.
From "From The Sea of Myths" No. 28:
"Thus Eurydice caught by Pluto /
Tried to teach Orpheus / But Orpheus
looked back, / Taught, as we all are, /
To project, to reflect / And give such
feelings to the lyre ...."
The illustrations that accompany each
poem help facilitate the poem's
movement and voice. Some of the
images are hauntingly moving -- each
one a powerful addition to the
accompanying words.
Overall this is a moving work -- a
multifaceted glimpse at the
illustrated word.
E-book Review, by Janet Muirhead Hill, AloneTogether Magazine
"We Are More Than Our Wounds" is not only a profound truism, but also the title of a new e-book by Stephen Mead.
For those of you who remember, or who save your back issues of AT (Volume 7, Issue 1 .January/ February, 2003), you will recognize the provocative style of art and poetry that makes you take time to ponder it's deeper meaning. "It is a small piece with poetry accompanying each image (one per page) to weave one long poem, the entirety a meditation on and prayer for, both internal and world peace." Stephen told me.
I wouldn't have gleaned that message at first glance, but with thoughtful study, employing the imagination, which is what Stephen's art demands, that concept becomes clear, or perhaps, depending on your perspective, you'll have a different interpretation.
For just $9.99, you can have a downloadable copy of your own. Below is all the information or, to order, go to: http://www.newagedimensionspublishing.com/wearemorethanourwounds.htm There you will find this information next to an image of an eye-catching cover that you will want to study deeply.
4 ANGELS - "This was a fascinating and intriguing change of pace. I have to admit, I did not know what to expect when I picked this creative project. Mr. Mead presents the reader with a gloriously colorful visualization of his poetry. Powerful and moving, he takes the reader through an emotional journey of inner spirit and transformation. Though not my normal fare, I greatly enjoyed this and if you are into poetry and interpretive art – a thumbs up from Izzy!"
~Izzy, FallenAngelReviews.com
We Are More Than Our Wounds is a work of poetry
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