Figurative Art - Evelyn Markasky

Art is usually divided into 3 categories: figurative, representational (which describes the signs that stand in for and take the place of something else), and abstract. Today we will be looking at figurative work (why do I sound like Mr. Wizard? The weekly 30 minute show from the 50's/60's where Don Herbert played a science hobbyist, and every Saturday morning a neighbor boy (Jimmy) or girl would come to visit. Mister Wizard always had some kind of laboratory experiment going that taught something about science.)
From Wikipedia: 
Figurative art, is often taken to mean art which represents the human figure, or even an animal figure, and, though this is often the case, it is not necessarily so: Since the arrival of abstract art the term figurative has been used to refer to any form of modern art that retains strong references to the real world.


Well, hmmm, the real world, whatever that means and how you want to interpret it! Also, the lines in these categories are thin and there is often a crossover. There are a few things I've seen that clearly are figurative:


The first person that comes to mind is Lesley Tinnaro and her study of the forms of the body. She has completely taken the forms of body parts that may not exactly be pretty, and made then into beautiful sculptures. She also crosses over into representational work (which I'm sure happens a lot ) creating a symbol, in this case, of the eye.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/lesleytinnaro/

The next person that comes to mind is Lorena Angulo, whose work is clearly figurative and clearly representational. She has created figures that obviously represent people, but also symbolizes different actions in our lives. She has created quite an amazing little family!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/lorenaangulo/

Next in line would have to be Kest Schwartzman who has moved from the human figure to the animal figure that is worn as a mask and transforms the human wearing it!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/vagabondjewelry/

         

How do you see your work? Does it naturally fit into one of these categories? How do you think about what you want it to represent?