{"product_id":"death-valley-window-by-bert-mattingly-photograph-fuji-pearl-print","title":"\"Death Valley Window\" by Bert Mattingly, Photograph, Fuji Pearl Print","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"text-decoration: underline;\" data-mce-style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eDETAILS\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e25\" x 26\"\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePhotograph, Fuji Pearl Print\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e2015\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eABOUT THE ARTIST:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eBert Mattingly\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"UTF-8\"\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"UTF-8\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eVincent once said that art is to console those who are broken by life.\u003c\/span\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"auto\"\u003eBroken by life, I arrived in Alaska in 1982, at the tender age of 20. \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"auto\"\u003eIt was a desperate move of survival away from my native California homeland and marked a significant departure from the toxic relationship I had with my alcoholic father.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"auto\"\u003eFor it was just two months prior that my only brother died in a tragic car accident.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"auto\"\u003eThus one life ended caused another life to begin.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"auto\"\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"auto\"\u003eMy only hope upon arriving to my northern land was to lead a life of quiet desperation.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"auto\"\u003eAnd that is exactly what I did.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"auto\"\u003ePhysically, I retreated north.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"auto\"\u003eEmotionally, I retreated inward to the perceived safety of my psyche, spending the bulk of my free time within the woods of Alaska.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"auto\"\u003eAlone.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"auto\"\u003eAlways alone.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"auto\"\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"auto\"\u003eWhen one takes a retreat such as this, it often doesn’t end well.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"auto\"\u003eFor a solo journey into the psyche can turn into a permanent residency of the abyss.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"auto\"\u003eI am happy to report that my sojourn ended quite well, thank you very much.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"auto\"\u003eOh, to be sure there were a few years of darkness and despair but by the light of art and the hope of creation, I persevered.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"auto\"\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"auto\"\u003eI didn’t choose to be an artist.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"auto\"\u003eFor one does not choose to be an artist\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"auto\"\u003eI mean why would one rationally choose to be misunderstood by a world that views beauty in the second of a soundbite?\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"auto\"\u003eAnd even if the world thinks they understand the artist, it is only an illusion of superficiality produced by the artist and often times, that illusion is in and of itself a work of art.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"auto\"\u003eFor the world is a misguided lot and can never fully understand the mind of an artist.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"auto\"\u003eIf they could, one would not be an artist.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"auto\"\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"auto\"\u003eIn summary, my journey as an artist was birthed out of a broken life.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"auto\"\u003eIt has proven far more than a calling but a demand that life has placed upon me for my very survival.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"auto\"\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"auto\"\u003eI owe my very life to art.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"auto\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eInstagram: \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/bert.mattingly\/\"\u003e@bert.mattingly\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"LagunaART.com","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":39502417887297,"sku":"","price":750.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0008\/0219\/3473\/products\/bertDeath-Valley-window.jpg?v=1636095620","url":"https:\/\/lagunaart-com.myshopify.com\/products\/death-valley-window-by-bert-mattingly-photograph-fuji-pearl-print","provider":"LagunaART.com","version":"1.0","type":"link"}