The 4 Elements of Superstroke

The 4 Elements of Superstroke

As most people who has been following the Superstroke Art Movement knows is that the manifesto written for Superstroke is as follows:

1. Paintings should be executed using expressive even violent brushstrokes on at least some part of the picture.

2. Should a photograph be used for a figurative painting, the objection should not be Photorealism, but Expressionism.

3. If mediums such as pen, pencil, etc are used, the pen and pencil strokes must at least be overly expressive for it to be considered a Superstroke picture.

4. Paintings can be executed in both the abstract and figurative.

5. Subject matters such as Africa, light, dark, life and death are encouraged.

6. Collage, Stencil and Calligraphy may be used for impact.

7. The concept, Art for the sake of art, does not apply in Superstroke. In Superstroke it is art for the sake of Superstroke, as the artist must always strive for paintings rich in texture, or excessive brush or pencil strokes.

Superstroke consists out of 4 elements, namely The Stylized Image, Non Representative Abstraction, Realism and Combination. All of these elements are of equal importance, and make out the total collection of images in Superstroke. There has been a notion Superstroke should consolidate and focus on only one of the four elements, instead embracing all of them. Several discussions later and it was decided although it means more work, The Superstroke Movement will still embrace all four of these elements. Superstroke is extremely complex, and it seems that it will become even more so as time goes on.

In order to achieve the goals of Superstroke, namely to produce paintings to take art forward, it is important for the Superstroke Art Movement to incorporate all the elements of modern art.
Superflat started what will be a key point in a lot of Art Movements going forward, and that is to incorporate texture as a key element of the movement.

In Superstoke texture or the illusion of texture is always very important, but when you work with pencil for instance it is difficult to add texture in comparison with what you can do in oil or acrylic paint. Then it is important to go for the expressive line. You have to use incoherent type of lines to stay within the spirit of Superstroke as described in the Manifesto.

Here is some exerpts from a brochure that was written for me by one of my dealers. At that stage I was still using my original surname Botha to sign my paintings. A lot has happen since then but everything I do today was influenced in some way by the art I did in Generalism.

Conrad Bo

Conrad Botha

Analytical Generalism

Conrad Botha’s career has always been dominated by the 3 movements he started. These movements Generalism, Architecturism, and Television Impressionism will always be tied to any picture that he does, even when he branches out to territory that he is not usually associated with.

Here is an excerpt from Conrad Botha’s manuscript Generalism, Architecturism and Television Impressionism

Conrad Botha believes that all genres of art should be explored by an artist. Whether it is landscape, still life, abstract etc, Botha says an artist only discovers his true self when moving out of a comfort zone. Although Botha is known for his figurative paintings and landscapes (Best described as a mixture of Impressionistic strokes and the dots of Pointillism), he has been experimenting with abstract art from a very young age when he saw a photograph of a Picasso painting.

According to him, his current abstract expressionism works are influenced mainly by 4 artists. The first is Joan Miro (Founding member of the Surrealist group), Hans Hoffman who first experimented with drip paintings in 1940, after him from about 1947 Jackson Pollock took drip painting to the next level and the term action painting (A phrase coined by the journalist Harold Rosenberg.) became world famous. In about 1954 Helen Frankenthaler also used the drip painting technique in some of her paintings, but with brighter color planes and also made a contribution to this type of abstract art.

Conrad Botha classifies his paintings as Analytical Generalism (Art for the sake of art, exploring what the term Generalism can mean in the context of art, with the emphasis in taking the paintings to the next level in terms of the visual and emotional aspect thereof). That being said he concedes that the term action painting can be used for some of his paintings, where like Jackson Pollock he denies the accident from happening. Botha feels that some of his paintings blur the line between action painting and color field painting and therefore his argument of classifying his paintings as Analytical Generalism are justified.

Botha also strays from action painting in certain pictures as he will use brushes, and knifes directly on the canvass to create certain textures that he want to attain. This again blurs the line between action painting and color field painting.

Botha always said that one of the things that distinguishes his art, from that of anyone else’s, is his believe that the unique name given to a painting is just as important as any brush stroke. Unlike the great American artist Mark Rothko (Famous for “Color Field Painting”) that stated that “Silence is so accurate”, Conrad Botha believes that although he does not disagree with Rothko, the impact of the right name for a painting has a severe and powerful effect on the viewer.

Like Joan Miro (Once labeled by Picasso as the only other artist, except for himself who is taking art forward), Botha believes that (Quote from Miro)“In painting, you should be able to discover new things each time you look at it. But you can look at a painting for a whole week and never think of it again. You can also look at a painting for a second and think about it for the rest of your life. For me, a painting must give of sparks. It must dazzle like the beauty of a woman or a poem. It must radiate like the flints that the shepherds in the Pyrenees use for lighting their pipes.”

Botha believes all artists should live by the above statement from Miro, and hopes the viewer can see it in his work.

Here is an excerpt from manuscripts Conrad Botha made regarding Genralism:

Introduction to Generalism

I founded Generalism as an art movement, mainly because there are too many paintings in existence that cannot be defined.

Generalism includes all art ever created, in the past and in the future. Therefore, all art that cannot be; or has not been yet defined as art, within an art movement, can be regarded as Generalism.

However when it is possible to narrower define a painting, like for instance an Impressionist painting by Cézanne, this art movement classification supersedes Generalism, and the painting will be known as an Impressionist painting.

Looking at the definition of the word, general (relating to or covering all instances: not limiting in meaning: not specific) there are many examples of artist all over the world that create art just for the sake of art without any specific movement or statement in mind. These are classic examples of Generalism.

Regarding my own art, I am first and foremost a Generalist. In the spirit of Generalism I paint what I see, what I know, what I don't see and also what I do not know. As the founder of Generalism I declare that there are no rules in Generalism, any means necessary to apply paint to a surface in a sensible way can be and shall be used. The only rule to Generalism is that there are no rules. Generalism includes all art, and is not just limited to paintings.

Manifesto for Generalism

1. Generalism, is art, for the sake of art.

2. All art is Generalism, unless it is narrower defined in another art movement.

3. Whenever art cannot be explained, or defined by the artist or by somebody else, it will be regarded as Generalism.

4. Therefore Generalism unites all art.

5. The onus, therefore rest on the creator, or observer, to explain, or to prove that a particular piece of art should not be regarded as Generalism.

6. Generalism comes down to the fact, that even if an artist has nothing to say, he/she must say it in order to prevent their work to be classified as Generalism.