The other two.

I am going to try to post the other two pictures that are in process. I am still learnig to take photo's and how to make this blog thingy work. Please excuse the mistakes.

The first one is called Stacey's. This is a request by my daughter for a 36" x 48" painting. "whatever you want to do Dad" dangerous words. I do not have a "voice", which means to me paint the same subject the same way, I have a "learning curve". What ever comes into my mind and however it wants to be expressed.

This picture came to me after her request and simple said "I AM THE ONE!". As I said before these painting entities can be quite forceful. The picture came together and gelled in my mind. I usually "see" the picture before it actually starts. This in no way implies that what ends up on the canvas is what I "saw". The picture entity hasn't really become involved. Blame it on the "picture entity" if it goes bad and take all the credit if it goes right. Rrrrright. I will be the first to admit that I have only so much to do with the finished product. I learn technique and such, practice all the time but in the end I simple hold the instrument that renders the finished product. So blame it on the brush!

But anyway, this is the sketch of the picture to be. At this stage I simple move fast and work out the idea. Moving items, trying elements, taking suggestions from the developing entity. I should mention that all my art is done with music. Another blog on that!

The second picture is "Diane enters the Engineering section". 75% done. This is a result at looking at way to much Steampunk stuff. Both me and my wife have become fascinated with this whole concept and art. Most of my art is not "realism" so it was a natural step for me to delve into this. Diane was an entity at the very start. I do not always know the names at the beginning but she was present and accounted for at the beginning of the process. The elements flowed and there have been a few modifications, but the details take hours and hours. An hour a square inch is not unusual depending on all that has to happen to get to what you see. This is also why I work on more than one painting or project at a time. That's another blog.

So watch the process and ask questions and we will see where all this leads to. I love and "adventure". Old saying " the adventure is only an adventure in the telling. The living of the adventure is quite often quite a laborious undertaking."

Trying to delete this picture. Oh well. More learning curve stuff.

Vampire Girl 2

Don't you just love her!!!
Well here is the next step. I call it blocking in the background. There is no fast rule as to when this gets done. Most times I will block the face and main items in and then do the background. this time I am planning to keep the face somewhat pale and delicate. I decided that it would be best to work to a strong background to achieve this. The boldness of the strokes and the colors are meant to be a contrast to the peaceful still face. I love movement in a painting. Reflections of the world I live in.
I should define "blocking in". To me this is when I establish the color, composition and feeling of the picture. I do not have a formal education in art so the words that I have derived to express what I do may not match the text books. I have read and studied a tremendous amount. Learning is a constant process. I use to live in Norfolk Virginia not far from the Chrysler Museum. There is not a number that will encompass the times that I have visited there. Standing and studying an effect, composition or detail. Trouble with an eye? Head to the museum and study all the eyes. How did the masters and very very good artists do it? Where are the elements and effects in this style. Then of course a favorite of mine for practice and training the eye, mind and hand, is live drawing. I have hundreds of sketch pads, of all sizes, filled with these quick drawings. When I did the laundry at the laundry mat I would sit and sketch faces. People do not sit still!!! In fact they will move away if they see you looking at them and sketching. So this means that you have several seconds to see what needs to be seen and then draw it. Great fun!!
I use the five second rule. This teaches myself that I must know what the important main elements are that I am looking for. Shape, size, proportion to the whole, relation to other items and the importance to the overall feeling or expression of the subject. What are the unique details that make it stand out from the standard?
I have another rule "all sketches and paintings are practice!" I do not dally on perfecting everything I do to a "finished master piece". Got over that! Some are bad, some are good, there are always elements that are very good. Most importantly I always have developed more skills. Even mistakes lead to discoveries. There are no failures. I do not beat myself up worrying about not being good enough to show what I do. I live in the glorious feeling that I am doing and am better than the last year. Or so I think. I'm putting it on the Internet for all to see and I do not even know what it is that I am doing in the painting until it actually happens.
Coffee done got to go.

Vampire Girl 1

In this picture I wanted a vampire that wasn't all deep dark and Goth like. sweet, tender and...
yea..... we will see what happens?

I am using this blog to show what it is I do and maybe how and why. This Picture is the result of a request by my girl fiend(who is also my wife). We never got over that first love thing. However.... She, of course saw the "movie" and needless to say vampires were a must. I painted two art card sized ones that she liked. They are similar in the position of the face. I really liked what had appeared and decided to refine the idea and do it in oils. So here is the start so to speak.
Idea's come from a variety of places. Some times fast and some times they perk in the brain for a long time. In this one I just had to wait while I finished another step in a larger painting. Now I can devote the proper time to it.
The sketch, as you can see by the pencil lines, is composed using very classical methods of facial measurements. I use photos to work on muscle placement and lighting issues. I will also do clay sculptures when a problem presents itself and this is the only solution.
After the sketch I like to do a value study type of under painting. I may or may not work out all the elements of the painting.
A lot of my painting is seat of the pants. Colors are mixed at the time of their use. Elements are moved where ever they feel right and most importantly I let the painting tell me what to do.
Every painting comes with or develops a entity of it's own. This personality becomes involved in the process. Some time very forcefully. There are paintings I labor over and then there are paintings that I stop thinking and just respond to what is required next. I love these painting sessions. One side of my brain watches the picture unfold as an observer. " Wow red there? who would have ever thought that would work there? Perfect Wow" All great fun. I know that I'm well into this type of painting when I do not even look at the color of the tube. Just reach, grab, squeeze, paint. The color becomes evident as it is being applied. This is not a frequent thing.
Enough already.
I will post the other works in progress once I take a good photo of them, (face book picts very bad) and show them as they develop. I will also post some of the completed works that I and my wife enjoy.
Till then. Enjoy life's treasures.

And then there was Art

Well this is the beginning and in the beginning there was the word and the word was ART.
Like so many before me I am going to subject the world at large to the view from my much misunderstood perception of events.
It is not true, or it could be if one was to close their eye's, that I was born on a starry night. But it is true that at the first feeling there was the flow and swish of the bristles through all time into my soul. A yearning that has always been present to share that joy, beauty, feelings, thoughts, both good and bad and yes the excitement of elation beyond words that I found myself thrust into. Quite often tears were the results of all this as I became overwhelmed. Does beauty hurt? Quite often. Pain unmeasurable only sated when at last it would burst forth on to the page or canvas. Waking up and dashing RED on anything just because all the world required that at that moment. There was no waiting. Sleep then returned. Long I fought this need to express. After all society really considered this quite useless. I didn't listen.
So here I am today 59, still filled with this wonder of creating that I have had uneasy truces with, complete immersion and the most fantastic journey I could ever ask for.
My opening line to my wife to be was "I am an artist". Her response "I am to". Nine years latter, 3 married, we live in a world filled with life, love and all that art brings.
So now I step out! Hello world. Wait I have done this before in the way of shows, outside and inside, website, and stores but this is different. This time I shall present the road from my slightly different perspective.
Enjoy or not, maybe find that the atoms can exist in weird and wonderful ways.
Come on in at meet my friends.