Painting Process

I recently read an article on a current exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. 

The title is “Matisse:In Search of True Painting”

The writer of the article makes the exhibit sound fabulous. In particular, the show is described as being quite informative on, not only the artist, but on behaviors that should be practiced by all artists. I've never thought of an exhibit as instructional before. But I think it is a wonderfully smart way to experience what your viewing; not just emotionally but scholastically as well. If you have access to the Met before March17th, maybe you should go. Here's a link to the article.

http://www.artinfo.com/news/story/854181/6-things-i-learned-about-painting-from-the-mets-blockbuster

The six things the article claims you will learn are; when to use black, that the background is part of the composition, that one should always do multiple studies, knowing when simplicity wins over details, why to document your process, and that there is no shame in imitating your contemporaries.

In reading what the article had to offer, I came to a conclusion that my own artistic practices have a lot in common with those of Matisse. Please mind; I am not trying to (overly) liken myself to a master painter. I am just having a bit of (fancy) fun with information that has been brought to light.

I found a few things we had in common, but most importantly (for me) Matisse documented his painting process visually. In the 30's he hired a photographer to take photos of the various stages of his work. This showed his painting was more strategic than spontaneous. Looking back at photos also helped him plan future moves. I will use this fact; that we both love to document our process to segue into my own photographic representation of one of my recently finished paintings. Enjoy. 

This is the initial photograph.

Creative Indulgence

Lately I have been spoiling myself by indulging a creative rampage. In the past couple of weeks I have completed over 5 paintings. Mind you, they were not all started a couple of weeks ago. I wouldn't want to insinuate that I am a fast worker. Here they are in no particular order.

Over the coming days I will be posting the processes from some of these works.

Also, a few of these are available for purchase on Etsy.

Over the holiday season I have also been working on a series of special orders. I have been getting an increasing number of Special Orders. It is definitely more work to complete; but in a good way. It works my brain in ways that making what ever I want never could. Here's a few, in no particular order.

And my particular favorite of the season...The Santa Clause.

I have also been branching out from these two main outlets for my creativity. For instance, here is my snuggie for my plant. I made it from some old granny squares I have that my grandmother made. 

I love it. I want to make snuggies for everything using these squares. Everything you wrap in them looks adorable.

What's my next “branching out” project?

Figuring out how to cut down and resew my grandfather's flannels into a size that fits me.

I also have plans to finally finish the throw rug made from knotted t-shirts that I started in May. 

Stay tuned...

Steamboat Springs, CO

SiiiCK!

The latest edition to my chairlift series has been born!

This composition comes from a trip Phil and I took to Steamboat, back in '06, maybe '05. Man, time flies when you're having fun!

This painting is acrylic an spray paint. It measures 24" x 34." Look below as I demonstrate my process.

I start with a photo. I sketch out the photo. Then I sketch the image lightly on the canvas. Then I tape out the parts I want to spray paint.

I build a stencil from the masking tape and an exact knife.

Then I apply the spray paint. After which I remove the tape and Voila!

The actually painting, with brushes, starts somewhere in the middle.

This is the part where Phil gets scared because he thinks the painting looks like crap.

And I always agree with him, but the more paint I apply the better it looks.

Until one day when I've had enough.

I paint the sides and sign the back.

And admire it from all angles.

First Snowboard Trip! Yay!

Good morning Oberjach, Germany!

Phil took this photo as we were stepping off the bus. He thought it looked cool, like there was a rocket and an explosion behind the mountain. I agree.

We had a blast this Saturday. Our snowboard trip was a dream. As I said in the journal, the mountain wasn't very big, but that made it really managable. The runs were wide, and long enough, and the snow was great. A few times we were lucky enough to find ourselves off the trail. We made some fresh tracks of our own. This is something that would be a rare treat at home on the East Coast.

It was freezing. We were really glad to both have down jackets. I, of course, had handwarmers in my gloves and pants pockets. I think the temp was -15 Celcius, not for the faint of heart. Luckily, most of the mountain was covered in T-bars. So we got a workout on the way up and down the trails.

We got a respectable number of runs in before closing the day in typical fashion... at the bar. We needed to reward ourselves for such a successful day. We had a couple of beers and an apple streudel. The bartender was also nice enough to share a local favorite with us. It's a liquor called Enzian. It is made from some local plant with purple flowers. It reminded me of tequila. As much as I love tequila (in moderation) I don't think I'll be enjoying anymore Enzian in the future.

The bus ride home was great. I got to chatting with some folks that were on this same trip. They were giving me the low-down on some killer second-hand and antique shops in my area. I can't wait to check them out.

And on the snowboarding front, we are looking forward to (hopefully) joining another trip in two weeks to Switzerland. Stay tuned :)

To see more pictures of Germany visit our FB photo album.To read more about our weekend visit the journal.