Spring Semester Production

Hopefully, this post will grow like the previous. Except, I will try to limit the step-by-step development of pieces and focus on finished pieces (so much for that attempt!)

I have some old, very large panels that need to be "used up". So, I fell back on my preferred stand-by on this 40x60 inch panel: non-representational abstract imagery. Oh, that's just plain FUN! I think that I will glaze some on this piece, simply to create a sense of depth on the picture plane.

It may be hard to see, but I've altered this piece a bit, adding a steam freighter, then turning it into a refinery, then cutting out sections where ceramic fossil tiles can be attached. Not sure if I should go back to the ship subject.

And another large "fun" abstract piece is underway!  

                 

  I will be adding a few extra steps to the Pisa Portrait and thought that it would be best to re-post the "sealed" stage and show the progress that is made from week to week. I'm trying to glaze with acrylics this time: you have to really move quickly and restore highlights almost immediately. One advantage that I've noticed is that the plaster texture shows through with greater clarity than when glazing with oils.

Finished image for now (awaiting group critique next week). By the way, if you haven't already figured it out, it's "God photo bombing my selfie at the Leaning Tower of Pisa."

 

Here's an old piece that I revisited, selecting an image suggested in the abstraction and turning it into a ballerina on stage, complete with stage lights.

Here are some pics of early progress on my generic male figure for 3D-Ecorche class.

    

      

Here is an example of what I'm doing in landscape painting (a scene from Queeny Park in West County St. Louis). Just the second level of under-painting. Oh, I had to glaze white over almost everything to convey "fog", and darken the pond. The heavy stuff goes on next week (really!).

I may deepen the look of the water, but it's pretty much finished.

 

And I've started a second landscape, this one from a photo of the bluffs at Castlewood State Park.

Also, I decided that this older painting, in its previous state, had too clear of an edge around the human figure. So, I broke it up and softened the water boarder at the bottom.

Christmas Break

Not very exciting, but it's something that I've needed to do for many years: color charts!

This is all about matching with a color and knowing how to "make it".

These are just two chart examples...I'm putting together 8 sheets for 12 hues. Each chart starts with the straight hue, then mixed with white to fill out a six point scale. Then it's mixed with all of the other hues on my 12 color palette. Each one of those is then reduced in value on the same scale.

In the next 10 days, I am planning on squeezing in a newfresco self portrait with color conscious glazing which will take advantage of this color study.

 Here's where I've had to call it quits with the "hand/model" painting. Just got to move on (I wasn't able to recover from having to reseal the ground).

And I started another self portrait using that new tile sub-flooring material. This shows the very beginning stage of drawing with the squirted plaster line on the sized surface.

My process involves sanding down the squirted drawing bead, filling specific areas with plaster (often premixed with tempera paint), painting over textured areas with black tempera paint to create a fine tracery/contour line, and then more layers of the same.

Further development: premix filling of particular areas, with combing texture lines that follow cross-structural contours, and a sprinkling of fabric dye for added visual texture.

Even though classes have begun for the Spring semester, I will continue to post photos of progress with regard to this painting/newfresco. As the layers increase, the image will become more obscure.

Everything has been layered and filled at this point. Now, I've got to sand it down and seal the surface. Then I can glaze with some Golden acrylic pigment and matte medium, where needed.

                             

                          Image revealed through sanding

Image enhanced through  sealing

Metals Class

Here are pics of some of what I did in the Metals Course (Jewelry).

 This is a detail of three medallions, rolling ring, and broom cast tie clasp.

My favorite was this Shell Box made from 20g copper, brazed, topped with a shell handle (cuttlefish bone casting set with prong rivets), and finished with an ammonia/salt patina.

A copper Snow Flake medallion with a tube set zirconium diamond and ammonia fume patina.

80% of the production.

A last look at the shell box closed and with a poly-coat to protect the patina.

New Paintings

 Simple still life with a plane-linear 
color patch approach.

This isn't everything, but it gives you an idea of some of the work done in and outside of class over the past few weeks.

This was another still life study where the objects had to be white and identified with subtle hues within the white.

Here's my product from attending the Alex Folla "Caravaggio Workshop." It focuses on glazing over a dark background. The image is defined by glazing with a light hue; leaving a light coating over an area constitutes as "dark". So, in a sense, the artist is painting the dark areas, as well as the light ones, with white.

Even though glazing in the tradition of the Renaissance artists is not my preferred method/style, the Alex Folla workshop did inspire me to go back to that time honored technique and apply it to a portrait. This piece has a lighter brown under-painting and is obviously in process: a few more layers of glazing to go (Titian's approach). As far as I'm concerned, this is an easier way to paint than compared to direct painting.

Here's some further development on the portrait. I added detail to the facial features, but had to redo the skin tone of the body (made the mistake of not varnishing the ground and that pigment was bleeding into the glazing). The piece was done on a larger panel, so I came up with the idea of a "hand portrait" in juxtaposition. That image has a lot more work to be done on it.

Yeah, another modification. I had to redo her skin entirely. Lost the purity of the facial features as a result. But, with some more tweaking, I should be able to get the skin tone right and restore the features.

On the other hand (ha, ha!), had success with my hand. Pretty daring with the lime green background (I'll wait for comments from my crit group on that).













Here's the final for my painting class. Four panel landscape with a twist. I used two images from a video clip from my world bicycle tour: a ride along the Rhine River Radweg. I'm saving the hardest part for last...the figures.

The finished product has a unique conveyance of time, motion, and composition interplay. I used a palette similar to that of Fairfield Porter (though not as heavy a value contrast). Some adjustments had to be made to subjects with red-orange to avoid a predictable repetition. Shadows had to be altered as well, to maintain the cool side of hue selection.

The work in this class has taken me back to the basics and helping me to sharpen my skills.

First Three Completed

These pieces represent what I've been doing in my studio time. I'll share with you some of my classwork from metals, painting, and computer graphics in the weeks ahead.

In this unusual self portrait, I defined the figure and broke up the "frame" around the image by extending content through to the edge. I also darkened some areas, especially in the upper background, to create greater contrast and drama. I found that in order to restore the white of the fish skeleton, I had to grind it out with a dremel and decided to keep some of it open to give a greater sense of dimension.

I incorporated the figure into this piece: images taken from old family photos of relatives from my Armenian side. The fact that the partial self-portrait on the lower right happens to look angry is purely incidental. I also enhanced some of the color and lowered the value scale at some key points.

This portrait of Graham was easy to finish: light pigment mixed with the plaster and apply where needed. Added a little fabric dye to incorporate more color and a little texture. I only had to brush a little watercolor in areas that were too open. Sealed with the Polycrylic and called it done.

Three Weeks of Studio Production

Here are three pieces that I've been working on since having been issued a studio space in the Strassner off-campus building.

"Back to Fish 2" This is a remake of a piece I did several years ago (a favorite which was accidentally destroyed). I've got to make some adjustments on the left arm and do much more glazing.

"Celestial Tree" This abstract composition just received its first layer of glazing and will have a few "ghost-like" images, from very old family photos, drawn/sketched in various places, and in varying scale, on the picture plane.

"Graham" This portrait, of the brother of a former student of mine, is in the first stages of development: initial squirted plaster line, added texture, black paint over texture to create a fine ridge-line delineation, after future sanding. 

Course #2: Chinese Ink Drawing and Watercolor

The following images are some of the results from the second Summer session I took at Fontbonne. Very beneficial experience. I learned how to REALLY draw/paint bamboo!

Bamboo in the rain

A story about a deadly hawk hidden in beauty and an unsuspecting field mouse, as prey.

Inspired from another image of a nuthatch on pine branch.

Basic orchid with "almond eye" leaves.

The "fourth gentleman" is Lotus. This quick study includes a partially obscured koi.

Magpie on bamboo, with my signature/stamp.