Wednesday, December 7, 2011

Sunday Fisherman

11 X 14 inches Acrylic
This is one of my favorite paintings. I like its feeling of isolation. Lone man standing in  front of a wall with his hand line trying to get a fish for dinner. (In this part of Mexico, it is more common for local  residents to use a hand line rather than a fishing rod.)  But, it contains something I often use in my work and that is an abstract painting within the painting.  The water viewed by itself is quite abstract yet the painting is figurative.

Sometimes I like the acrylic sketches more than or as well as the finished paintings.  At times, I stop at the sketch stage, sometimes I push onward to what seems a finish. This is a closeup sketch of the fisherman. It shows how I begin to paint in shapes. Yes, at this stage the shapes and their relationships are much more important than the object or figure.  When working from a photograph, I will often paint parts of the painting upside down to further divorce myself from the object and see only the shapes. Accurate depiction of shapes will naturally make the image real once turned right-side-up.






Sunday, December 4, 2011

Merry Christmas Mr. Claus

8 x 10 acrylic sketch
Even Santa deserves a little extra joy.  I will probably do a little more on it this but, I really like it's unfinished nature.  I won't do too much, would hate to loose the immediacy and spontaneity of the brush work.
This is a gift for a very good friend, who I  know will really appreciate its innocence.


Saturday, December 3, 2011

A Chat With Santa.... Finished


Ah, what  one can see with fresh eyes!!  Put in another four hours and  I think it is done. I am fascinated with the American illustrators of the late 19th, early 20th century. Their skill in drawing astounds me. They paint things I can only dream of.  And since it is the Holiday Season take a look at the Santa's painted by Haddon Sundblom, Norman Rockwell and Joseph Christian Leyendecker.  I based this painting on a fragment of a Leyendecker illustration.

Friday, December 2, 2011

Work in Progress: A Chat With Santa

8 X 10 inches
Acrylic on stretched canvas.  This is what I have at the end of the day.  I wish I could see it with your eyes, as mine can no longer see objectively.  I absolutely love Santa, his innocence and magic. Tomorrow, I will continue with fresh eyes, hopefully I will be able to sort out the painting's problems. But if not, I have enjoyed spending this day with Santa Claus. Merry Christmas.