Posts Tagged ‘strawberry’
Wednesday, June 28th, 2006
another digital view of strawberry harvesting
Harvest Depth – digital painting / art prints – Dan Beck 2006
I don’t know if it’s as much about trying to get it right or trying new angles at the same thing. This year, there are more strawberry fields around my house since I moved here about 6 1/2 years ago.
I am struck by different views of essentially the same thing each day. In the above piece, the orange flags which I understand to mean the field has been sprayed, caught my gaze.
The berries require being harvested every 2 days or so depending upon the weather and they did spray in between – but the flags winding their way back to the second crew intrigued me.
It also intrigued me that once again – the crews appeared to be lined up and bent over like a team – which they are – but when the flat is full the picker boogies – I suspect piece work incentives and a little bit of everyone for himself.
If you are interested in art prints for this digital painting, please email speacialorders@outhousestudios.net.
See Also
Tags: Art, fields, painting, prints, strawberry
Posted in Promoting the Creative World | No Comments »
Monday, June 26th, 2006
prints more revealing than monitor – seeing more revealing than photos
Wheel of Fields – digital painting for art prints – 2006
At this writing this is my most recent digital painting. I have already featured it last week from a different aspect.
I was looking at an art print of it today and noticing the complexity of color in the strawberry rows and the way the figures harvesting kind of look like they are in a green lake swimming.
It does look like the fields swallow up the work crews – the combination of the rows being elevated and how bent over everyone harvesting really is – I paint it and even find photos, but I think it would shock you if you saw it in person.
For various size art prints of this digital painting – please write specialorders@outhousestudios.net.
See Also
Tags: Art, color, fields, painting, prints, strawberry
Posted in Art Prints | No Comments »
Tuesday, June 20th, 2006
observing the lowest point and the artist’s role
Wheel of Fields – digital painting for art prints – 2006
This is a real view from a position just at the bend in the road. I found it amazing that the fields from this angle really look like spokes of a wheel. It is equally amazing that the pattern of the hills finds the lowest point to be the circle – where just as amazing the ever present strawberry harvesters were at it again and only in that area.
A mouthful indeed, but it is clearly the reason why I felt the need to bring the painting to life.
Inspiration surrounds me. I feel lucky that so many things make me want to create. But I am also lucky that I can’t help but look around me.
I have said in other places – that observing is much of the artist’s role – and listening the musician’s.
I don’t see myself as trying to record as a photograph would, but rather as someone more inside the experience – with feelings and confused perception in tact.
For art prints from this digital painting, please email: specialorders@outhousestudios.net.
See Also
Tags: Art, fields, hills, music, painting, prints, strawberry
Posted in Promoting the Creative World | No Comments »
Tuesday, June 13th, 2006
Exaggeration and layout form pick of the picking
Two Pick 2 – digital painting – Dan Beck – 2006
This piece came as a direct result of not feeling like I had expressed myself fully about what I had seen. If you look at the yesterday’s article, you will see a digital painting and explanation of its origin.
What I was not able to express in the first piece, was how down in the row, these two strawberry pickers were. It isn’t that the berries and rows are so high – but bent over picking, they are really down in there – and particularly from this angle from the road – looking down the row.
This is exaggerated a tad – the rows are too wide, the people a little small … but when I look at this art print – the statement is striking and bold.
You know they are down in there, you know they are picking fast, and you know the field is vast.
For art prints from the above digital painting – Two Pick 2 – please email specialorders@outhousestudios.net.
See Also
Tags: Art, composition, painting, prints, strawberry
Posted in Promoting the Creative World | No Comments »
Monday, June 12th, 2006
approaching digital painting figures first
Window View – digital painting / art prints – Dan Beck 2006
I was very happy with this digital painting – I knew it from the start. I approached this computer art in a different way and was successful.
It always feels good to try something a new a way and have it succeed. I think there are many ways to get somewhere good.
I start pieces in different ways – gradients vs patterns vs simple sketch. But for the most part when figures have been involved, they are brought in after the background.
This time, I created the figures first. I had just looked out the window and I didn’t want to lose what I had seen. Fortunately, they way the workers appeared to be wading in the field probably made this work that much better.
The rows aren’t all that deep, but with everyone bent over, the strawberry harvesters all look ensconced.
For art prints of the above digital painting, please email specialorders@outhousestudios.net.
See Also
Tags: Art, fields, painting, prints, strawberry
Posted in Art Prints | No Comments »
Monday, June 12th, 2006
Side by side harvesting provokes creativity and digital painting
Two Pick – digital painting / art prints – Dan Beck 2006
If you have been following any of the recent postings, it should be obvious that the daily harvesting of strawberries all around me is greatly affecting my current art prints.
This piece came from a drive by around the bend from my house. Two women were bent picking berries side by side in the same row, practically in unison sporting different colored same color clothing and baseball hat.
These were not the colors, nor did I catch exactly what I had intended. But nevertheless the resulting digital painting is worth sharing – as it does capture enough of what I was describing.
My additional hope is that their energy and focus and what is really a beautiful scene in the midst of hard labor comes through clearly.
For art prints of above digital painting – please write specialorders@outhousestudios.net.
See Also
Tags: Art, color, creativity, fields, hills, painting, prints, strawberry
Posted in Promoting the Creative World | No Comments »
Saturday, June 10th, 2006
Adding color and texture – one thing leads to another
Window View – digital painting / art prints – Dan Beck 2006
In some ways I like the simplicity of yesterday’s start. At the small size like directly above – the even simpler digital painting seems to work better for me. However, when it is printed at 13 x 19″ or larger, it needs the extra detail to look like a finished art print.
Nevertheless, I tried to maintain the simplicity which I liked so much in the first place. I added color to make it more like wading in the fields, rather than wading in the water.
I added texture and additional color to make the fields themselves be of interest. In doing so, everything else – mountains and figures had to have comparable weight – meaning they required additional texture and color for the piece to hold together.
This is why it is so difficult to stop a piece at the right time – one thing leads to another and you have to add this which means adding that – and before you know it, the character of the piece has changed…
but at least you have enjoyed the process.
See Also
Tags: Art, color, fields, mountains, painting, perspective, prints, strawberry, texture
Posted in Promoting the Creative World | No Comments »
Thursday, June 8th, 2006
Creating a landscape of color and harvesting
Pickin’ Start – digital painting – Dan Beck 2006
Painting the fields is comfortable at this point. My approach with this was to just start painting – creating hills, creating waves in the landscape, but not so much caring about conveying a particular place – more of a particular area – the Salinas Valley.
The landscape was fun to create – unfortunately I don’t think the overlap of colors comes through – so I am going to step back and offer up this detail which would otherwise only be seen in an art print.
There is a vastness to this land – and clearly I am trying to show it. There is also something remarkable about the people who work the land and how they appear when one is casually or not so casually looking.
If they appear in a line, it is because they are frequently in a line. If they appear to be acrobats, it is because that is also they way they look. If they appear to be in a swarm, it is also because it looks that way. If they appear to be lost within the landscape of the valley…
I have great respect for the strawberry harvesters that dot the land around me.
See Also
Tags: Art, color, fields, hills, painting, prints, Salinas Valley, strawberry
Posted in Promoting the Creative World | No Comments »
Wednesday, June 7th, 2006
conveying scene, witness, labor, humanity and meaning
Strawberry Fields -digital painting / art prints -Dan Beck 2005
I started working on a new art piece – not above – but related. Witnessing the daily harvest of strawberries is actually fairly new to me.
Many of the fields around me were converted last season. The above digital painting is from the previous year but is about trying to convey this incredible scene.
The field workers are always in what look like uncomfortable positions – kneeling, curved backs, stretched out – but I am generally not as close as the portrayal above.
As a witness, it is my goal to both share the awkwardness, the humanity, the dignity and perhaps the dismay – at those people who think that migrant labor is a job that people born in America would actually be willing to do.
I just came back from a trip to New York, and the truth is – it is almost impossible to get summer help from American youth any more.
This is not a political blog, but imagine a world without strawberries.
See Also
Tags: Art, field workers, fields, painting, prints, strawberry
Posted in Promoting the Creative World | No Comments »
Thursday, March 16th, 2006
Painting, Translated World, Artistic Vocabulary
Larger View of Enchanted Sunset – Digital Painting – 2006
The inspiration for this piece came from reality – a sunset with this tent-like window showing some of the sun…and a sky that was multi-colored and magical.
The section of world I chose had this swirling quality. The foreground is the plastic covered strawberry fields which are in person both ugly and beautiful with their reflection.
Painting of any sort is about representing another world – be it the real world or imaginary or the world of the painting itself.
This piece has a flow about it which I like very much – the hilly nature of the fields comes through strongly. And the colored excitement of the evening is also very well translated.
Translated – a good choice of words – indeed the expression of the medium is a language unto itself and the degree to which one can use the medium is one’s vocabulary.
See Also
Tags: Art, color, fields, painting, strawberry
Posted in Promoting the Creative World | No Comments »
RSS Feed
