October 11th, 2006 by admin
three different endings reveal a quandary and open an opportunity
Fennel Field & Sky - 1 digital painting, 3 endings, Triptych
Having already written on these three pieces, this is in some ways redundant - but not really.
This is very exciting to me - every artist always struggles with when to call a piece finished. When I reached the first stage, I knew I liked the piece as is.
But I wanted to continue working on it. I knew there was more to my vision. more to my impression, and more to be said. But it was also done.
The second piece has depth and texture and detail that is also exciting to look at - but it has necessarily lost the strong contrast of color.
The third piece goes on from there - capturing more of the original scene - truer to the experience - truer to the original intent - but not necessarily a better finished painting than the other two.
Perhaps their art prints should be displayed in sequence as some sort of triptych - and commentary on when to call it done.
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Relevant Tags:Art Prints, call a piece finished, digital painting, finished painting, impression, original intent, prints, triptych, vision, when is art finished
March 23rd, 2006 by admin
Color, Doing Without Ingredient, Experiencing New
Black & White Vision - Full Size - Digital Painting 2006
I generally paint using color. Color for me is much of the fun. I find great joy in using color. To paint with only black, white, and grays, however, is also fascinating. It is an exercise perhaps like cooking without garlic - which will of course be lost on those who don’t care for garlic.
But the idea - is that it requires one creating without an ingredient one depends upon.
I didn’t set out to do an exercise. I woke up with a vision of the mountains and this bold white area. It wasn’t a completely clear vision, but it was without other color.
It was enough to make me feel like I had to embark on this piece. And even in its finished state I am tempted to add color - another thing I don’t normally do. I am not sure about it yet - but if I do - the “colorized” image will be along soon enough.
And if I do, I hope I pull it off better than adding color to black and white movies - well at least the ones I have experienced - but then who else’s experience are we to draw on?
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Relevant Tags:black & white, color, creating without ingredient, digital painting, doing without, drawing on experience, vision
February 22nd, 2006 by admin
Art at a Glance, Interpretation and Limits
Hoe Dance - Digital Painting 2005
This digital painting is another piece from the NEW Figures Art Gallery. The piece is based on a drive by glance at two field workers hoeing in unison - no one else close by - working one in front of the other - the motion a dance.
Whether I pulled off their synchronicity or not, I can’t very well say. But I did manage to get their proximity and aloneness in the field.
From an art perspective, the fields have this wonderful texture - creating a blanket which we don’t normally view fields as - but it is often how I see.
The figures also have something pretty unusual going on. Though not intended to be anatomically accurate - they nevertheless carry a power and resolve which I am pleased came through.
When I do figures, I generally create them in one stroke of the mouse and then fill in and embellish as necessary. This partly came about because of the medium itself - not allowing for more than one correction back - as though oil painting were less forgiving. Though to some extent I can fix and patch and correct - there are limits to it - and as I keep saying limits are valuable.
There is complexity and naiveness in this art. The medium, my physical skills, and vision all provide limits and this gives the work a lot of its unique character.
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Relevant Tags:anatomy, blanket fields, digital painting, figure, Glance, naive art, Physical Limits, texture, vision
