Dec 14, 2016
A couple of things here today as I’m catching up a little on missing the last couple of weeks.
And here’s what I was doing Saturday night.
November 7, 2016
Another shot at geometric shapes – this time done monochromatically. And I think I’m declaring the first of this series of 6″ X 6″ canvases complete…
November 1, 2016
Another reclaimed canvas – this time with lemons. Again, not that pleased, but it is what it is. I played a bit more with my 6″ X 6″ canvases too. And I think those went a little better…
October 24, 2016
Another painting on a reclaimed panel – not as successful as last week though – I seem to struggle with the illusion of volume when I’m dealing with darker coloured objects. Or maybe it was the variation of the colour of the apples that threw me. Either way, I need to go back and try another one of these next week, eliminating one of these two factors so that I can work through this. Hopefully I’ll do better next time. It’s all about learning…
My new work commute has me listening to podcasts and I have a new favourite – Revisionist History with Malcolm Gladwell. And this episode, which in Malcolm’s words is about “the role that time and iteration play in the production of genius, and how some of the most memorable works of art had modest and undistinguished births.” Very interesting.
October 17, 2016
This week I spent a little time drawing fruit and then painted more fruit on the weekend. I reclaimed a canvas board that I’d previously been playing around with and decided to incorporate what was already there into the new image. I like this idea and may have to try it again soon. It somehow makes it all seem less precious – probably because it’s not a blank canvas that I’m beginning with. And maybe the fact that I’m recycling something that wasn’t really anything to begin with. (if that makes sense) I took a few pictures along the way. Lots of glare on the finished piece – hopefully I can get a better shot of it down the road.
October 10, 2016
I spent the weekend out of town visiting family. With no time at home to paint, instead I’m posting two paintings from long ago that I found hanging on the walls of my mom’s and my sister’s homes. Both of them make me think I should play with similar ideas again.
The top image was an exercise in rendering shallow depth and a variety of textures with a still life built in a pizza box. There are so many things about this image that leave room for improvement.
Venus Averaged was one in a series of images inspired by the work of Chuck Close. My take on it was to break Venus up into a grid and then lay down the average of the colours that appear within that grid onto my canvas in the same grid location. Once complete, is the image still recognizable as Venus? Pushed further, at one point does the image become unrecognizable? It’s a little like seeing someone you know from a distance – how much detail do you need in order to recognize them? There were a few other canvases in this series but I don’t recall if I ever formed any answers to these questions.
Back home today I was able to spend a little time drawing and making notes about shadows.
October 3, 2016
“People need trouble – a little frustration to sharpen the spirit on, toughen it. Artists do; I don’t mean you need to live in a rat hole or gutter, but you have to learn fortitude, endurance. Only vegetables are happy.”
– William Faulkner
With an adjustment to a new job and a longer commute, I decided to take some time off from painting. And there was also that complete loss of inspiration to create any sort of artwork I’ve been experiencing. But back in my studio with the smell of linseed oil and the Russian birch panel in front of me I realize that I missed this. Regardless of whether I love or hate the product of my efforts, I need to keep coming back.
This painting is an exercise in rendering geometric shapes. I am hoping to focus on these shapes as my subject matter this month and see if I can’t develop some skill in creating the illusion of volume. Fortunately for me, it seems I have a lot of room for improvement…
September 12, 2016
I’ve added another layer to each of these pieces – all being a mix of Paynes Grey and cold wax medium. And these really are about layers. This is all about playing with the cold wax medium and transparency and I am trying not to get attached to anything along the way. The trick is going to be deciding when to stop.
When I looked at this one again, it seemed to have lost a lot of it’s brightness and I found it quite dull – so I decided to add a lighter colour and pull out the grid pattern a little more with a bit of Naples Yellow mixed with cold wax medium. And I dulled down a few areas with Paynes Grey mixed with cold wax medium. Looking at it beside last week’s version I’m not sure it’s an improvement. Too late now though. And I still don’t know which way is up (with the painting that is). I think today’s orientation emphasizes the cross that is emerging a little too much. I will try something else with it next week and see what happens.
September 6, 2016
This week I decided to play some more with cold wax medium and created a first layer on two 6″ canvases, and added a layer to another two 6″ canvases to repurpose them in a new direction. I don’t think any of these are finished though.
susanne semchuk 