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Thursday, November 21, 2013

Drawing Animals

Fawn...a sketchbook drawing
was the subject for our drawing class.  Animals are adorable.  They capture our interest.  But drawing them is just as difficult as drawing the human figure.....I believe that one has to truly understand the skeletal and muscular structure in order for the drawing to convince.  Using photos is inevitable unless, of course, the animal is asleep or innate for a long period of time.  We have to learn how to fill in the gaps....the legs that are not shown in entirety in the photo.  We also need to understand how to use the photo only as a reference and to alter the composition to the benefit the work, thereby avoiding the collision of body parts that makes a drawing visually confusing.  In this case, I used a photo that was cut off at the bottom.  My solution was to complete the work with strong, yet vague, line work.  In this case, I believe it works as the story is at the top, in the forward bend of the neck.  Details must be deferred until the end, as tempting as it is to focus on the spots.  In fact, class time was coming to an end even before I had a chance to consider the spots, so I brushed across the fawn's back with my kneaded eraser in the direction of the lay of the fur.  That would have to do.  Drawing allows for many discoveries and leads to even more questions.  Subject matter is always, for me, much deeper than the time spent in the primary consideration.  Everything takes longer than we expect.  Everything provides a possibility for more study.  Anything worthwhile deserves careful consideration as well as devotion.

I would like to carry this one further.....into a painting.

Monday, November 18, 2013

All That Glistens

All That Glistens   oil on burlap on canvas with gold leaf   24 x 18 x 1.5
was an experiment that, I think, turned out well.  I started out my fraying the edges of a piece of burlap that was roughly the same size as the canvas.  It was then glued down and rolled repeatedly.  Many many layers of gesso were painted on in order to allow the surface to receive paint, as well as to slightly (yes, slightly) smooth the very rough surface.  After painting the tree to my satisfaction, I realized that the image, although interesting, lacked a certain punch that I like.  The gold leaf circle was then applied.  That was very exciting and surprising, as the surface prevented a smooth application allowing for many small absences of the gold.  That pleased me so very much.  A happy accident!  Succinct and messy at the same time. All That Glistens is included in the holiday exhibition at Group Ten Gallery in Kent.

Monday, November 11, 2013

Unruly Things

Strings   oil on canvas   30 x 40 x 1.5
tickle my fancy.  It is also the name of my son's San Francisco-based band.  Unruly adds spice and character to our oh-so-smooth-and-perfect-wrinklefree existence.  The disobedient strand of hair.  The out-of-sync beat that catches our ears.  The desire to step out of the normal.  Check out Unruly Things at: Unruly Things

I was blessed with three wonderful sons who all possess the artist's soul.  Strings has been accepted into Kaleidoscope 2013, an exhibition near and dear to my heart, here in Akron, Ohio.

Strings that connect.  Strings that weave.
Heartstrings.  The jazz of life.