ONE PHOTO, LOTS OF PAINTINGS

 

January 2022 version

Propped up on my easel is a small photo of a landscape with a large tile-roofed house nestled against sun-dappled hills. I found the photo in 2017 in a newspaper. Something about the way the ragged edges of the trees drifting down the hills in waves of orange and green intrigued me. Because I didn't take the photo, I don't plan to try to sell it or exhibit the finished painting. Watercolor societies have made a tough rule: any painting submitted must either be from real life (painted plein aire or from a still life) or from a photograph taken by the artist. Using someone else's photo, even with their permission, is copying someone else's vision. Tough rule but painters who have skirted the rule have been thrown out of an exhibition.

This photo has been a good practice piece for me. The photo is now wrinkled with age but still holds my attention. I have tried many postcard-sized versions, including painting the image once a day for a month. I have painted value studies, used dry brush strokes, and wet-on-wet. Remember these are just sketches.

I practiced painting clouds, I outlined everything and moved in closer to the house. 

Eventually, I set the photo aside and it got lost in the detritus of my workspace. I unearthed it recently and decided to try again. My latest version shows some of the skills I have worked on, but I will try again another day. Looking at all of the paintings together, I see that some please me while others will go into my junk bin to be cut up and saved for later use. 

Thinking of a way to use some of those cut-up pieces, I was inspired by a book about Paul Klee, who is one of my favorite artists. He worked in watercolor, used geometric shapes, and calligraphic lines. African art and contemporary artists such as Picasso and Kandinsky influenced his work. My piece does not look anything like a Klee, maybe more like Klimt. I'm still working on it. I'm not sure about the sky.

Want to know more about Paul Klee?

https://www.paulklee.net

 Gustav Klimt?

https://www.klimtgallery.org

 or Kandinsky?

https://www.wassilykandinsky.net

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Good news for Contra Costa County in California: over 80% of the population has been vaccinated.

Just a reminder to stay safe:

over 900,000 people have died in the U.S. of COVID

in January 2022, over 82,000 people died in the U.S. of COVID (about 2700 per day and more than double the number of flu deaths in a normal year)

Hardest hit are the people who work with the public and who can't work from home. 

Let's keep protecting them.