Flowers

Flowers are not a commonly featured subject in my work, and while I don't anticipate making them a fixture of my future portfolio anytime soon, I thought it might be nice to make them a subject of a picture or two.

I have had very little experience depicting them flowers in any form, I looked at this situation as an opportunity to branch out a bit and experiment. A little research revealed that many of my favorite artists had tackled the subject, with widely varying techniques and approaches.

I envisioned doing several paintings, one looser and more expressive, the latter tighter and more formal. I decided to work on the more experimental picture first. This picture was based on a visit to the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, and was a combination of real visits and studio work.

This picture came out very different than I expected, and I may work on it a bit more in the future. It did teach me a lot of things that turned out to be valuable in the more formal painting that I completed later on.

This small painting was recently done while I was at the Art Students League. Time and space were tight, so I chose to do a small figure painting, rather than a portrait.

It is interesting to revisit the figure,  from the vantage point of everything I have learned and experienced over the years. The classical atelier studio imparts a certain feel and character to my work.

Picture Framing

Earlier this month, I needed to have a picture ready for a show, on short notice. The tight time frame mean that I could not order a frame and have it ready by the deadline. I chose to build the frame on my own, for the first time.

I chose a simple design, that could be made from basic wood stock. The wood I chose to use was poplar. For a decorative flourish, I rounded over and recessed each corner of the frame. This was done using a cover bit on a router table. A recess was also needed for the underside of the frame, in order to hold the picture. This I rough cut first on the table saw, by taking multiple passes, until a quarter inch slot had been cut. This was finished of on the router table so that it was uniform. The work can clearly be seen in this picture of the side profile:

The next step was to cut all four pieces to size, and miter the corners so that the frame could fit together. Getting good miters is a tricky operation. All four corners need to be exactly 45 degrees, and all equal sides must be the same length. Any errors multiply on all four sides.

I did the miter cuts on a table saw, using a miter gauge. The angles were set accurately, using a drafting triangle. Each side of all four pieces were cut in sequential order. To ensure that each side was the same length, I clamped a stop block to the miter gauge. Each piece was held against the block so that they were run through the saw at a fixed distance from the blade.

The finished pieces were carefully glued together using my framing clamp. The frame was left to cure overnight.

I picked out a wood stain that I thought was complementary to the picture. The stain I chose was semi-transparent, so that some of the wood texture and color would show through. I applied several coats and wiped it smooth.

Overall I'm pleased with the results, and I consider making more frames in the future.

Finished

The Forest
Oil on Canvas 24" x 16"
This painting is available. Contact me.

Status Update

Here's a small update on the status of my forest painting, which I was able to work on a few more days. This picture is taking on a more literal, technical feel than I perhaps envisioned at first. There is always a tug of war going on behind the scenes, between the urge to bombard the viewer with detail, and to hold back and perhaps be more subtle. A highly-detailed technically polished piece can be very impressive and highlight an artist abilities. It can also reduce a pictures ability to express and communicate a specific emotion or idea. I try to make my pictures mysterious, and quite often that is more about what I choose to highlight and leave out of my pictures.

This picture has been a combination of different techniques. In some places I've wiped down lighter areas, in others begun to apply thicker paint. I've oiled out the darkest areas in the shadow of the foreground, and will mostly leave those alone now. The finishing touches on this piece will be to push the contrast higher, especially the trees in the background that are obscured by shadow.