These are two studies based on my sketches from
Mexico at our favorite snorkeling spot. They will be the source of a larger
studio painting. I am working out the design idea based on my sketches and
studies done on site, while relying on the memories of the place and the
connection I have to it. It is this visual
library of references that I will based the finished work on.
In the studio I ask myself a million questions – how to describe the shadow of these clouds, where is the horizon line seen and what colors are in the Caribbean Sea?, to name a few. Organizing all of the questions and answering them in a color study will aid me in the finished piece. I tried two versions based on my drawings with slightly different vantage points and lighting to establish the mood of the painting. With these I hope to create out of my mind's eye, my memories, and my feelings for the amazing place and experience.
One of the things I like most about a pocket sketchbook is
that, it's such a convenient way to explore the world through drawing. To use
our observational skills and record ideas.
In this small format I like to make quick sketches and
simplify, virtually creating thumbnail drawings where I filter what I need to
leave out and leave in to convey the subject.
Watercolors are a different way of thinking for me then oils,
they are much more spontaneous and erratic. I see painting with watercolor
as a type of controlled disaster, often you just have to let it do what it
wants, but then that is part of the fun.
I like to think of it as a drawing adventure and not get too
overcritical about them. Rather, to look at it as developing your vision and sit back and enjoy the process. In the end, everything you put in a sketchbook
is important because there are no mistakes, only lessons.
When you create a quick gesture sketch that has nice expressive and loose strokes which convey a sense of place, well that’s the big picture and
what really matters.
“The best way to have a good idea is to have a lot of ideas.”
- Linus Pauling
Sketches are in a Moleskine Watercolor Notebook (3.5 x 5.5 inch)
I’ve got to
tell you, there is no better way to boycott winter than to find a little patch of sand along the Caribbean Sea to occupy and just park it. Watch the
sunrise, watch the sunset, cold cerveza and do it all again. Palapa party!
Punta Nizuc
Reef Cancun Mexico - I could sit there (or lounge) all day and fill my Moleskine journals with sketches and
never run out of things to draw or paint. I have said this a thousand times, so
it does seem redundant, but the sea along the Caribbean in Cancun is one
of the most beautiful in the world, just amazing. I could paint it forever, exploring and studying the
colors, all the deep violets and endless cerulean blues.
There is no
better way to recharge than fresh air and fresh scenery. For me to just
scribble and doodle in a sketchbook in such a serene place, that is the best of
all worlds. I carried a couple of sketchbooks, a 3.5x5.5-inch pocket Moleskine, a
5.5x8.5-inch Strathmore Watercolor Journal and a small watercolor pad. I had my
old Winsor & Newton Field Box Set but used mostly a Lukas 1862 Artists Watercolors
set, it had a color palette that seemed perfect for the sea and sky.
I used a Rotring art pen loaded with Noddlers ink, both of which I really
enjoyed drawing with. And of course a couple of Pitt Pens and a clutch pencil.
Of course we
had to find Mayan ruins to explore and we snorkeled until my lips cracked. I think
my wife is really a mermaid and swims like a fish. What I really appreciate is her
patience with me when I am sketching on location, especially in El Rey where
she had to combat the giant iguanas.
I have been immersed in the studio working on a couple of commission pieces the last few months, so I thought it a good topic for this blog.
First off I have to say I recognize this type of assignment is not
for everyone and have even spoken with artists who cringe at the thought. The whole thing about giving up their artistic freedom for monetary gain comes up.
I get it, but at this point I start to hear a song running through my head, ..
The times are a changing.. Yes do you hear the music? Anyway I know commissions
are taxing and can really force you out of your comfort zone.
But this may not be a
bad thing.
Breaking Wave oil on canvas 24 x 36 inches
Detail - Breaking Wave
Many of the great artists through history worked on a
commissioned basis, just think of those prestigious large historical and
religious paintings hanging in the museum, the big narrative stories of Titian,
Rembrandt’s, The Night Watch or Gainsborough's
Blue Boy, Mark Rothko’s Seagram Murals, or Nelson Shank’s infamous Bill Clinton
portrait. Point being this type of patronage is not new, it just may not be as
common as in Titian's day. But as artists use the web and social media to build
relationships with collectors directly, and nurture the dialogue between, I feel this type of patronage growing and becoming a
necessary and welcomed part of an artist’s revenue stream.
Breaking Wave Sky Detail
After years of working with art directors and advertising
agencies, I may have a thicker skin than most. And may have a little insight
into how to deal with the clients or in this case the collector. The idea that someone wants commission work from you for
their home is a great honor and compliment, so roll with that idea. They
already like your work. So work out what it is they are interested in, what
attracted them to your work and what they think they would like to see and live
with. This is the sticky part of the commission concept, attempting to
visualize someone else’s vision.
Sketches and Color Studies
In this case I had several plein air sketches from Mexico painted along the Caribbean Sea that they were interested in. With these we were able to dial into what
imagery and the best subject matter they wanted, but in a larger format. This
would actually be a commission for two paintings which would be displayed together.
Using these pieces as a departure point I created several pencil and gouache
sketches, employing them to reinforce the design idea and to let the studies
evolve into original pieces in their own right.
Caribbean Dawn oil on canvas 24 x 36
Caribbean Dawn Sky Detail
I presented the sketches, we talked about them and did a
coffee table critic on what they liked and did not. This is important - Listen Carefully. I learned the hard way many years back doing advertising art,
listen carefully to what the client or art director is saying and you will do
fewer revisions. From those sketches I
produced a series of small 5 x 7 inch oil color studies on panel. In these I
worked out the color harmonies and imagery in a more comprehensive way. My goal
was to paint from the sketches and studies and not resort to photos.
As a artist I am most concerned with developing a visual
vocabulary through observational painting, having a genuine dialogue with the subject
and showing my honest responses to it. I feel this is the only path to developing
one’s own artistic voice. And from my experience photos get in-between all of
that.
Caribbean Dawn Detail
I also feel if you work diligently at painting and
drawing from life, you have created a storehouse of knowledge and memory to
fall back on. And the need for photographic sources is a sterile alternative. That
the art which inspires me relies on the balance of observation and memory,
balancing the real with the invented, the abstract with the literal, and is more
about the poetic statement rather than a journalistic rendering of the subject.
As far as commissions go, I have always stated - never take a
job just for the money. Even back in the day when I was doing commercial and
advertising art, if nothing in the project interests you, it will not turn out well. Besides there are easier ways out there to make
money.
A commission is about good communication, sketches,
thumbnails, patience and being upfront about expectations. Most of all, open
minded and wonderful patrons who support the arts and your efforts.
The following are some of the materials I have been
gathering for a pair of studio commissions.
The idea is a seascape diptych that would be hung in a specific space in the patrons home, and these drawings are part of working out the compositional
concept. How the eye would travel from one panel to the next and how each
individual painting will stand on its own have been the concerns.
I want to have a clear concept of the the elements in
each panel. Where the sky planes are and the atmospheric perspective. What is in
the foreground and middle ground, and still understand the whole. The best way
for me to do that is to work out a series of thumbnails and sketches. Gathering
as much reference material as possible.
Not only am I working out the technical aspects, but also the mood, emotion and harmony of the paintings. Exactly what I am trying to “say” with these two paintings.
Graphite and white gouache on toned paper. 5.5 x 8.5 inches
