From Here to Eternity II

From Here to Eternity II, 12x24, oil on linen panel

As a movie I was watching was beginning recently, I noticed the beautiful abstract landscapes of the intro with the credits. The images were so abstract that they did not at first read as a real place in any landscape. I had to go back a number of times to really note what these photographs were saying. They so impressed me I decided to translate them in my own way. Here is the first of these images that so captured my imagination. I call it From Here to Eternity II for, I think, obvious reasons. The road is straight for miles without end. The film took place in Australia. The II is because I named another painting recently the same title, also of a road. In the blogpost it did not have that title yet.

It is a good vehicle for me to keep things simple; to try and add visual interest to very basic shapes.

I think it does beg the viewer to ask themselves some questions. For me, I was thinking about the road I am on. It isn't really as straight and narrow as I would like. In fact, the next painting from this movie inspiration is more like the road I believe I am on which is full of circles which I hope I can break out of soon to get on this road in the twilight of my life. Much calmer and straight forward.

Rolling Tundra

Rolling Tundra - Guanella Pass, oil on panel, 15x30

Last fall on a beautiful day, a friend and I went up to hike on Guanella Pass. We headed the opposite direction of most hikers who stop here. The more 'usual' hike is to go to Mount Bierstadt. There is no cover from the sun and as you continue to wander up the path there seems no end. Around every bend the path goes around some willows or another roll in the landscape. And then you stop to catch your breath and there lies before you these glorious colors. It was incredibly beautiful and this particular scene off to our left was a marvel to me. The fall colors of the willows looked like polka dots as they tumbled down the hillside in oranges, reds and purples. It was one of those clear blue, not a cloud in the sky, Colorado days.

I started this painting right after the hike itself, but so much has been going on. Finally finishing it just recently. I did saturate the colors just a little bit but not as much as you might think!

Growth and Renewal

untitled, 30x20, oil on linen

“It is with art as it is with trees, constant growth and renewal. Seeking new forms of expression is a vital necessity for art. When art doesn’t put out new shoots, it is dead.” Birger Sandzen, 1913

With this quote in mind, here is a piece that shows something different for me. I have been digging through my old works lately and I am surprised by what I am finding. Lots of good work hidden below. It energized me. My roots are more graphic and flat before I opted to move to the more representational arena.

For this painting I used a photo my son had taken of some old buildings downtown Denver. Since the same rules apply in abstraction as they do in any other painting, I was not only thinking what colors to use but also what colors were in which value group. I was also thinking about repeating patterns using the 'windows' and architectural details to break up the bigger shapes whether they were there or not. The light group is used to help move the eye around.

Here is the image in B and W to illustrate the values and how the colors group.

untitled in B&W

If anyone has a brilliant idea for a title for this piece, I would be happy to hear it. I am stumped. Thank you in advance.

Kicked off Vans

Vans, 16x12, oil on panel

I have been doing some major spring cleaning the past month or so and one of the projects led me to stored paintings of questionable value. Here is one I pulled out from that pile. I am seeing it with fresh eyes and thinking, 'now what is so very wrong with this little piece?' It is not so bad after all. I must not have thought it awful, as those get wiped off or painted over.

So, here is a study I did of a pair of Vans sneakers I inherited from my then teen-aged daughter. I had wanted to document them before I threw them out after miles of walking the dog in them. Oh good and faithful servants that they were.

What is it about shoes that I get so attached to? I sure enjoy painting my shoes. I have a very hard foot to find comfortable shoes for so when I find a pair that doesn't give me blisters or great pain. I am then so overjoyed, no matter how homely they may be.