Who ‘dat?
I have always enjoyed contrast. Whether it be color, or value, or subject matter, I like to put things together that at first seem like they don’t belong together- but when viewed more closely draw us in. I placed a Venetian half-mask on a Hawaiian Tiki mask for my most recent painting and had a blast coming up with a composition that relayed a story for them. I liked the idea of something ugly trying to hide itself behind a veneer of beauty. I chose a background of deep space with many stars to symbolize both those who are already enjoying stardom and those who are enjoying a meteoric rise in popularity or power. As I painted this piece I reflected on how everyone tries to hide who they really are, usually as a defense mechanism. But, then I had to creep myself out by thinking of the term “Cult of Personality” and what that phrase really means.
As people ascend to power or popularity they do everything they can to distract us from who they really are. They put up a smoke screen to keep us blind to their real intentions or their real personality. If we get too close to figuring out who these people really are they put every media at their disposal into action to distract us with propaganda and misdirection. We see it in so many arenas: politics, the movie industry, the music industry, religious leaders, corporate leaders, the list goes on… If we were to get behind the veneer of beauty, celebrity, self-righteousness, and contrived back-stories in those we adulate I’m afraid we would not like what we see. And then we would have to question our allegiance and devotion to these individuals…. Now you can see why this thought creeped me out.
What’s an artist to do? A painting that started out as a fun exercise developed into something with deep and dark conotations. Oh well, so be it…
Cult of Personality - 24″x18″ - Acrylic on Canvas - Completed 1-1-09
Christmas 2008
This is the painting I spoke of in my “Decoy” blog several days ago. It is a gift to my wife for Christmas. This comes from a photo of Laura and me from 1985. It is my first attempt at a portrait in almost 2 decades. To make it more of a challenge, I chose to use only a palette knife to paint this one - as I have done for the past several paintings. As I told my friend Doug, I also made a rookie move - using a photo taken with a flash. It is very difficult to create contrast and definition when working from such. I think I pulled it off, tho. And, Laura seems to really like it…which is what it’s really all about. The title is not only a statement of fact, but also a tip-of-the-hat to the song by Queen - one of our favorites.
I hope you had a Merry Christmas and enjoy a prosperous New Year. -Don
You’re My Best Friend - 20″x16″ - Acrylic on Canvas - Completed 12-17-09
Merry Christmas
May Joy, Love and Peace be with you this Holiday Season.
With the state of our economy and all that’s going on with the finances, jobs and homes of friends and family I wanted to create a painting which acknowledges the holiday season while reinforcing the need to focus on joy. This painting will be the cover of this year’s family Christmas Card. To paraphrase and totally change the meaning of an old Christmas Carol, let us all allow Joyful to be Triumphant.
May Joyful Be Triumphant - 10″x8″ - Acrylic on Canvas - Completed 12/20/08
Decoy
Not only do we all wear masks, but we gild them to make them look even more valuable or desirable than they really are. We know who and what we really are, but as we present ourselves to others we want them to see us in a much better light. What better way than to distract them with a pretty and shiny surface?
I am painting a canvas which will be a gift to my wife for Christmas. I will post that finished painting after the 25th. To keep her in the dark about what I’m up to I needed a decoy painting to have on my easel which uses the same color palette. I went thru all of my pending designs and settled on the one for “Gilded”. It is a design I’ve had for quite a while trying to figure out just what I wanted to do with it. I decided to just go for it and see what came of it. Here are the results…
Gilded - 10″x8″ - Acrylic on Canvas - Completed 12/12/08
Autumn’s Pause
Summer’s gone. There’s been a chill in the air. The leaves have fallen. Decay is all around. The harsh cold of winter is right around the corner. In comes a warm breeze to remind us of summer past and of spring to come. With death and decay all around us there is still hope in the air. It’s Indian Summer. Enjoy the moment, and may its memory last thru those dark days of winter.
Indian Summer - 24″x18″ - Acrylic on Canvas - Completed 12-5-08
Indian Summer is a continuation of my palette knife series. This tool has opened up my eyes and psyche in ways I never even imagined. I feel liberated and on fire… not a bad combination, I might add…
High Times
After we’ve made it thru life’s valleys - after we’ve overcome adversity - after we’ve gotten past the obstacles life throws our way - it’s time to enjoy the highs that life can give us. Those high times are precious and should be savored. We must remember those times to help us thru the next valley which will surely come. It’s impossible to hold onto the high times for too long. The scenery from the peak is a beauty to behold, but the peak itself is jagged and precarious. Enjoy it while it lasts…
Peakin’ - 24″x36″ - Acrylic on Canvas - Completed 11/29/08
Life’s Valleys
During the course of our lives we go through many ups and downs. I’ve discovered that when we get into the valleys of life we have a tendency to focus on the obstacles in front of us and forget to stop and smell the flowers. If we’re not careful we can also forget to look up. How can we find our peaks if we’re not looking for them? I’m a firm believer that we need the valleys to truly appreciate the peaks. The balance is there…it’s just up to us to find it.
Down Time - 24″x36″ - Acrylic on Canvas - Completed 11-22-09
Spellbinding
This mask has been waiting on me to paint it for quite some time now. After much trial and error I finally decided on my color palette and started painting. As hard as that was, it was even tougher coming up with a fitting title for the finished piece. Several trains of thought were circling in my head: mesmerizing, hypnotic, organic, floral, regality, cold, hot… I had already spent several hours when the song “Miracles” by Fleetwood Mac’s Christine McVie came on. There is a line in the song which includes “Don’t break the spell”. When I heard that I wrote it down and continued my title search. After coming back to it over and over I finally realized, with a little help from my friend, CJ, that with one minor tweak this was my title. Her eyes draw you in and keep you riveted. You don’t want to turn away and “break the spell”. I wanted it to feel more personal and intimate to the viewer so I changed “the” to “this”.
Don’t Break This Spell - 12″x16″ - Acrylic on Canvas - Completed 11-17-08
For those keeping score, this is my 13th painting completed using primarily a palette knife to apply the paint.
Scooooorrrre!!!!
This is an exciting post for me. I just found out that my painting “Poetic Justice” received 3rd place in the International Society of Acrylic Painters’ online juried exhibit. This is a validation of what I’ve been working towards this entire year. In January I committed to being accepted into at least one juried exhibition before the end of the year. Here it is November and I’ve not only been accepted into 3 shows in the past few weeks, but now I’ve placed in one. Hard work and dedication do pay off… This solidifies my other commitment to paint every single night after my family retires to bed.
Poetic Justice - 3rd Place winner in the International Society of Acrylic Painters’ First Online Digital Open International Show. This painting and the other winners can be viewed at http://www.isaponline.com/showwinners.htm. Please stop by and check out all of the winners. There are many excellent acrylic paintings to enjoy.
Layers
In the movie Shreck, Shreck tells Donkey, “Ogres are like onions… Onions have layers”. I think the same is true for humans. We layer ourselves behind masks. Even when we reveal something about ourselves it’s tempered and sanitized. Do we truly ever put ourselves “out there” without holding back something? I am attempting to convey that thought in my most current painting, “To Know Me”.
To Know Me - 30″x24″ - Acrylic on Canvas - Completed 11/13/08