Wednesday, December 15, 2010

At the beginning again


The show went wonderfully. 
After a moment to catch my breath and set my course, I begin again.  That's one of things I love about art - investigating what tugs at you,  drawing the map as you go along. 

I'm heading into new territory that's autobiographical and archetypal. I'll be tackling images that include landscape, interiors, still life and portraiture.
The first piece is from a photo I took 19 years ago. It was Halloween and and Robert was carrying my son down the street.

The first pass that laid in the street, sidewalk and some of the shrubbery.

Image

Yesterday  I added the skeleton suit and the lion costume.
Image
Today I worked on Parker's face, the landscape next to the house on the left, and the skull mask.
Image

Here's a closer view of the heads.
Image

My plan is for the background to have that hazy nimbus feel, like the Harrow painting, and the two figures to catch the eye with more sharpness and detail.

This image is about what lies beneath father/son relationship. This kind of thing - the actaul story, the metaphorical fable, the image, the fact I kept it for 19 years, and knew I wanted to paint it almost as soon as I knew I wanted to paint - is why I love art.