great artwork you don't see in art history books #5

During a random search on the Internet I came across an image of a tree. It was incredible. I immediately went to look for it's creator. I traced it to a man by the name of Eyvind Earle. An interesting fellow with a great personal story. He is worthy of a look.

The picture below is what has me typing this post. Of all his work, with many of his paintings superb, this painting of a series of barns has stuck with me. I think of it often. There is something about the angles, perspective and the position of the viewer that keeps me coming back.

There seems to be a whole lot happening with so few objects and so little detail. I love the dark shadow that falls across the lower right roof. It keeps pulling my eye around. The blast of light across the grass shoves you left over to the steep roof which start you back right. Wonderful movement. I always love an image that feels as though I would have never come up with the composition no matter how long I lived. Mr. Earle does this with regularity.

the Air Force 1 by Nike still rules as an impeccable design

I have always loved the look of this shoe. Nike came out with it in 1982. I was 12 (you do the math). I never owned a new original pair but bought a used pair of size 11 1/2 off of a friend (I wore a 10). They were a bit to expensive for a sixth grader. My love of their look has never faded. EVER! I have found that I am not alone with this belief/disorder. To show my love of the shoe and also my love of certain artists/illustrators, I set out to draw a serious doodled right shoe that drops in hints of illustrators that have influenced me.

Many of the marks are just whimsical ideas that happened as chance. As illustrators, cartoonists, or artists jumped into my head, I carved out a place to fit 'em in.

My owl from a graduate school poster project.

The whale squashed into the darkened sole was just a drawing of a whale. No influences. Just thought it would fit in the space.

Sorry about the image quality. Hope it doesn't detract from the time spent drawing this up. Sure was fun to stare at an Air Force 1 for hours at a time.

Sharpie on thick railroad board.

society6 and self promotion

I have waited some time before finding the time and location to begin to sell prints and other items that have my designs. A woman emailed me in hopes of finding a print of my Catcher in the Rye design.Someone who had seen it floating around cyberspace. I told her that her email would be the kick-in-the-pants that I needed to get this ball rolling! Well...I'm rolling.

I did some research concerning the proper places to promote myself. I am still limited in time and money. Etsy came to mind (and about three other locations). I settled on society6. They have amazing talent on their site and I must admit it is all a bit intimidating. I keep telling myself that I just putting it out there...no harm there!

I will begin with these four designs...they will all be rated g. They will be a mix of humor, straight-up typography, education and many with the "Live a Life of Learning" tag I have been working on....we'll see how it goes.

 

You can find out what's cooking in the upper right corner of this blog...just click and POW!

 

thanks all

great artwork you don't see in art history textbooks #1

Boris Lovet-Lorski...a Lithuanian who immigrated to the U.S. He lived all over the U.S. and a few years in Paris.

winged sphinx  (1930-1932) Egyptian granite
22 1/8 x 40 1/2 x 14 1/2 in. WT: 283lb. 

If you are ever in D.C. and have a long layover (really long) or an afternoon to kill, you can fill that time with an interesting walk through Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden. It is part of the enormous Smithsonian system of museums.

I happened to be aimlessly touring through the Hirshhorn about 15 years ago and my eyes stumbled upon this sculpture. My love for it was instant. It had so much refined design and stylized parts that it was a shock to my eyes. I was excitedly getting down at its level and looking at it from every possible angle. From the squared-off wings and those great shoulders and biceps to those four rib lines and that odd transition to the lion body, the entire piece held my interest. The stone color fits this futuristic robot-headed sphinx very well. All his choices were good ones. Though a bit dated by the Art Deco inspired design aspects found in the head area, I still find myself wishing that I had been the artist to pull this off. It is simply beautiful.

a sketchbook, a lousy memory and Vermeer

Without keeping a sketchbook, not only would I miss the chance to record the many strange thoughts and the occassional good idea that passes through my skull, but I would also forget huge chunks of my life. If I doodle during a meeting, cut an image out of a magazine or even tape in some artifact from an art exhibition, I lock in a solid point for quality recall. My memory leans heavy toward the visual. I'm sure I trained it that way but there is no turning back from that now. Without some sort of visual reference point, I struggle to remember most of what happens to me.

Here are a few pages from my sketchbook that let me remember even the most mundane of meetings (yes, it's true!, doodling a mess like this actually helps)...

...from a meeting that included budget info

...note taking from a meeting

...great taped-in inspirations from the Nutmegger Workshop

While looking thru my sketchbook for material that was needed for an upcoming blog post, I stumbled upon a pamphlet from my past. As soon as I saw this little bit of marketing material the memories flooded back...

...taped-in brochure from National Gallery of Art

About 17 years ago the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. gathered together 21 paintings. These 21 paintings brought tens of thousands of art lovers to our nation's capital.  We waited in line for hours to get tickets just so that we could wait in another line a few hours later. The temperatures outside should have kept most away but did little to defeat us. After finally escaping the cold, hundreds crammed themselves into a few rooms to get a glimpse at the handiwork of Johannes Vermeer (he only has about 34 paintings attributed to him). 21 paintings...but only one brought me to town. Only one kept me in line. Only one had me fighting off the burning cold....

View of Delft 1660-61

I remember showing some of my friends a copy of this image and they just didn't get it. They saw nothing more than some buildings, a bit of water and a few folks in the foreground. To be honest, looking at this image I'm about to post, I can understand why they may have thought that way. I'm not sure what had me so drawn to this landscape. But I can tell you that after seeing it in person, I was right in my instincts to feel the way I did. In fact, I could not have guessed how amazing it would be and how much my admiration of Vermeer's genius would grow. There is something about what little we know about this man that has my mind wondering beyond the image. I want to know more of what is happening beyond that golden roof which is glowing in the background. Why did he choose this moment to capture? The majority of the visible town is in shadow. With Vermeer, you're always left with more questions than answers. He did what all great people and things do...they remind us why we live our lives. Why we push on. Why we pursue. Why we perform. Why we try to get smarter. Why we try to outdo others. Why we bring children into this world and attempt to have them share in this wonder. Why we travel to another state, stand in line for hours and get squashed in a room just to see some painting of a city that doesn't even look the same anymore.

I used this Bob Dylan lyric in my brother's wedding and I find it fitting when thinking back to that four minutes (or so) that I stood before the View of Delft..."it frightens me, the awful truth, of how sweet life can be." I am approaching my 42nd birthday (half way to 84) and it is my hope that I have the honor of standing before many more great things with my wife and kids by my side.