11:48 AM: in searching through the hundreds of paintings in gouache and watercolor on paper, I came across this one of our house interior, painted in 2006, gouache on paper, 15 1/2 x 6”
if you compare it with my current series: anschutz from above, in oil on linen, you will notice a clear connection. the patterned forms created by the light & shadow falling on the walls, the floor & the staircase of our house reveal a similar sensitivity to light falling on architecture. in this one there are no figures and the color scheme, typical of the work I was doing at the time, consists of muted beiges and whites, with a touch of red in the flower pot on the lower left. but in the 2020 photo from above I shot of mikela watering our plants (see the above photo), there’s a clear continuity of my ongoing passion for views from above, often involving architecture.
recently, i’ve been capturing images of tennis players from above from the currently broadcast french open matches. as I recognize the extent and depth of this passion of mine, I think more paintings will appear in this vein, departing from earlier manifestations in my use of bolder colors and abstracted, expressionist marks.
nadal serving yesterday during the french open
anschutz from above 8 at 11:30am, following further tweaks
11:42 AM: I made further tweaks to anschutz from above 8, toning down the red behind and above the seated figure, defining her legs and the book she’s got on her lap and adding a triangular green architectural element above.
anschutz from above 8 as it looked following this morning’s tweaks.
10:42 AM: upon looking closely and critically at anschutz from above 8 yesterday afternoon, both mikela and I agreed that the seated figure needed to pop more; she was getting lost in the overall architectural marks.
so I went back in and further defined her. now that i’m looking at it online, I think that red needs to be toned down. it’s a fine line between having the figure pop, and having it so strongly defined that it draws the eye away from the totality.