1:41 PM: as i await my mentee, k., who will arrive at 2:30, i'm stretching another canvas for motion 24. this one will. like motion 23, be a larger version (38x38") of one of my 2014 plsin air oils. it will be drawn form one of the 16x16" paintings you see behind me on the wall. i haven't yet decided which one i'll choose. what's different about this one is that i'm using the expensive roll of portrait linen rather than cotton. i want to see what the difference is from motion 23, which was painted on cotton canvas,
continued work on motion 23 /
motion 23 36x38" oil on canvas
3:14 PM: i brought it back to the house for a few minutes to get mikela's feedback which, as always was very perceptive & spot on. it took only 10 minutes to make the changes she suggested.
this is the first time i'm doing something like this: making a larger version of one of my plein air oils, without making any significant changes. clearly, when you see the two together, there are differences, as you can see BELOW. the 16x16" version is on the left, the 36x38" one i just painted on the right.
1:53 PM: i'm continuing to work on motion 23, which is based on a 10/7/14 plein air oil. it's interesting dealing with issues of scale, and i'm not yet sure it will be successful. i'll continue for another hour or two, then give you my complete comments & observations.
working on motion 23; a larger version of plein air 10/7/14 /
2:37 PM: today i began work on something different in my motion series: a larger version of a previous plein air oil. but this time, instead of riffing & creating something quite different, i'm actually making a larger version of the original 16x16" plein air oil painted in 2014.
it's an interesting experiment, and one that's a lot more fun for me than i had expected. it may well lead to a new direction in my motion series, but it's a bit too early to tell.mi'm already getting a lot of value studying this earlier plein air painting & connecting with the spontaneity of what happens when i'm out at the creek, but in the relative peace & quiet of my studio,
3 new plein air gouaches /
5:20 pm: i ventured out to the creek today for the first time in a long time.it felt so good, i can't begin to tell you. i remembered why i'm making so many paintings based upon my experience of the creek; it simply feels like paradise! and today was an especially sweet day; no wind, perfect temperatue & humidity, and the light was amazing. not yet that harsh overhead summer light. rather, a soft yet sharp & crystal clear light that bathed the rocks, water & branches in a liquid glow.
i made 3 gouaches, stopping short, perhaps a little too short, of overworking them. lots of white space. if you make the image full screen & look in the lower right corner, you will see the exact time each one was painted.
stretching a 38x36 in. canvas for the largest plein air painting i've done /
1:54 PM: today, which by the way is my birthday, i stretched a 38x36" canvas, with the intention of making the largest plein air painting i've ever done. it's for a gallery in denver. they saw a 16x16" plein air, which is normally the size i use for plein air paintings in oil, and asked if i could make a larger version with these dimensions.
if i were to be standing out in a field or on some flat, easily accessible location, it wouldn't be such a challenge. but the creek-side locations i prefer are in rugged terrain, not easy to access or find a flat piece of ground for the easel. the coming days are forecast to be warm, in the '70's, with none of the very high winds we've been having over the past few weeks, and which are typical this time of year in our valley. stay tuned & i might just venture out tomorrow!
continuing work on potential commission /
7:30 PM: today i continued to search for and select paintings from many different periods & series for a potential commission for a number of site specific paintings destined for a large home in boulder. it's been an adventure, exploring forgotten realms of my work over the past few decades & trying them out on some of the walls, which i photgraphed on our recent trip. BELOW are some of those paintings. i haven't had time to identify each one & provide labels with dimensions, medium, etc.
evaluating possibilities for a commission /
4 PM: i spent today evaluating options for a potential series of commissioned paintings for a home we visited a few days ago. in doing so, i re-visited some of the work i've done since about 2014. BELOW are some of the paintings i'm considering for specific walls in this large home. The views from above paintings are part of a 2015 series titled ano kato, or topsy turvy in greek. the entire series can be viewed by clicking on the link below:
returning home with 2 new challenges /
sunset on 5/10/18 from our friend's house in edwards
2:41 PM: we returned last night exhausted after an intensive 3 days of back to back meetings, all of which were successful beyond what we had envisioned.
i have 2 new challenges; both exciting:
1) to begin creating maquettes for a series of paintings destined for a very beautiful large home in boulder. i love creating site specific paintings, so this does not in any way feel like work, but it's a challenge to conceptualize exactly what images will work best for which spaces. I shot a series of photos of the spaciousinterior with my iphone, which i just now adjusted & organized into a folder. my next step will be to begin drawing from a number of photo collages i made a few decades ago, when there was no digital photography, and beginning to create maquettes in gouache on paper, which i'll bring the client on our next denver/boulder trip.
2) to make a new series of plein air paintings in oil on canvas in 2 sizes: 36x36" & 36x40." these are larger canvases than i've ever attempted to paint plein air. accessing the sites where i like to go involves walking through some heavy brush & rocks, so getting the canvasses and my materials, easel & stool down there successfully will be a bit tricky. as will finding the right spot where i'm not bothered by direct sun & have the right terrain for setting up my easel on relatively flat ground (good luck on that) with no branches or rocks in the way.
this is a 16x16" plein air canvas, painted on 10/7/14 which is the direction i'd like to go with this new series. it's the right balance of descriptive & abstracted realism; the colors are the earth tones i love, which i used for 15 years while living in greece, and the mark making is beautiful, with nothing unnecessary, in the tradition of the 10th century chinese landscape painters i so admire.
2 drawings by a 7th grader in edwards /
1:37pm: these 2 drawings were made by a 7th grade student in edwards, colorado. i feel he shows lots of talent and promise, so we talked about the possibility of me giving him some mentoring when we're back in the fall. we'll learn a lot from one another.
a small tweak to "motion 22" / evaluating the series thus far /
11:40 AM: i had brought motion 22 over to the house for a final evaluation before bringing it to the gallery in denver, when i spotted an area that needed a minor adjustment.
there was a red in the center right of the composition that was drawing my eye to the detriment of the rest of the composition. it was not extreme, but since there's a good chance that this painting will be sold soon, i wanted to take this opportunity to fix it. BELOW are before (left) & after (right) pics.
in reviewing the motion series thus far, i see some distinct characteristics. below are 18 of the 19 paintings in the series, two of which are on paper. visit the motion page: http://philiptarlow.com/motion/ to view them all full page. all are derived from my plein air creek paintings; mostly the ones in oil on linen. you can view some of them on my plein air page if you scroll down past the ones in gouache on paper.
the biggest shift has taken place only recently. motion 22, which i just completed, is an example. the under-drawing has become a painting in it's own right, with just a very light application of oil colors. the result is striking, moving from intensely energetic, gestural paintings sometimes reminiscent of the abstract expressionist movement of the '50's, to a much lighter, although no less painterly rendering of the creekscape as a myriad of patterns, which give the impression of motion very differently.
