watercolor 121 /morning trail walk /  by Philip Tarlow

watercolor 121 at the end of my painting day

on the trail this morning

4:06 PM: today is rosh hashanah, the jewish new year. my dad always said that the 10 days between today and yom kippur is a time to meditate on the coming year; our dreams, our vision….

today i go a late start; we didn’t return from our walk until just before noon, so i didn’t have much time to get any work done. in addition, after the news of justice ginsburg’s passing, we didn’t get much sleep so at this point we’re pretty zonkered.

this new watercolor 121 may undergo modifications tomorrow when i’m fresh, and we’ll see if i continue to employ collage, as i did with watercolor 120.

more work on abstract random 1 and watercolor 120 /  by Philip Tarlow

produce at suzanne & kent’s gig at the kiosk today

3:22 PM: i went back into abstract random 1 as well as watercolor 120 and spent the entire day on them. i think they’re both greatly improved and, for me, visually compelling. i have to run right now, but maybe i can write more about what happened today after we run into town and get more of the delicious local tomatoes at the kiosk, from our friends for years, suzanne and kent. right: right

6:42 PM: over the past 2 decades, there has been a clear evolution in my painintgs inspired by the creek.

this is very apparent in the paintings BELOW:

left: 2001, creek oil linen, 50x50”

right: 2020, creek oil 1, oil on linen, 26x78”

this evolution is also very clear in my current watercolor series. while only 5 months separate the two watercolors you see here; the one of the left was painted this past april and on the right, watercolor 120, which was completed a few hours ago. it’s revelatory even for me to make these observations more consciously as a result of this very post. i need a bit more time to digest this, but it did become clear to me today that the only way i could take this next step was to use use collage.

abstract random 2 in process / watercolor 120 /  by Philip Tarlow

abstract random 2 15 x 20”

2:44 PM: i completed abstract random 2 as well as a watercolor i started yesterday. interesting to see how they are influencing each other. i don’t think, for example, i could have made this watercolor had i not been considering the possibility i might cut it into little squares later on.

watercolor 120 10 x 13”

i learned a lot making random abstract 1 yesterday; mainly that the size of the squares i cut needs to be slightly larger, this one i completed today is much easier on the eye. it’s a lot more like good jazz, where the spaces, or pauses, function in a similar way as the pauses between in and out breath.

watercolor 120 is perhaps the first in this series that doesn’t reveal that the source of inspiration for these marks is the creek. it’s taken many months to get to this point, and a lot of it could be considered a gift from covid 19. i’m feeling much less pressure and urgency to call this person or make that appointment. pure creativity loves this space, as long as we are fortunate enough to have a roof and food and, in our case, very clean air to breathe. the past couple of days have been an exception, as our valley has filled with smoke from the wildfires blazing in neighboring states. but the air will clear once again tomorrow, when the wind shifts.

at work this morning on Abstract Random 2

12:41 PM: emboldened by my experiment yesterday, i’m starting a larger composition & getting ideas for future directions.

newly adjusted digitized slides of past paintings / abstract random /  by Philip Tarlow

random abstract 1 12 1/2 x 8” gouache & watercolor on paper

3:10 PM: so what have i been up to since i adjusted the photos of early paintings you see below? i felt in the watercolor mode, so i started 3 of them, going from one to the other so as to switch it up. each of them had strong passages, so i cut them, along with one i did a few days ago into squares, face down on the cutting mat so as not to let the images influence where i made my cuts. the pieces are more or less square, which is a significant aspect of what i was up to. leaving the pieces face down and shuffling them like a deck of cards, i put some sticky tape on the back of each piece i chose and then flipped each piece over and stuck it somewhere in the evolving composition. some of course were blank, or almost so. i used my intuition as to where each piece would go, rather than making my decision by evaluating the entire evolving composition.

the result is posted on the LEFT.

Dr. Anthony F. Gregorc, is the creator of the Mind Styles™ Model of learning types, and according to that model i am somewhere between abstract random and concrete random. this may, in part explain what i just did, and why i did it. i find predictability, especially in art, deadening.

11:45 AM: this morning i checked out a small memory card containing digitized slides of past paintings. i had adjusted them when they were first digitized and hadn’t looked at them since. with the new desktop and the latest photoshop updates, i was able to make better adjustments.

the first 4 were painted in my athens studio overlooking the tower of the winds, in the plaka neighborhood, 1973-78. the view from my studio window can be seen in the painting on the 2nd row, right. on the top left, an almost completed (my easel, for example, hasn’t yet been painted in) painting that includes some of my favorite construction worker models. kyriakos, in the center, was a street cleaner who would come and pose for me. the others were workers from a nearby construction site. this painting was purchased from a 1974 exhibition i had at ora gallery, which no longer exists, near constitution square in athens. the woman who purchased it is no longer alive, and i can’t track down where it is. that’s a real shame, since it’s the final painting in a series i made over years.

according to Dr. Gregorc’s Mind-Styles™ model, i would fall into either the abstract random or concrete random mind style. it’s neither here nor there, but it could be an interesting way of understanding what i just did, and why i did it. i don’t like predictability. i think it’s deadly, especially but not only in art.

eight workmen with the artist painted in my athens studio in the plaka neighborhood, ca. 1975, oil on linen

in the 3rd row are 2 paintings done in andros, where my then wife, mother-in-law & son dimitri spent our summers. 3rd row left: the village of menites, a few kilometers from the capital, chora. and 3rd row right: a painting title calling home. this was the only long distance phone booth on the island, in front of the newspaper shop in the main square, kairis square, owned and run by my dear friend andonis polemis, a quirky, very funny, very intelligent guy, full of life. he published the only newspaper on the island at the time, which he printed on his hand operated press.

on the 4th row left: a painting in egg tempera on board inspired by a photo i took of myself and the deck of david hockney while i was house sitting for him in his hollywood hills home. he purchased it, and it’s now part of his collection. and bottom right: a painting also in egg tempera on board, of a reclining figure at the municipal building in northampton, mass. i know northampton well, as it is just 14 miles from huntington and norwich lake, where i went to camp from the age of 5 until i was 16., when i was no longer a camper and became the driver, going to and from northampton to pick up mail and groceries in the (camp) birchwoods station wagon. for more details, visit my story page in the drop down menu, above, or, go to this link: https://www.philiptarlow.com/chatty-bio

bottom row: one of a series of paintings of nyc architecture i made in the early ‘80’s, when i was living and painting in nyc, on central park west, and showing at fischbach gallery, located at the time on 59th street.

tweaks to 9/12/20 creek oil / watercolor 119 /  by Philip Tarlow

watercolor 119 10x13” on archesI watercolor paper

2:53 PM: after tweaking 9/12/20 creek oil, BELOW, i felt the juice for a new watercolor. what, another one?? that makes 119 watercolors! what kind of nut-job are you, tarlow?

well, ya see going back & forth between oils and watercolors seems to loosen up my strokes….AND my palette! if you look at the earlier ones in the series (click on 2020 watercolors in the dropdown menu) you’ll see what i mean. i’m definitely dancing and singing in many of those, but in this one i’ve hopped on my UFO and am winging my way into space. isn’t that red accent in the middle killer?

9/12/20 creek oil following a few final adjustments

2:51 PM: and one last little tweak.

DETAIL: the dark blue wavy marks were scraped and white highlights were added

12:09 PM: upon entering my studio this morning, i noticed that the central band of foamy, bubbly water in 9/12/20 creek oil was too harsh and not integrating well with the rest of the painting. i just now made a few changes. i’m going to move on to something else and see how i feel about it towards the end of the day. BELOW is a comparative view of yesterdays state on the left, and todays, moments ago, on the right.

if you make the images larger by clicking on them, then toggle back and forth, you’ll see the differences.

9/12/20 creek oil continued /  by Philip Tarlow

9/12/20 creek oil 16 x 16” at 2:30 PM today

2:29 PM: clearly, stage 2 needed more work. it wasn’t hanging togetger, hadn’t found it’s identity, it’s note. scraping & wiping & then working into it may have worked; i’ll know better tomorrow. when i cast glances at it right now, sitting on one of my easels, it makes me happy. good sign, no? the wiping & scraping brought some of the blue into the white, and visa-versa.

1:44 PM: i’m continuing work on the painting i started yesterday: 9/12/20 creek oil. i softened the blue and white of the middle band of roiling creek water, added a rock on the lower band and added to the upper band of forest and trees. BELOW: yesterdays version on the left.

painting over yesterdays 3 oils, starting fresh /  by Philip Tarlow

2:50 PM: yesterdays three oils were not successful, so i painted over them all and started fresh on a new canvas. i had a good conversation with my friend t.s., which somehow helped me in my process. in this new one, i’m working from one of my favorite creek photos, shot months ago on one of our walks. it has three distinct horizontal bands of activity, and the water has formed those white bubbles i so love, but a lot more of them than we usually see in the roiling creek waters created during spring snowmelt and runoff.

yesterdays experiments had all become far too busy and removed from my style of painting. i needed to have fresh white canvas showing in some areas and to be able to paint in the spontaneous manner reminiscent of fresco painting, as i love to do. we’re taking a trail walk soon, so i’m wrapping up for the day and will continue tomorrow.

split tree / ongoing work on my 2020 creek oils series: changes to 2020 creek oil 6 /  by Philip Tarlow

1:18 PM: i made some changes to 2020 creek oil 6 just now. BELOW upper left: how it looked before the changes; upper right: first round; lower left: 2nd round; lower right: 3rd round; BELOW: current version, following a complete scrape-down, wipe-down with solvent and the addition of more white bubbles. it’s as if the entire image has weathered a storm and come through the other side a bit less cocky, more empathic and rich with experience.

time to stretch 4 more 16 x 20” canvases.

2020 creek oil 6 following a round of changes & scraping, with addition of a few more white bubbles

10:06 AM: this morning we noticed one of the trees next to our driveway had split apart due to the seight of the 8” of wet snow that fell with the unusual snowstorm a few days ago. i appears there was a lot more snow up on the peaks, and we’re hoping this takes us out of severe drought.

i’m about to meditate and have my coffee & toast before continuing my 2020 creek oils series. will post pics when available.

plein air 3 weeks ago / continued work on 2020 creek oils / a word about dekooning /  by Philip Tarlow

ABOVE left: 2020 creek oil 7 right: 2020 creek oil 8

2:57 PM: just finishing up my day somewhat early, as we have to drive to town to pick up our produce. i worked on yesterdays 2020 creek oil 7, switching off between that and the new 2020 creek oil 8. while they are both evocative of the creek, neither is as descriptive as the watercolors.

2020 creek oil 7 after scraping this morning

12:56 PM: just now getting to work with my fresh start of day energy and unbounded dreams. i’m currently scraping into yesterdays version of 2020 creek oil 7. i like it a lot more in it’s current scraped over state than yesterdays version.

deKooning in his nyc studio with one of his woman series

why is that? well, are you familiar with deKooning? his aesthetic is evident here. take a look online & you’ll see what i mean. deKooning was known for constant scraping of his paintings, painting over them and repeating this until he was satisfied. he’s not really an abstract painter, as his core image, particularly in his woman series, was always evident. it’s all about the unexpected amd unpredictable. but, and this is very important, underlying is an exquisite level of draftsmanship. look at his early drawings of his wife elaine, and you’ll see what i mean. he was a great draftsman, and his skill is always evident, no matter how distorted the image might be.

9:13 AM: seems like 3 years ago, but just 3 weeks ago i was out at the creek painting plein air. in past years this fall season was the ideal time for me to be out at the creek. so once the weather clears and returns to normal, for the month temperatures, i’d liek to go back out and see what i do, after all the watercolors i’ve made latelt in my studio. it’s always fresh and new, being out at the creek, so it may be that next week i can venture out again. i’ll be a bit late getting to my studio this morning, but should make it by 11-ish, and post updates to the oils i’m currently working on.

BELOW: 2 paintings in gouache on arches paper made at the creek last month on august 15.

creek oil 7, day 2 / snow meditations /  by Philip Tarlow

BELOW: left: DETAIL of 2020 creek oil 7 center: at work this morning right: todays palette

3:34 PM: here’s what it looks like at the end of my painting day, as the skies again cloud over and we prepare for more welcome snow tonight.

9-9-20 2020 creek oil 7 1-11pm.jpg

1:08 PM: day 2, stage 2

BELOW left: todays palette, right: at work on 2020 creek oil 7

12:41 PM: still in the early day flow. here’s where 2020 creek oil 7 is at right now. more later my friends!

we had about 8” of snow last night. more expected late tonight.