day 1 of "keep it fresh" 32x38" /  by Philip Tarlow

KEEP IT FRESH, 32x38” oil on portrait linen, at the end of day one

2:04 PM: mikela and i were playing around with possible titles for my april show in houston. one of them was keep it fresh,” which, whether i decide to use it or not, i’m naming this new painting on just stretched 32x38” primed linen. it’s the next to last piece i was able to cut from the 85” roll, so i’m ordering more.

so far, it’s blues, greens and sienna; no pinks yet. up top is a view out the high, north facing studio window.

modifications to celebration V" /  by Philip Tarlow

celebration V as it looked after rubbing out what i did this afternoon

5:18 PM: after leaving the studio i realized i had done too much to celebration V. so while mikela was preparing dinner, i went back to the studio & rubbed out everything i did today. a few other things were taken out along with what i did today. so i’ll go back in tomorrow.

celebration V 14x18” oil & collage on portrait linen, at the end of my painting day today

BELOW: celebration V on february 10 (left) and following todays modifications (right)

2:46 PM: i continued work on celebration V, which i last worked on 3 days ago. i think it’s more balanced and coherent now, and has some kinship with celebration VII. this may be a result of my collaging a few pieces of paper, one of which is a cutout piece of map. i did something similar with celebration VII.

celebration VII; letting go / celebration IV modifications /  by Philip Tarlow

12:25 PM: i was in a mood this morning. i grabbed celebration VII, which i had considered complete, and collaged a few pieces of paper i had drawn on for the purpose, as well as a piece of map.

the reason i say letting go” in the title of today’s blog post is that i had to enter unknown territory when i began collaging and painting over areas i had worked many hours creating. in the end, you have to sacrifice prized details and passages like that for the sake of the whole. so i let my brush take the lead, and simply followed where it was taking me, irrespective of whether i was painting over precious details.

there’s no road map for where i went. no process i could repeat. the result set me on my heels.

BELOW: celebration VII before (left) and after todays work

1:55 PM: on february 2, i had whited over the entire celebration IV, which i then painted over with some loose sketchy figures. just now i decided to go back into it. at the moment it may seem like a bit of a mess, but i’ll take it further on tuesday, since i won’t be in the studio tomorrow.

BELOW: celebration IV before (left) and after todays modifications

celebration VIII / celebration V re-work /  by Philip Tarlow

3:12 PM: celebration V had too much black, so i re-worked it just now & i think it’s hugely improved.

BELOW: the before & after todays re-work

12:29 PM: i cropped the image of celebration VII and one of those crops proved interesting to pursue as a new painting: celebration VIII. this is a preliminary sketch on the 16x20 linen canvas….let’s see where she goes next!

BELOW: on the left is this mornings sketch; on the right, where celebration VIII was at the end of my painting day

celebration VII lightened /  by Philip Tarlow

1:15 PM: celebration VII 16x20” as it looked following the work i did this morning

1:09 PM: we both felt there was too much black in celebration VII, so i worked on it quite a bit, taking out most of the black and revising the entire composition, so that it now sings. what’s most successful in this painting is how the two figures integrate with the basket of fruit and flowers, inspired by a photo i shot decades ago on the deck of a house we were living in in southern europe. if you check out the two details i posted, the fruit and flowers are more clearly visible.

celebration VII continued /  by Philip Tarlow

celebration VII 16x20” oil on linen as it looked at the end of my painting day today

1:53 PM: today i did extensive work on celebration VII. the composition is now rich with colors; perhaps most importantly the reds of the flowering cactus on the upper left and the blue checkered patterning below, playing off the checkered patterning on the sleeve of the handstand figure. both figures were inspired by the celebrations that took place following the 2020 olympics, where checkered patterning was a general theme, both in the clothing and the background sets.

celebration VII, day 2 / self portrait /  by Philip Tarlow

celebration VII, oil on linen, 16x20” as it looked moments ago

12:38 PM: i worked very gingerly this morning on celebration VII, which i started yesterday. i may do a bit more today, or wait till i’m fresh in the morning. what i added today, on the left, is drawn from a photo i shot at least a decade ago, of baskets of fruit outside a house we were living in at the time, i believe in california.

10 small canvases i’ve been working on over the past month

12:33 PM: i was rummaging through some old photos in my upstairs studio storage space and came across this photo of a self portrait. i don’t have a date or know it’s whereabouts, although it’s probably somewhere in the studio. my best guess is 2014, but it may well be earlier.

photo of a self portrait, oil on linen, date unknown

celebration VI continued / celebration V modified further /  by Philip Tarlow

2:47 PM: celebration V, 14x16” following dramatic modifications this afternoon.

2:44 PM: i’m moving back & forth between celebration V and VI. significant changes have just occured to celebration V, and i may have to sit with it till tomorrow morning to see where it wants to go next….or not.

the cactus flowers i made part of the celebration VI composition have appeared here as well, creating less of an architectural and more of an oriental feel.

celebration VI, 16x20”

12:42 PM: i continued the new celebration VI today, working into and enriching what i did yesterday. right now, she’s achieved an excellent balance of color, form and white space. so i think i’ll return to celebration V, which seems kinda tame after what i just did!