2 drawings made 2 days ago in salida /  by Philip Tarlow

5:19PM: two days ago we were having dinner in salida and i made a couple of drawings; one of a dog who was very interested in everything going on in the restaurant and the other of a woman sitting next to us in a colorful blouse.

although these were made very quickly and are not as rich as some of my travel drawings, they’re meaningful to me as a reminder of just how much i love drawing. i don’t think, i just draw. my colored pencils, which are always with me, move over the white surface as if they were receiving directions from an unknown source; always listening and ready in seconds to change direction or pressure. most kids make beautiful drawings for exactly the same reason; they’re not thinking, they’re allowing the pencil, crayon, brush top go where it wants to go, for as long as it wants.

morning clouds over the sangres /  by Philip Tarlow

10:45 am: on my way to the studio i photographed these beautiful cloud formations over the sangres. this could be an early sign of the predicted afternoon thunderstorms.

8/17/25 salida watercolor day 2 /  by Philip Tarlow

2:53 PM: i’m taking it slow with this one, which has a very delicate balance. no collage on this one. we’ll be back in salida soon, and maybe i’ll revisit this restaurant and take a deeper look at the colors and composition.

8/17/25 salida watercolor 15x6 1/4”, day 2

"8/16/25 watercolor/collage", 15x16” becomes "study of 1966 Diebenkorn yellow collage" / 8/17/25 salida watercolor day 1 /  by Philip Tarlow

11:30 AM: i ‘ve had my Diebenkorn book open to this page for a few weeks now, and look at it every time i pass by the table.

so this morning, as i was working on the collage/watercolor i started yesterday, it unexpectedly transformed and became what you see here: a study of Diebenkorns 1966 yellow collage in crayon & pastel. i’m still in a bit of shock at what just happened, so give me time to integrate.


1:56 PM: this afternoon i started a new one, 15x6.25”, which for now at least is a watercolor, with no collaged elements. it’s inspired by a photo i shot a few months ago in a small restaurant with indoor & outdoor seating in salida, which is a one hour drive from crestone.

16x15” study in crayon and pastel of diebenkorn’s 1966 yellow collage.

"8/16/25 WATERCOLOR/COLLAGE", DAY 1 /  by Philip Tarlow

8/16/25 watercolor/collage, 15x16” on arches watercolor paper, as she looked at the end of my painting day today

3:20 PM: this morning i started a new one: 8/16/25 watercolor/collage, 16x15” on arches watercolor paper. thusfar there are only a couple of collaged elements. i’ll pick up where i left off tomorrow, although it’s always tricky to go back into something so fresh and vibrant! looking at it now on my East wall, it literally sings!

that said, i’ve learned when it’s time to stop, and that time is now.

"in Motion III" day 2 /  by Philip Tarlow

in motion III, 16x15” watercolor & collage on arches watercolor paper as she looked this afternoon

2:37 PM: in motion III has gone to the next level this afternoon.

BELOW: yesterday’s version on the left

"in motion III" /  by Philip Tarlow

in motion III, 16x15” watercolor & gouache on arches watercolor paper, as she looked moments ago

3:55 PM: this morning i got involved in rearranging some of my recent collages, displaying some of them on my North studio wall, beneath a row of cabinets. i’m considering showing them at some point, and wante dto get an idea of how they would look together., including the new, smaller one i started and completed yesterday.

finally, a few hours ago, i took a piece of 16x15” arches watercolor paper i had cut from a larger sheet last week, and, not knowing where i was headed exactly, began a gouache/watercolor inspired by the same photograph i worked from in making my two in motion paintings in oil on linen, last month. at first i thought i couldn’t create the play of light and shadow i did with the two oils. buut i was wrong. again. it’s only day one, but i think it’s coming along nicely. so i’ll pick up where i left off tomorrow.

"8/11/25 collage" tweaked again today / 8/13/25 collage /  by Philip Tarlow

8/11/25 collage, 12x14” on bristol, as it looked following this morning’s tweaks

1:08 PM: yesterdays tweaks to 8/11/2025 collage still wasn’t doing it for me, so i continued work this morning. the red top on the female figure to the right seemed too dominant, the face on the right too distracting and the area to he left too busy. so now, from about 18 feet, it seems more coherent as a composition, and less descriptive.

BELOW: yesterdays version is on the left

3:33 PM: after tweaking the 8/11/25 collage, i made 8/13/25 collage, which is 8 1/4 x 4 3/4” and is complete.

8/13/25 collage, 8 1/4 x 4 3/4”

"8/11/2025 collage" tweaked today /  by Philip Tarlow

8/11/25 collage 12x14” on strathmore bristol, as it looked moments ago, after adding the shadows beneath their feet

BELOW: before (left) and after today’s tweaks

1:43 PM: when i brought 8/11/2025 collage to the house yesterday, mikela and i gazed at it and her always sharp eye focused in on the dark area between the heads of the couple and found it too dark, distracting from the flow of the composition. so i worked on correcting that this morning, as well as adding a highlight to the red garment of the female figure. as well, collaging a blue strip of color on the right, balancing out the upper & lower blue strips. blue gouache with tiny white dots was added between the couple, which in tlhe original photo i was inspired by, was a blue glass floor. lastly, beneath their feet a violet shadow has appeared which, if you could see the actual collage, plants the couple, who were kinda floating, on terra firma!

10 more drawings / 8/11/25 collage /  by Philip Tarlow

yesterday i posted 12 drawings made over the past 50 years. here are 10 nore

8/11/25 collage, 12x14” on strathmore bristol

1:21 PM: today i made a new 12x14” collage on strathmore bristol paper. it reached a point about an hour ago where it became far too busy; something that happens often and i should, by this time, be used to. but obviously, i’m not!

so this time when it reached that point, i was inspired to take a piece of 8.5x11 paper and make a drawing of one of my favorite images. it’s one that has appeared in many of my recent works, of a couple seen from behind and slightly above. she’s got her arm around him, with her hand on his neck and his arms are folded behind him.

then i cut out the colored pencil drawing, leaving some white space around the two figures, and collaged it to the center of the piece. i was kind of surprised at how beautifully it integrated and looks like the whole collage was made for this couple!

right now i’m thinking i won’t do any more work, take it over to the house and see how it holds up in the company of the other recent work. i’m feeling that i’m just now discovering my own version of abstract realism that coincides with the nature of my personality as much as with my mark making.

The preparatory marks in black & white and colored ink that i make and then cut into pieces before i start a new collage play a vital role. the variety of marks; some made with bambool pen, others with various size fan brushes, give me an array of possibilities. where and when i collage them is purely a gut feeling, taking into account the entire composition but without plotting and planning.