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Sunday, February 28, 2010

Beyond the back fence



Still studying the complexities of trees, shrubs and grasses on the hill behind our house. It is an interesting challenge to try and imply what's going on. I have been looking at some of Richard Schmid's work, and I think it has infected me a bit. He often paints very complex trees in front of equally complex architecture, and does it beautifully. He sets the bar pretty high for his edge control, as well as a mixture of very tight, and very loose handling of paint in the same image. At this point, I'm just trying to paint a tree in front of itself. Research continues.
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8 comments:

  1. ti-igraMarch 1, 2010 at 6:38 AM

    O! I see again a beautiful day in the shade of trees!!! Even as the sun rays softly look between the leaves.
    Lovely composition with a small pieces of heaven! :-)
    I see you're using a dark gray in shadow, almost black, for contrast. I look and understand that this color really can be use. (I am always afraid to use too black).

    Very beautiful mood! :-)

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  2. Bill ConeMarch 1, 2010 at 10:11 AM

    Thanks Ti-igra, The image overall is a bit darker than I figured on, and depending on your monitor, may be downright gloomy. The foreground plane of grass could be lighter. That said, I am interested in the dark, shadowed spaces that are defined by the lattice of branches in the underbrush.

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  3. enbMarch 3, 2010 at 7:40 AM

    suuuper lovely blog.
    i too am excited about spring!
    all the best to you in the new year-
    cheers

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  4. Shane PierceMarch 3, 2010 at 10:43 AM

    oh man i love all those mid values with the darkest darks popping it! great stuff - thanks for sharing

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  5. Steve sculpts crittersMarch 6, 2010 at 8:18 AM

    Apparently the human brain enjoys trying to figure out shapes behind things like bushes in art (dates back to keeping an eye out for lions, apparently).
    Fiddly to paint though, I'm sure!

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  6. Bill ConeMarch 6, 2010 at 10:13 AM

    enb- Thanks. Green used to plague me... now I just embrace it and try to figure it out.

    Shane- The piece is a little too dark, I think, but I keep getting drawn into these kinds of spaces out there on the hill.

    Steve- I think the intricate pattern of the shadow
    recesses, or 'holes' is part of what is drawing my eye.
    It's a classic negative space kind of problem, as the shadow creates a stronger pattern than the objects themselves. I'm still trying to figure out how to express those patterns as part of a larger composition. More research needed!

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  7. Jala PfaffMarch 9, 2010 at 4:32 PM

    Yes, his bar is quite high but I think you're limbo-ing just fine.
    Very nice job.

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  8. Flat Roofing Contractors ChampaignAugust 10, 2022 at 12:41 AM

    Thank you forr this

    ReplyDelete