Desert Sunset I’m fairly certain that this will be the last painting I finish in 2007. I also thought that Gradients would be the last piece I’d finished in 2007. So, it is possible that I’ll be wrong again. This is another of those paintings that has been on the back burner for several months. Like most of my landscapes this is a moment in time.
With few exceptions, my paintings start with a preliminary drawing. Usually very basic, a simple line drawing just to keep me reminded of what is going where in the painting. The piece I’m currently working on also started with a drawing, one that I keep finding myself returning to, adding more and more detail which I know will be lost in the painting.
Somewhere along the line, the drawing became at least as important to me as the painting. It was only today that I realized that drawing is where my artistic journey began and just perhaps, it is a path on my journey that needs to be revisited.
I began drawing with purpose when I was about 14. I’ve always doodled but it was about that time that my sister remarked that some of my doodles were good, rough but good. I didn’t think that much about it, but I did actually put some effort into my drawings. I got better. Then I began visiting the local library and checking out books on art. I began to study the drawings of other artists and tried to duplicate them. I learned about proportion, light and color.
Painting became my primary focus. Drawing became part of the process of painting instead of a means unto itself. My drawings became simpler because they didn’t need to be that detailed. All I was doing with drawing is setting the stage for the painting to come.
Drawing can and should stand on its own. That isn’t to say that I will or have any intention of abandoning painting. But I do think that drawing as an art form deserves more attention than it gets.
Gradients Think crop circles on steroids and maybe some psychedelic drugs thrown in for good measure. In truth I was thinking about crop circles and space in general when I created this. All in all it is just me playing with gradients and shapes in Illustrator.
2008 Calendar is now available on Zazzle. A collection of 12 of my favorite pieces, well favorites as of the creation of the calendar.
image: detail of Bird On The Beach
