New Painting: Childe Hassam-Inspired Self-Portrait

Here is the third of my 3 self-portraits, also 9 x 12" and in oil.  It is inspired by Childe Hassam, one of my favorite artists, an American Impressionist:

My Self-Portrait:  

This was actually the first self-portrait I painted, which took the longest, but I feel I learned the most from.  I waited to post this one because I thought I was going to add a plant in the window, as Hassam often does.  I never painted it in, because I decided the canvas was small enough and detailed enough already.

Hassam created a series of paintings of women (usually using his wife as a model) looking out of windows, and/or with plants that reflected the women, creating a sense of longing.  I wanted to paint myself in this way, staring out the window at the landscape in the morning, something I do all the time, and could do for hours!  There is something about the beautiful pink and blue morning light.  To me, looking at the landscape is reflective, bringing me peace and keeping me mindful of the present.  This is probably why I am most drawn to landscapes as subjects for my art.

New Painting: Alice Neel-Inspired Self-Portrait

Here is my second self-portrait that I did last weekend, this time inspired by Alice Neel:

My Self-Portrait:

It's another 9 x 12" oil painting.  I have always admired Neel's portraits for their rawness and seeming effortlessness.  Neel makes her portraits by having the sitter sit in a chair for a long period of time until they move into their most natural sitting position.  I thought in order to express what I really look like, I could depict my terrible posture when I am sitting on a stool painting for a long time.  I started out with a heavy blue outline from sketches I did of myself, exaggerating the curves and length of the body, and added light washes of color to complete it.  I think it is a fairly good likeness, especially since this is a challenge for me.  I don't ever do portraits!  I had fun painting this because it was loose and free, and it didn't take more than a couple of hours.  Stay tuned for the third self-portrait I completed this weekend.

New Painting: Edvard Munch-Inspired Self-Portrait

Here is one of the 3 self-portraits I completed this weekend.  They are all 9 x 12" oil paintings, inspired by a famous artist.  This one is inspired by Edvard Munch, specifically, his painting, The Voice.  I used Munch's painting and changed the landscape to one that has significance for me, Old Lyme, Connecticut, with views of the Long Island Sound.  

My Self-Portrait:

Inspiration: Edvard Munch's The Voice

I like Munch's style, how he makes his figures look like skeletons, and the way the landscape is Expressionistic and dreamy.  Using this one for my self-portrait was a choice so that I could show the intuitive-side of my personality, using the landscape from my memories.  This landscape is a place I retreat to in my mind to ground me.  Those nights spent walking alone on the beach are some of my most contemplative and relaxing moments.  Also, the figure resembles the character I once was in a play, another strong part of my memory.  This was definitely an interesting project to undertake.  I like the smaller-format of these paintings because it was easier to work on in small spurts of time.

New Painting: "Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Prosperity"

I haven't written in quite some time, so I should update!  I actually just found out a few weeks ago that I am a finalist in the art contest I entered at the end of 2008.  The contest was sponsored by the Enclave apartment complex in Silver Spring, Maryland.  I could choose from 3 themes, and I chose "Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of...", using that theme for my title, and ending it with "Prosperity".  Hopefully you can see why from my painting.  It is a large canvas, 36 x 48", done in acrylic.  

I did a lot of preparation for this painting: brainstorming, sketching, photographing, researching, collecting images, etc. before I even started painting it.  It took me two weeks total, but it was well worth it.  The subject is from part of the actual Enclave apartments.  I visited there for about an hour, and took many photographs, using them all as reference, and not painting directly from a particular image.  I wanted to capture the height and the curvature of the building, and I think I succeeded.  What do you think?  I thought it was important to use a large canvas to portray such a large building.  I want the viewer to look up at the painting and have their eyes drawn to the top, just as mine where when I visited the buildings myself.

I am a lover of American Art, and as such, some of my favorite artists served as my inspirations for this painting.  Among them are Georgia O'Keeffe's cycle of cityscapes, Precisionists Charles Demuth and Charles Sheeler, and the Works Progress Administration prints by Gerhard Bakker.  I did a lot of thinking, writing, and researching of what buildings mean to America.  The city, the skyscraper, are landmark symbols of our identity.  There are so many dimensions to portraying the American industrial landscape.  Perhaps it is because I am drawn to good use of line in art, but I think it is only fitting for cities and buildings to be portrayed in this modern, geometric way, with crisp, clean lines.  

The artists that inspired me painted many of their cityscapes during the 1920's, and stopped with the stock market crash, when the once prideful symbol of strength became a painful reminder of the failure of business.  I wanted to take a different

approach, not shying away from it in this economic recession.  This painting is meant to be a more positive approach, reflecting my optimistic personality.  I wanted to show the sun casting shadows on the building, looking ominous, but peaceful.  Is the sun setting or rising?  It is not meant to be clear, but I wanted to draw the comparison to the glass being "half-empty or half-full".  For me the sun is rising, though uncertainty lurks around the corner of this economic crisis.  Hope can be reflected in the lights of the building: a symbol of life, activity, and perseverance of the American people.  As Americans, we have the right to Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness, but also to the Pursuit of Prosperity (at least I think we do).  I kept thinking that if I were to live in one of these apartments, I would have a prosperous life, and that I would be ok no matter what happened with the economy.  Because it's true, that America will turn around eventually and once again prosper.  We just have to wait for it.