This started out as a painting with amaryllis drawn in pencil. I had other plans for this - it was never meant as a straight flower painting - but I did not intend for chickens to show up. They just forced their way in (chickens and sheep seem to do this from time to time in my work - I have no idea why, since I have little day-to-day connection with any barnyard animals except via our fridge...). Here is the line drawing inked in. (I don't usually ink in edges unless the theme is meant to be comic. The last one I inked in was Cicadas.)
Here is the piece with the first red laid in. I used a new big brush - a size 22 red sable flat named Frondine. I was experimenting with James Gurney's "BLAST" concept. the "B" stands for use the Biggest Brush that will do the job. I wet the red zones with a one inch flat and then put the color in with minimal strokes with Frondine, trying to move with the grain and direction of the petals.
Here is the piece with the base colors all down, but no refinements or cross coloring done - and only a few shadows. And below is the finished (I think) painting. 18 x 24 inches on Arches hot press. Watercolor and black Pelikan ink. You should see 17 chickens in this piece. That's how many showed up. I don't usually work with a red blue yellow triad - I don't usually use this much red.Click any image for a closer view - largest image is of the finished painting.
5 comments:
So, I love this painting. Can I reserve it if it's for sale? Because really, flowers and chickens? I'm a little bit in love.
I love the chickens. Brilliant and beautiful painting.
It took me a while to get to 17, you sneaky duck, but I did it!
And there's that compelling color combo evident in the fifth photo of my "Again With The Bridge" post (sorry, I've forgotten how to insert a link in comments!)
This is a cool composition, and reminds me greatly of my friend Phil Rosenthal's painting of a fierce battle between horse-mounted Indians and giant chipmunks. (I remember it being about 6'x 8', though time may have operated the enlarger while I was out...)
I wonder if The Pagan Sphinx remembers that one, or if his Superman rendition stuck more in her mind?
Very, very nice. They all grew together in affinity.
Of Phil's paintings, the one that hangs in one of the walls of my mind is a part nude woman/part beast thing that was down in his garage....do you remember it? I do recall the chipmunks also, by the way...they were huge...that painting had to have been at least as big as CR describes.
By the way, CR. You can call me Gina here too now. :-)
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