By the Fountain: Step 6
The left arm and leg were next to be painted. They represented a relatively small amount of work mainly because both are partially obscured. The one slightly tricky spot was the left foot. Almost completely covered, flexed, and highly foreshortened, I found that until I had fussed with it quite a bit and made the most miniscule adjustments, it really just looked like a weird flesh-colored lump. I fully expect that the right leg, even though it covers more area, will be finished in less time, and with much less reworking.
November 27th, 2005 at 2:30 pm
Hi, my name is Hannah and I am a high school student from Southern California. For my IB Visual Arts class I’ve been looking for a modern Romantic artist to ask a few questions concerning romanticism. I discovered your work online and the director of the gallery said I could post my questions here. My questions are stated below:
What drew you to the romantic realist style?
Were you influenced at all by traditional romantic art?
If so, which artist influenced you the most?
How do you achieve a realistic portrayal of your subject matter?
Do you use any techniques specific to the romantic realist style?
How do you create emotion in a piece of art?
Thank you for your time.
November 29th, 2005 at 4:00 pm
Hannah,
Those are a lot of good questions. I will try to answer them thoroughly without being too long-winded.
First of all, I am not certain I would categorize myself as a true Romantic Realist, even though a lot of my work obviously falls perfectly into that category. To be more accurate, I would say that I am somewhat of a hybrid between a Romantic Realist and a Classical Realist. I make the distinction mainly because I do not like much of the work that is supposedly Romantic Realism, and I think a large amount of what is called Romantic Realism is obviously not. I won’t give examples here. Of course, I don’t think most artists are the ones who end up choosing what style their work is eventually grouped in with. I think they paint according to their own philosophy of art and their own interests, which they may share with some of their contemporaries, their instructors, or a group of painters (or philosophers) from the past.
So what drew me to the Romantic Realist style? When I read the Romantic Manifesto (A non-fiction philosophical treatise on Art by Ayn Rand) I found that I agreed very closely with most of the book. I particularly agree with Ayn Rand’s assessment of the importance of Art to civilization and to philosophy. I also agree with her that theme and subject matter are of absolute importance. In short, I found I had more in common with her artistic philosophy than with any other I was familiar with.
I was definitely influenced by traditional romantic Art. In particular, I was influenced by the Pre-Raphaelites Sir John Everett Millais, and William Holman Hunt, though more for their execution and their work ethic than their themes (Though ‘The Huguenot’ by Millais is, I think, an exceptional painting thematically as well as technically). I also loved the fact that they valued technique and craftsmanship as highly as theme and subject matter. I also really enjoy the work of Bouguereau. Again, his style, this technique and his absolute mastery of the figure are much more a factor for me than his themes which are often, though not always, quite boring. He also had a work ethic that would blow the minds of most hard working people, and was extraordinarily prolific. Basically, most of what influenced me in the work of the traditional Romantic painters and the Classical Realists was their technique, their craftsmanship and their execution. I wanted to keep all of that, and add romantic themes and contemporary subjects and settings. I am also a fan of a few more recent artists who I believe are somewhat inaccurately classified simply as illustrators. Maxfield Parrish and Alex Ross are two examples. Another thing these artists have in common that I find particularly wonderful is that they were all sane, intelligent, people who were respected working professionals. They may have had eccentricities, but none of them were driven by some irrational, unknowable passion that forced them to paint almost against their will. I hate that stereotype.
I achieve a realistic portrayal of my subject matter through a lot of practice, a lot of work, and by painting from reality: models or photographic reference.
I don’t believe that any of my techniques are specific to the Romantic style. Most of my technique was self taught by reading about classical techniques or learned from the few illustration classes I had. I also learned a great deal from working with Damon Denys who is also self-taught, and observing the paintings I could by painters I admire. My technique is also constantly evolving as I practice and gain more experience.
Creating emotion in a work of art can be achieved though several mechanisms: the color scheme, the rigidity or softness of the lines, the layout of the composition or the body language and facial expressions of any figures that may be in the painting. I think emotion is most effectively achieved when all of these things are working together.
I hope that gives you enough to work with. If you have any further questions or need any clarification, you can get my contact information from the gallery. Thank you for participating in the Studio, and giving me something new to talk about.
December 1st, 2005 at 4:30 pm
To Bryan Larsen,
I can not begin to tell you how much I enjoy seeing your work in progress. I love that you share the birth of you art. Being an artist myself, you are my favorite. Just being able to see your work has been very inspiring and I learn a lot from your work. Thank you Byran for sharing your work online.
December 5th, 2005 at 10:00 am
Angel,
I am glad to hear you are enjoying the Artist’s Studio. In particular I am interested to know that, as an artist, you are finding the Art inspirational and the commentary interesting and somewhat instructive. Out of curiosity, and a desire to provide the most interesting reading possible, perhaps you would be willing to let me know, either in the studio or by email, what about the posts has been most useful to you. I will certainly understand if you prefer to remain anonymous.
As for sharing the process behind my work, it is my pleasure. I will keep posting work to the studio as long as people are willing to read it.