100 Works: Measuring the Progress

Where am I in the 100 works goal?

Detail of a Painting in progress

Oil on paper 24x18", 2013

Krystal Booth

 

 

Right now I am to start on number 26.  A quarter of the goal has been reached.  This is good since a quarter of the year is over as well, though that doesn't even seem possible.  It was not to my advantage to think of this idea later than the new year on January 20th, but that's okay.  It won't be too much of a hindrance.

 

What has changed?  So far paint handling has loosened up a bit.  I don't feel as though I'm strangling my subject as much.  It will be interesting to compare and contrast the works from the beginning of this year to the end of the year.  It's difficult to predict, but it's an exciting prospect.

 

Have I felt rushed?  I really haven't.  I thought that I would feel a bit stressed out and frantic at times with balancing this goal with work and daily life stuff.  So far this feeling has not been felt, and I'm hoping that I don't feel that upon the finish in December.  That's the last way I would want to end this project.

 

What about materials?  The stash of 18x24" canvases has run dry, but I've solved that for the time being by working on paper.  The paper, being more fragile by its flexibility, seems to run along better with the concept behind the works anyway, so it's not such a loss.  I've had to change from Turpenoid to Turpenoid Natural due to painting more.  It's non-toxic, which is better for the workspace that is not always ventilated that great.  The dizzy spell that occurred one night was the wake up call to change products.  (oops! foolish mistake)

 

The Flake White Replacement is a sticky mess and I hate it.  I'm still using it, as the tube is practically full and I don't want to waste money or material.  It's just not as smooth or solid as the Flake White I had been using.  Maybe I'll get more used to it and change my mind, but for now, it's a disappointment and a source of mental cursing upon the palette.  Any suggestions?

 

All in all, there have been some blunders of some instantly failed works, but there have also been works that have made me even more curious in technique and concept.  This challenge has been a good one that has made me realize that I'm much happier if I've been in the studio.

 

Thank you for supporting me by reading and commenting!  It helps fuel the process, and thank you so much.  Love to all!

 

 



New Original Painting on Canvas

Here is last weekend's oil painting.

 

Ubiquity in Limbo, 2013, Krystal Booth

Oil on canvas, 24x18"

 

 

 

Ubiquity in Limbo (Detail of)

2013, Krystal Booth

 

My cold seems to have become worse over night which gave a good opportunity for taking portrait photos first thing in the morning.  It was a car crash of the face - sinus drainage...my face itself seemed draining.  I will using these as references for today's work on paper.

 

Hope you're having a good week, and thank you for visiting!  Love to all!

 

 

 

 

Failed Assignments to Absolute Brilliance in Ten Minutes Or Less!

Only 24 hours remaining until I get to see Mark Rothko's works at the Portland Art Museum!  I am ridiculously excited!

I remember my cousin's wife telling me once that her favorite artist was Mark Rothko.  I agreed that it was great, but at the same time I wondered what she saw that I didn't.  Like her, some people really seemed to understand his work.  It seemed to be composed of a secret language that was only decoded by some, while others like me were left to wonder what all the fuss was about.

I had seen some of his paintings in art history classes, books, film, and I really tried to understand with an open mind.  I still didn't get it.  Instead, they looked like painting assignments gone wrong.

On a field trip to the Toledo Museum of Art with my college classmates and one of my mentor professors, I finally had the opportunity to see Rothko's work in person.  It was a work similar to the one above.  It was a huge canvas and was mainly composed of intense shades of black.  I sat down on the bench in front of it, determined to walk away with a better understanding of what the heck he was doing and what I was missing.

The soft lighting revealed countless layers of paint to give some history of the artist's process.  At first, I was still aware of the people walking around me.  To be honest, I felt a bit ridiculous to be staring at a seemingly blank, black canvas for so long when the rest of the museum held so many other works that warranted "ooo"s and "ahhh"s.  After a couple of minutes though, the painting seemed to surround me and my thoughts quieted.  It was so weird, and I don't mean to make this over the top, but it was an pure emotional experience.  The emotions I felt ranged from safe and soothed to a heavy despair and fear.  Just when they would become almost overwhelming, they would change, going full circle. 

In a period of ten minutes, I felt that the work was an experience, not just an oil painting.  I have since read more about his art and life, and what he was trying to accomplish.  He was trying to create paintings that had the same pure emotional impact as that of music.  Eliminating the middle man of symbols, he was going directly for emotion through the impact of color with saturated canvases that envelope the viewer.  Oh, to go back in time and have a studio visit - I think he would be annoyed with my praises and enthusiasm about his work as he coldly sat chain-smoking cigarrettes between his paint stained fingers.

Upon moving to Portland, I anticipated several of his works in the Portland Art Museum since his family relocated here from Russia when he was young.  Instead, I found one or two small works by him and no more.  This is why I am so elated that they are hosting a retrospective of Mark Rothko - seeing his work in his hometown is so special, and I cannot wait to experience more of his work!  Like a junky, I can't wait until my fix!

I'm also kind of wondering if it was a fluke - did I see the only Rothko work in Toledo that would have that strong of an effect on me?  We'll see...  :)

The following link are photos of the current exhibition, courtesy of Portland Katu news - Enjoy!


http://www.katu.com/news/entertainment/Photos-Mark-Rothko-at-the-Portland-Art-Museum-139876153.html

Once Upon A Time On Nova

Dwelling, 2012

Mixed media drawing on paper, 14x20"

Finished!  Details are below.  I hope that your 2012 is off to a good start too!



A Continuation of "If You Looked Over My Shoulder" Post

If you looked over my shoulder, you would see that I can create some pretty ugly things.  In the quest for improvement, it seems that it is inevitable.  I finally decided that the two images didn't work together - the layer study and the charcoal drawing.  There was something to it that was attractive to me, but I'm not sure if they really did anything for one another except muddy the golden ratio type of design of the charcoal drawing, and then add confusion to visual space.  I tried.

So moving on...this is what I have been working on lately.  I've been trying out a different strategy for incorporating layers with drawing.

This one has been exciting to make so far, and will have a narrative when it's done.

Olive helping me...whether I liked it or not.  She was allowed to lay there before I had drawn the center leaf, but it was brief.  She began batting at my pencil.



Also not done yet - it's for a Talenthouse/Secret 7 opportunity to create an artwork

based upon a song by Florence and the Machine- "Only If For A Night".  It's an awesome opportunity to create work for one of my favorite musical artists!  What's not to love about that?!  The submissions are due 9 days from now, and this work needs much work before then. 

(Check out http://www.talenthouse.com/creative if you are interested in this or other opportunities - very fun site that I had no idea existed until three days ago!)

Will these be ugly?  Who knows.  Maybe.  At the very least, they will bring me that much closer to creating something that is beautiful, and I'll hopefully learn from them.  I'll be posting about the 2011 Vision Board Review in the next few days and creating a new one for 2012.  Cheers to a new year for all of us!  Happy New Year to you and your family!