Over the course of the past year have adopted the rhythm of doing a Cinefield® then a painting (while maintaining steady flow of nightly drawings & 8’s). At the start of a painting it rained for days off and on. I put it aside, the novelty of doing so being in itself of value for my creative process.
I started a new Cinefield® , the creation of which I do not need sunlight for.
Even though the shapes are lush and abstract, I wanted to see if I could achieve an open ended, open to interpretation sense of narrative.
“Bing-Bong” The piece is 11×14. As always all the images are from photos I personally took. There is no digital magic just my trusty scissors and adhesive applied by brush.
To anyone that reads my blog, it is immediately apparent that I take what I do very seriously. I am writing from the point of view of someone who is a professional working artist, so some of my advice or point of view will not apply to the hobbyist or anyone who has a “regular” job to earn their daily bread.
Numbers on social media & blogs still seem of the utmost importance. Whether intentionally sneaky or not, many people hunt for images, taking without attribution anything that strikes their fancy. You can copyright your image and if it is taken you have recourse. With concept or ideas however, it’s a different problem. If you have a concept that you work to articulate and brand and someone comes along with ten times the followers or who spends half their day online working their sites, it oddly becomes theirs. Unless you have taken the proper precautions.
I have gotten really into my collage and every time I do one i have learned a bit more. I feel with life in general, one must every now and then have an inner dialogue, even about established things that they know, as further articulation can provide more depth and layers to the thing(s). This week marks a year that I have been doing collages. (not my sole output as there has been a novel, short story collection, essays, paintings and countless drawings). While I still like my early ones, I recognize that they have gotten better and better.
One of the reasons this occurred is that I was constantly refining my methodology and philosophy while honing my skill. It may not be necessary for every artist but I came up with a description & mission statement for my collages. I created a word Cinefield® which is now a legally registered trademark.
Cinefield® “Flat, two-dimensional visual works of art on paper which create the feeling of movie like narratives through a composition of image rich and story like printed pictures”
I did this to show my seriousness in the medium but also the great affection which I have for it too. This is my second piece under this newly minted label. As usual, there is no digital magic. I used my trusty scissors on photos which I personally took, applying adhesive with a brush. The piece is 11×14.
What feels like another lifetime ago, I made a CD. I felt very self conscious and looking back, judge my performances to be widely uneven. The parts that I can still bare to listen to, at the time I thought of nothing but what I was doing (talk/singing). The parts which are not as great, i was self conscious of the faces I couldn’t help but make while performing. A sort of seizure- scrunched up- ecstasy morphing into drawn- down horsey longness.
Way after the fact I felt what I had already intellectually known, no one listening to CD would think “Wow, I bet he had on weird faces while doing this.” And, that aside I now know it is highly subjective anyways. If one is a fan of a band, then in concert when singer looks like he perhaps could use an un-sharpened pencil put in their mouth, you think “Wow, he is really getting into it, this is intense.” Someone not into the band seeing same performance may snicker.
My In the Eights series is capturing looks we give but would largely prefer others not see. They are slurred to surrealistic proportions as I wanted to make it beautiful and off putting. It is not so much that for each of us our “eights” are there just below the surface, they come out, making appearances when we laugh, cry, are drunk, climax or for some of us, feel anger. It’s the terrible beauty.
The genesis of this series. My regular collages are very time consuming and slowly take over my studio with sheets of paper upon which rest tiny paper snowflakes. I alternate between doing a painting and collage. I worked hard to gain my collage chops and found as i worked on painting I missed it. I absolutely could not do both at once. When I am on the road, I am still creating but with the way my collage work is, that is all I would be doing. I came up with the idea to do drastically smaller ones which I would be able to do on the road and also while working on painting. Since I had the road in mind i knew I would not be able to use 100% my own images as I usually do. I also realized I may not be able to achieve my preferred density. The answer was to do portraits. My first few 8’s were found pictures. Reluctantly, I showed them. People really liked them an encouraged me to do more. I was able to get people to model for me which had been my one initial qualm about showing them initially.
They are small, all being roughly index card sized. I work no digital magic, utilizing old school technique of scissors and adhesive applied with a brush. As it is an ongoing series, I am always looking for new models, email me for details.
I have always been a city-boy. I can appreciate nature and do not mind being away from the city in (very) short bursts but it’s the places which float upon the concrete that call to me non-stop.
This piece is a sort of ballet of neon. I wanted to capture the sense of rhythmic motion, the undulation of lights which shimmer in near abstraction depending upon from where one is seeing them.
The work is 11×14. There was no digital magic used, merely my trusty scissors on photos which I personally took and adhesive applied with a brush.
addendum: briefly I am accepting models for my “In the Eights” series. Email me for details.
During the pandemic I have made constructive use of my time about 90% of the time. Of course now and then I need a break from working & thinking. I’ve tried watching some of the genre shows people talk about. The shows which take place post-apocalyptic, the writing at best is “I wonder what is going to happen next?” Missing from all of these type shows is a largely untouched upon important component.
Of course in middle of a zombie outbreak first consideration is escape, safety. Shelter, food and ability to defend oneself are the primary concerns understandably. Some of these shows have been on for years and they do not really show the toll which would be taken on humanity collectively with the loss of culture. Making things (of beauty) just for the sake of doing so or if one does not have those skills, then viewing them. Life without culture as non-stop collecting or searching for the basic essentials would see a profound rewiring of mankind’s way of acting and thinking. After “X” amount of time, would it even be worth sticking around?
This mental fast food made me reflect on our current situation. I do not think it the duty of artists to put specific messages, rhetoric or agenda in their works. I do however think that, especially in in trying times, it is every artists’ duty to do their thing, create something beautiful.
It serves as a reminder of the better part of humanity awaiting us all when the trouble is over. It unites us all in reminding us there are things which are not unpleasant that link us all all together. One can not avoid bad times, we are all trapped by history. As artists we can put beauty out there, a page saver for when our thoughts and actions can once again look past merely surviving.
Offered up beauty. As usual all the images are from photos I personally took. No digital magic was used, just scissors and adhesive applied with brush.
I like alternating my collages between the ones which offer the feeling of an open ended narrative and those whose goal is merely to convey a sense of lush beauty.
A key component in the creative process for me with the collages is that it feels fresh for me, otherwise it would be mere mannerism.
I seek to constantly evolve as a way to maintain my own sense of excitement. One way I do this is going outside my established methodology/mission/philosophy. As a new challenge I decided to make a piece which was beautiful but also programmatic. A work with program but which could be enjoyed by the viewer even if they were unaware of program. I have never been a fan of work that seems “blah” until you find out what’s behind it(program/meaning) and then this new gained knowledge makes one nod their head with comprehension as “Ohhh” is uttered.
This piece is 11×14. All the images are photos which I personally took. There is no digital magic worked, as always utilized my trusty scissors and adhesive applied with a brush.
Side note: I received so much positive feedback about my “In the Eights” series I decided to publicly continue it. Temporarily, I am seeking models for the series, send me an email (not through word press) for details.
For my last collage the emphasis was just on doing something lush & beautiful. With this one I wanted to return to my often achieved effect of an open ended narrative. I also have in mind the desire to collage when on the road. With my density achieved via so many small components the amount of time it takes to do the piece would mean that on a shorter trip I would only (if even) be able to do a collage and not also paintings, sculptures et al.
Right now I have two styles of collage. I have mainly been doing my denser mosaic style. The other style incorporates larger pieces and I achieve the density I prefer in my works via distortions of lines and parts. This style is perfect for on the road, while the challenge of getting my preferred density will keep me away from mere mannerisms.
As is always the case with my collages, there is no digital magic. I use my trusty scissors and adhesive applied with brush to photos which I personally took.
I have just finished my most labor intensive collage. Interestingly, it was far from the largest that I have ever done. I set aside my often used aesthetic of creating the feel of an open ended narrative for something that is just beautiful. I worked no digital magic on the piece, utilizing old school method of scissors and adhesive applied with a brush to photos which I personally took.
I was very pleased with the results of this piece and feel with every new work I learn something. My new camera was used for the photo which definitely helps to convey more of the intricacies of my works.
“For Trummy” (if we ever see each other again, I will look different, you will look the same) 11×14
I finally had to bite the bullet and get a real camera to photograph my work. This coincides with a greater complexity in my collages. Gone now will be the caveat accompanying images of my work;
“I just used my phone to take the photo, it gives one the gist of the work but not all the dynamics.”
Being a complete luddite, it’s going to take a little bit to become proficient with my camera. The timing of getting it worked out perfectly though as I just completed my most complex work. Ideal thing with which to try out new camera.
As is always the case, the components of the piece are from photos which I personally took. I work no digital magic on the piece, utilizing old school method of scissors & adhesive applied with brush.
I try to alternate between doing my painting and collage. The idea for this one came to me during dinner (the original sketch on back of grocery list pad). I decided to change up my rhythm and do another collage before a painting. Going forward, it will be interesting to see what added vibrancy will be added to my collage as I will be using a far superior camera to photograph my source material.
I greatly enjoyed creating my last collage “To the Sea”. I decided to further explore the use of a limited color palette.This piece is a companion piece to my last one in wanting to go by the same “rules”. (limited color palette, utilizing my two main techniques within one piece to equal degrees, smaller sized paper)
As usual I only used photos which I took, my trusty scissors and adhesive applied with a brush. The sort of Maxfield Parish coloring comes from the times of day that I took the photos, all Pre-Raphaelite luminescence playing upon the neighborhood but for a few minutes at a time.
For all my work regardless of medium I prefer a certain amount of density. Especially with my collages, I like the effect of the viewer being able to find new little things with each viewing. An open ended narrative which leads to one’s own personal daydreams.
Paper Life Painting 