My Kreindler project

GKreindler · #1 07-30-2014, 03:32 PM

Hey everyone,

Thanks for tuning back into this thread. Now that we have the image all worked out and I can actually put something down on canvas, I'll be updating it a LOT more regularly until the piece is in John's hands. And certainly, I really appreciate you all chiming in and sharing your thoughts.

First off, I definitely agree about the quality of the Aaron jumping image - it really is pretty bad@SS. I think that one would make one heck of a cool painting, especially at the 16" x 20" size (or thereabouts). However, I'm definitely loving this Peskin shot as much, too. I guess I'm just at peace with the fact that I know I'll do the other one at some point as well.

Anywho, onto the canvas at hand. The drawing is officially on the darn thing.

They're a few people off the boards who have asked me about the squiggly lines and what they represent, so I thought I'd address it here for those of you who may be curious. For the most part, having an underdrawing done for a painting acts as a road map for most artists, whether it's for something as simple as gesture lines, or if it's meticulous to the point of creating a full-on black and white guide that will later be glazed over with transparent color. By no means does everyone use them, and I don't want to say whether I think it's 'wrong' to do so, but for me, it works.

For me, rather than just doing an outline of things for a skeleton, I prefer to get a bit more involved. All of the those squiggles that you see are changes in value, color, and/or temperature. Sometimes those changes are subtle, sometimes they're major, but the most important thing for me is that they're there. It's kind of a way of thinking about the drawing as being sculptural moreso than a bunch of lines that I'm filling in with color. Though, I guess you could say that it still looks rather paint-by-numberish. Whoops.

Anywho, now that it's all drawn in, I can start with some color. The drawing was spray fixed with a Krylon product called Workable Fixatif, which will create a clear acrylic-based barrier between the drawing and the paint that'll go on top of it.

With that, I put a warmish oil wash over the painting to create a colored-ground to work off of. For me, the ground is meant to do two things. One, to get rid of the stark white of the canvas as soon as possible. Traditionally, when creating a ground one would usually do so with a medium value so that when colors are placed on top of it, they can observed closer to their real value. For example, on a completely white surface, a small spec of paint in a medium value would look much darker than it actually is.

The second thing the ground does for me is create certain atmospheric effects that can't be attained in any other way. Since all oil paint has a bit of translucency to it, whatever's underneath a typical stroke of mine will show through and effect it in some way. That's the sort of thing that will create richness, nuance, and a lot of headaches - all parts of the process.

After the National, I plan on jumping back into the thing and starting to put down some actual color. But man, I'm THRILLED that I have something to show before heading out to Cleveland.

I hope y'all dig my thoughts along with the progress shots, even if it can sometimes sound flowery or long-winded. Regardless, as per usual, any thoughts, comments, or critiques are ALWAYS appreciated.

Thanks for reading!

Graig

Kawika · #2 07-30-2014, 04:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GKreindler

All of the those squiggles that you see are changes in value, color, and/or temperature. Sometimes those changes are subtle, sometimes they're major, but the most important thing for me is that they're there. It's kind of a way of thinking about the drawing as being sculptural moreso than a bunch of lines that I'm filling in with color.

Easy if you are from Krypton and have X-ray vision. Just sayin'.

thecatspajamas · #3 07-30-2014, 04:20 PM

I was going to make some smart comment about that being a paint-by-number from hell, but you kind of beat me to that one

So I guess I'll just go back to staring at it and trying to envision it through your eyes. So far it's just giving me a headache, but if I cross my eyes just right, I swear I can almost see the 3-D image. It's a spaceship, right...?

frankbmd · #4 07-30-2014, 04:25 PM

Who knew Hank had all those tatts?

billyb · #5 07-30-2014, 07:43 PM

Graig,

It's already a beauty to me, to finally see it.

GKreindler · #6 08-04-2014, 03:08 PM

Hey all,

Thanks for all of the kind words and support throughout this project.

So, I'm back from the National, and that means back to the easel. I've been working on this all day, so here's the progress thus far:

In this first underpainting/dead color stage, my main concern is to get basic value relationships and colors down onto the surface. In a way, it continues with the idea of the drawing in that it acts as a skeletal system for the finished painting. With these initial strokes, it gives me a good chance to just cover the canvas with a block-in, something that has the same amount of detail work throughout (which is important so the whole picture is kept in mind while working). The color ends up being a bit on the dead side because it's somewhat thinly applied, and since oils by nature are somewhat translucent, a lot of the background stuff ends up showing through the paint. It's only going to be through a few more passes that I will be able to create some interplay between the opaque areas and more transparent ones.

This will need the (at least) rest of the day to dry, and then everything else that will go on top of it will become the very meat of the painting. This initial block-in is usually a bit weird to me, but it's always the start of the second pass where I start to see things coming together.

Anywho, hope you enjoy it! And as per usual, feel free to share any comments, be they good or bad.

Graig

Scott Garner · #7 08-04-2014, 03:29 PM

So cool! It looks awesome so far...

nebboy · #8 07-30-2014, 04:25 PM

I paint in much the same process. It's always nice to learn something ( I have never heard of or tried Workable Fixatif to seal the pencil lead so it doesn't show or smear with the oil/medium. I have used hair spray before, or very light varnish.

I will check it out.

Love your work. John

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