On the easel...

[timzcardz]

Graig,

Great stuff as usual and nice piece on yesnetwork!


I was reading the latest issue of Memories and Dreams the other night when I immediately thought of you. On P.22 there is a picture of Roger Maris sitting atop the dugout steps that instantly struck me as an incredible image for a painting. http://www.hozinc.com/memdreams3/

Arghhh! If only I wasn't in the middle of $15K in unexpected expenses over the last few weeks I'd be very seriously considering commisioning it. Houses and kids! Why do they have to be so full of surprises and so dang expensive?

[GKreindler]

I LOVE that shot of Maris, always have. They're a few other ones taken of him that were probably from that same day, and they'd be equally as fun to paint.

Luckily, I don't know the expenses brought on by having kids, well at least, not yet...but man, this whole rent thing is VERY overrated. It's like a quick punch to the gut at the end of every month.

Anywho, here are three other small guys I've been working on (when I need breaks from the bigger canvases):


Mickey Mantle, 1951, 9" x 12"


Ernie Banks, 1955, 11" x 14"


Derek Jeter, 2000, 11" x 14"

DJ's closest to being finished, but they all have a ways to go before I can call it a day...

Hope y'all enjoy!

Graig

[perezfan]

One of my favorite all-time Kreindler works was recently withdrawn from Lelands. It was the Koufax No Hitter Painting. Anyone out there know what happened? I was prepared to give someone a run for their money

[whitehse]

I didnt realize any of his work have been put up for auction...

I am curious, Graig, when your artwork is put of for auction what are your feelings about that? Do you feel a sense of pride? A sense of betrayal because the original purchaser sold it off? Maybe a sense of wonder in that your work is getting a wider acclaim to be able to be included in high end auctions? I think I would have very mixed feelings if it was me...I am just curious how you feel!

[GKreindler]

Andrew,

It's a mixed bag of emotions, really. I mean, there's no sense of betrayal when someone decides to go that route. Obviously, I'd love it if the client would love the piece forever and never part with it, but I do understand that people can 'fall out of love' with things, especially with pieces of their collections. So, when someone wants to move on and go elsewhere, I totally understand.

When it comes to my feelings on actually having my work in the auctions, well, it's really complicated. Honestly, I don't even know if I can articulate or verbalize those emotions. For now, let's just say it's a pretty mixed bag, with most of me not being into the idea. Yeah. I'll see if I can explain myself a little better after some thinking.

Graig

[perezfan]

I was surprised as well. I was thrilled at the prospect of potentially winning it, but it felt weird to see it in Lelands. Plus, they gave it a rather lackluster photo... a very small image within the Catalogue. There's a lot of other artwork in there (that I felt was not as nice), which received more exposure.

I actually missed Graig's Koufax the first two times through, and was hoping the small pic would translate to a more affordable price. It had 6 bidders at the time it was withdrawn.

[GKreindler]

Mark,

Yeah, I wasn't terribly pleased with the photo either. That was the first thing that caught my eye in the listing, and I just couldn't understand why they didn't just email me and ask for a scan or something. Granted, they may have wanted to show the frame and all, but still, it could have been represented better.

Now, the thing about that that bothers me the most is that those who are perusing the auction and haven't seen my work would have nothing to go by but that photo. In other words, the painting will only seem as good as its reproduction, which in this case, isn't so great. I guess that's why it's so important for me to have everything shot professionally. Even though it costs an arm and a leg, it's worth it to have peace of mind about my portfolio - I get to control how and what people see in that regard. If the painting stayed and was photographed correctly, I think it could have made the consignor and Lelands more money.

Alright, I'm off my soap-box.

So, here's what I was working on earlier today:



I figured since Mantle is my father's all-time favorite, he was a good subject to tackle today. Or something. I've only got a few hours in, but I like what I'm seeing thus far.

Hope everyone had a wonderful Father's Day!

Graig

[whitehse]

I am NOT an artist but I can certainly appreciate extraordinary work when I see it and I can only imagine how frustrating it must be to see one 's own artwork that is a result of hundreds of hours of time be given less than stellar exposure like the Lelands auction did. I just never understood why, when selling a significant piece extreme care does not go into showing the piece off. I mean lets face it, we are not talking about a 500 dollar Stan Musial card here, this is a significant painting that required more work to showcase than what was put into it.

For the consignor and the artist this must be very frustrating.