Hey, Kids!, wanna see a Painting?...

I thought I would document the momentous occasion, of me doing my first painting since 2019...the year of what I like to call: "The Incident". I've done some drawing/designing since then, but never tackled a painting, and I honestly don't know why. Maybe it's because of artistic insecurities and the fact that I'm bombarded on a daily basis via social media, of all the great shit being produced by my friends and people I admire, that I'm kinda overwhelmed (insert sad music here) and...insecure, for the first time in my life. I have NO fucking idea how that happened, but I need to nip that shit in the bud, and start slinging paint again.

So, for my first painting in 4 years, I spared NO expense, when it came to materials/supplies...I bought the cheapest acrylic paints I could find, and a package of student grade 12"x16" canvases from Hobby Lobby and pulled out my 20 year old brushes...and a paint encrusted toothbrush. I was already to go! I just needed to decide what the hell I was going to paint! No digital shit for this guy, just old fashioned paint on canvas-warts and all..no photoshop adjustments to correct color, hue or saturation etc. ALL Fuck-ups will be left as is, and hung on the wall once it's completed...so I can stare at it everyday and focus on all the things I could/should have done differently-so I don't make the same mistakes on the next one. 

The Mighty Heroes Episode 7, original Broadcast date December 10, 1966 -Terrytoons CBS Television

Well, being being a monster and animation fan, I decided to do something from my childhood. I decided to do a warm up painting consisting of The Monsterizer from The Mighty Heroes!, one of my favorite animation villains from that series. So I figured, I'll start with him, and if all goes well-maybe I'll do a few others- produce a small series of quick and dirty paintings before I move onto something more ambitious. 

The Mighty Heroes originally aired back in 1966, as part of the Mighty Mouse package on CBS. While I never saw it during its original broadcast, I DID watch it religiously in the 70's as part of my after school activities, quickly becoming one of my all time favorite cartoons. It was created by the legendary artist & animator Ralph Bakshi during his time at Terrytoons.

Drawing inspiration from this quick ink drawing I did a few years ago, I thought I'd crop it and transfer it to the canvas real quick, so I could start slinging paint...before I changed my mind. Here is the result of that endeavor, warts and all.

(The following images are RAW photos, straight from the camera with NO color correction whatsoever -so you'll notice weird things happening to the color, along the way.)

The final pencil drawing transferred to the canvas. The Monsterizer, looking  like a crazed Rudy Guliani! I think he's ready for paint.

I didn't really having ANY idea what the color palette I was going to use for this painting, other than some 'greens'...because HE originally had a greenish tone in his skin, so I started with that. But what the hell was I going to do for the background? Well, how about using a complimentary color? Easy enough, I thought...purple. I chose a deep Lavender Purple to block in the background. In this image it looks MUCH darker than in reality.

Because I didn't want a flat purple background for my painting, I decided to 'activate' the space and give it a little life by breaking out the old toothbrush and spattering the area with Bright Magenta and White. So I masked the original drawing with paper (and tape) and began to splatter and flick the two colors onto the Purple background to give it a little more 'life'.

With the paper and tape removed, you get a better idea of what I was going for...it worked well enough for this exercise, so I wasn't going to fuss with it anymore. On to the next stage...

For this stage, and using the concept of moving from 'Back to Front', I thought I would lay in my the Light Yellowish Green Skintone, which would become the largest and brightest point of the painting-and dead center...not always a good thing when you're creating a painting. But what the hell, it's my first painting in four years, so I can make a mistake or two and move on.

And keeping with the concept of moving from 'Back to Front', I thought I would lay in a Parchment White for the: Hat Band, Eyes, Teeth and Neck Tie/Scarf Thingy (whatever the hell that thing is, and complete  the lightest parts of the painting.

Next, I thought it would be a good idea to block in the Dark Green of his Top Hat and Jacket ( making sure not to lose my reference lines in the process). I also decided to darken the band on the Top Hat. It's at this point where you can see the color of the background in this painting start to change and begin to 'POP' a little more. Color Theory is a magical thing sometimes.

Since I was 'pleased' with the basic colors of the overall painting at this point, I decided to start working on the details. So I started with his eyes and laid in a Dark Purple around his eyes.

Not being overly excited about the Dark Purple that I put down, I thought I'd add a Light Magenta 'eyebag' on top of that Dark Purple around the eyes.

With the Eyes, 'done' I decided to add some shadows to all the Parchment White areas to give things a little more volume. So I took some of the Parchment White with an added touch of Blue Grey to the white's of the Eyes, Teeth and  Neck Tie/Scarf Thingy. 

At this point, the painting is starting to come together and actually looking a little better. I added a Dark Grey Green for the shadows on the Top Hat and Jacket...but it doesn't show up in the photo unfortunately...I was too subtle with the color-but trust me, it's there. I also started to put in the Black line work, which really makes it start to 'POP'.

I then decided to knock down the overall skin tone by putting in Dark Yellowish Green Skintone for the shadow. I'm not entirely happy with the overall 'shapes' I put in....but whateve, you get the idea of what I was trying to do.

The final step was to put in a few White highlights to punch things up, give it a coat of Matte Finish to even things out, and call it a day. I decided to add my KEMO watermark to the front (digitally) for all my other Social Media bullshit postings...but I actually signed/dated the BACK of the painting....making it OFFICIALLY completed. 

Time to start the next one, and hopefully I'll be able to avoid some of the mistakes and missteps I did with this one!

Enjoy!

The Monsterizer

 

John Singer Sargent 1856-1925

Self Portrait 1906

Since I'm no longer in school, I will not be writing a long, boring report  about John Singer Sargent.  I find that most people don't like to reading anymore because it takes up to much of their time, when they could be spending those precious minutes watching TikTok videos and other important Social media nonsense.. SO, I'll try to keep it quick and easily digestible.

• Sargent was born in Florence, Italy January 12, 1856 

• He was educated in Paris, France in the 1880's and lived most of his life in London, England and traveled the world extensively producing over 900 oil paintings, over 2000 watercolors along with countless sketches and charcoal  drawings.

•Considered to be the "leading portrait painter of his generation" specializing in Edwardian style luxury 

Lady With A Rose 1882

• He had a critical triumph at the Paris Salon of 1882 with his painting  Lady with a Rose (Charlotte Louise Burkhardt)

• Then, in 1884 he sent only one painting to the Paris Salon, his notorious Madame X. It was a portrait of the young socialite Virginie Amelie Avegno Gautreau, who was 25 at the time....and it caused such an uproar that it put his Parisian career in jeopardy.

 

This is without question my favorite painting of his, and the subject of this silly post. I've had the pleasure of seeing it multiple times at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, leaving me dumbfounded...absolutely speechless. It is incredible on so many levels. I wish I could sit here and drone on poetically like a pretentious art critic, but I can't. All I can say is- it's a fucking masterpiece and has to be seen in person. I can only imagine the impact it must have had in 1884 at the Paris Salon...BUT this wasn't the version of the painting they saw.

Madame X 1884 - New York Metropolitan Museum of Art

(Photograph of the original painting of Madame X that was displayed at the 1884 Paris Salon)

THIS is the version of the painting that everyone saw at the Paris Salon, and it caused such an uproar that it almost destroyed Sargent's career as the preeminent portrait painter of his time. Imagine the audacity of Sargent to position Madame Gautreau in such 'a haughty pose' staring indifferently to the left, and wearing a black velvet dress with deep décolletage with the right strap dangling precariously off the shoulder. He had it framed in an ornate multileveled gilded frame which featured a busy design of overlapping leaves and cross straps which complemented the painting beautifully without over powering it. Once framed, he varnished it and named it: Madame X (the polite gesture to keep a respectable woman's name out of notices and reviews) and delivered it to the Salon. He didn't seem concerned because of all his previous awards, guaranteed the painting would be accepted for display.

So once the painting was delivered, he left for holiday to London and spent time with the Pre-Ralphelite Brotherhood while he accepted commissions. Unfortunately most subjects of those commissions, were artistically uninspiring and not like the rich, beautiful and brilliant clients he had in Paris.  He returned to Paris on April 29, just in time for 'insiders' would get a chance for a first look at the exhibition...little did he know, the 'shit was about to hit the fan.' 

In all his years of showing at the Salon he never had a bad experience...until now. Times were-a-changing, and the religious leaders in France had begun to publicly denounce the rampant immorality and pervasive decadence of Paris. This painting became the lightning rod for the new morality trying to gain a foothold in Paris at the time.

Needless to say, Salon attendees were shocked and deeply offended...insert 'laughing emoji' here.... remember, there's a BIG difference between acceptance and accolade.

"She looked monstrous and decomposed. The painting was indecent. Her bare white shoulders and décolletage, without a breast in site disgusted them. And that fallen strap! Was it a prelude to or the aftermath of sex? The fact that she was looking away from her audience made her appear blithely indifferent to her dishabille and called attention to her shamelessness."  

(Photograph of the original painting of Madame X and photoshop recreation by Mike Pieczonka)

Almost all the reviews about this painting said the same thing damaging both Sargent's and Gautreau's reputations in Paris society. Once the Salon ended, the painting was returned to Sargent where he was free to do with it what he wanted free from any outside pressures and because Gautreau wanted nothing to do with it while she focused on repairing her reputation.

Here's a photograph of the modified  painting of Madame X in Sargent's studio where it stayed until 1916, when he sold it for $1000.00 to The Met.

FANTASTIC book about John Singer Sargent and Virginie Amelie Avegno Gautreau. I highly recommend it if you want to learn the whole story.

Virginie Amélie Avegno Gautreau-1878

 

Virginie Amélie Avegno Gautreau

The following are various Studies and Sketches for the Madame X Painting.

Next time you're in New York, make sure to visit the Met, Gallery 771 in the American Wing, and see this painting for yourself. TRUST ME...you won't be disappointed.

 

Christina's World

I love this painting.

I love this painting so much I want to share it with some of you. Over the years I have been able to discover new images surrounding it's creation and it's subject- Christina Olson. I've spent hours upon hours reading pretentious Art Critic essays/thesis/reviews that bored the shit out of me, so you don't have to. I usually find that if a piece of art moves me, that's all that matters, not some art critic's bullshit. This painting moved me from the first time I saw it in an art book in college, I don't know why or how - it just did, maybe it was the composition that knocked me out? I don't know. So this post will most likely be filled with bullet points and pictures only, and maybe a rambling paragraph or two depending on my mood...but most of all, pictures.

Let's get the first bit of rambling out of the way.

Living in Southern California makes it kinda difficult to visit the museums in New York City that I love so much. As luck would have it,  I found myself there last year for business.  I was working New York Comic Con so I tried to schedule in some museum/gallery time during our 1 day off. My number one priority was to view Gustav Klimt's: Adele Bloch-Bauer I at the Neue Galerie. 

I have never seen this painting in person and being a huge Klimt fan, I was looking forward to the opportunity of standing in front of it and losing my shit...it's one of my favorite paintings of all time.

Gustav Klimt Adele Bloch-Bauer I 1907

Oil, Gold & Silver on Canvas 54" x 54" 

But it wasn't meant to be...the fucking gallery was closed on the one day we had free. I was devastated. That meant I'd have to wait until I made my way to New York again...

Luckily my coworker wanted to visit MoMA and see a few favorite paintings, Van Gogh's: The Starry Night & Andrew Wyeth's: Christina's World...which I had totally forgotten was in their collection. I also remembered that they had a gorgeous Klimt painting in their collection, so I guess it wasn't going to be a bad day after all.

Gustav Klimt Hope II 1907-08

Oil, Gold & Platinum on Canvas 43 1/2" x 43 1/2"

The last time I had seen Christina's World was in 1998, so I was really excited to see it again. Unfortunately, my excitement quickly turned to frustration once I found myself in front of the painting. Let me just say, the location of the painting sucks. I hate that they have it displayed in what is basically the walkway that surrounds the escalators. It doesn't provide you with space to stand and admire the painting without a parade of people walking in front of you on their way to one of the gallery rooms. So I waited for my moment and took a few photos as best I could, trying not to capture any fat heads or glares etc.

Andrew Wyeth Christina's World 1948

Tempera on panel, 32 1/4" x 47 3/4"

Simply put it's a masterpiece of what is called: 'Magic Realism', "which is a genre of narrative fiction and more broadly, art (painting) that, while encompassing a range of subtly different concepts, expresses a primarily realistic view of the real world while also adding magical elements" (thank you Wikipedia for watered down definition). 

I've collected a series of images that show the creation of Christina's World, and other paintings that Wyeth produced of Christina in her later years that I'd like to share...enjoy.

Alvaro Olson (Christina's brother) & Andrew Wyeth

This photograph was taken by Betsy James, whom Andrew met in 1939 while visiting Maine, and would eventually marry. It was Betsy who introduced Andrew to Alvaro Olson and his sister Christina, whom she had known since she was 10 years old. 

Anna Christina Olson & Katie (Hathorn) Olson

This is a photograph of Christina and her mother taken in 1918, shortly after Christina's trip to Boston where she learned more about her increasing disability. She suffered from Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, and was told that her condition would never improve. 

This is the first watercolor study that Wyeth did of the Olson house. It is said that Christina watched from the window and was amused to see Wyeth sitting on top of his car painting a picture of her house.

Another watercolor study of the Olson house.

 

More studies/paintings of the Olson house in Wyeth's muted earth tone palette, with the altering of the actual landscape to create a better composition.

Pencil studies: The arms and hands are Christina's but the body is Betsy's; the dress was from Christina's closet; the shoe from the Wyeth house and the hair is based on the memory of his aunt's. 

Nine years after meeting the Olson's, Wyeth spent the summer of 1948 in an upstairs room of the Olson House painting Christina's World. It is said he worked on that painting for weeks from eight o'clock in the morning until five-thirty in the evening. Working in the Olson house, Wyeth became very close to Alvaro & Christina and had a deep admiration for her determination and enduring nature. This was a woman who limited use of her legs and could not walk, so she dragged herself around the house doing the cooking and cleaning and never complained. Her respect and approval mattered deeply and he was worried what her reaction would be to the painting. 

Well, Alvaro and Christina were invited over to the Wyeth's home for dinner one evening, where the painting hung over the couch...ignored throughout dinner. When Andrew and Christina were alone he asked her what she thought and she raised her fingers to her mouth in a hushing motion. Wyeth would go on to paint many more of Christina, but she would always say that this one was her favorite.

Wyeth displayed Christina's World in 1937 at Macbeth Gallery as part of his one-man exhibition of watercolors. The exhibit was a success, but Christina's World received little attention from critics at the time which caused Wyeth to become deeply depressed and view the work as a complete failure. But Alfred Barr, the founding director of MoMA, thought differently and bought it in December 1948 for $1800 and hung it a show titled: American Paintings from the Museum Collection. It has become one of the most famous paintings in the museum's history and an icon of American art, and as a result, is rarely loaned out.

The following group of images are sketches, studies and photographs of Christina, for the other paintings that Wyeth would do of her prior to her death. Some amazing works.

Christina sitting in front of her window.

Christina and Andrew

Study for Christina's first portrait

Study for Christina's first portrait

Door study for Christina's first portrait

Hair study for Christina's first portrait

Final portrait painting

Andrew, Alvaro & Christina in the kitchen

Christina's cat, study for Miss Olson

Miss Olson painting 1952

Andrew, Alvaro & Christina in the kitchen

Christina in the kitchen

Christina Haircut

Christina

Pencil study

Pencil study

Color study

Christina looking at photographs that Betsy took.

Rough color study for a portrait

Various portrait studies

This would be the final portrait of Christina before she died, titled Anna Christina

(May 3, 1893 - January 27, 1968)

Wyeth paid tribute to Alvaro and Christina with this final painting, it's a portrait of sorts. Alvaro is represented by his blueberry basket and Christina is represented by the scrap of her pink dress, that she wore in the painting Christina's World. This is also one of my favorite Andrew Wyeth paintings of all time. It's a wonderful memory of his two friends.

Wyeth's sketch of Christina's grave the day before her funeral.

It seems fitting that Wyeth is buried here, at the Olson house with Christina.

Alvaro and Christina

The house as it appears today.

Well that's it for now, hope I didn't bore you too much...