Yesterday's progress

I took some vacation time this week to work in the studio. Here are the two portraits I am working on as of yesterday afternoon.

Updated Red Chair Portrait

Another Red Chair Painting

Here is another portrait I am working on. This one started with the two hour session from life but as it is a commission piece I will finish the painting from photographs. I will post additional pictures as it progresses. I hope to have the painting completed by the end of July with delivery in August.

Red Chair Portrait No. 1

I posted earlier about wanting to loosen up and that I am planning an exercise to work quickly on small portraits painted from life. Here is the first one. This was painted in 2 hours and is approximately 18 x 24. I would like to have more of the face finished so the sitter is coming back for another session.

Changing - our 48 Hour Film Project film

48 Hour Film Festival

I am part of a team, The Other End Productions, that submitted an entry in this year's 48 Hour Film contest. Our film "Changing" will be screened on Monday, June 23 at the Riverview Theater.

We had a blast making the film this year and we finished on time.

I will post more about the film after the screening.

Self Portrait

This is a self-portrait in oil that I have been working on for some time. I started it in my old studio space. I am still trying to loosen up. The technique, the way the paint is handled, is close to what I am trying to accomplish. I am happy with the right side of the face (your left). The background appears lighter on the right in the photo. This is largely due to the lighting I used to photograph the work. In the painting the background is more uniform.

The hair really bothers me in the image but not so much when I am at the easel. I am not sure what the camera sees that I don't. Photographing your work is a good way to get a second pair of eyes. I also use a mirror for this. When I look at my works in progress in a mirror I can see where the drawing went wrong.

This piece is about 18 x 24.

Recent painting: Portrait study of Greg

Lately, I am working on several things at once in the studio. This is a study of the face from my portrait of Greg in the Up Against the Wall series. This image is in oil painted on canvas paper and is approximately 9 x 12.

In the study I am trying to work out the features and technique I will use in the final painting. I want the brush strokes to show. The likeness is a starting to show but it is not quite there yet. My hope is that the familiarity with the image that the study will give me will free up my hand in the final piece.

Watch this space for more on this series and this painting.

Debra Blair's work in exhibition in Colorado

My friend Debra Blair, a painter who works primarily in encaustic, will have work in an upcoming show at Shy Rabbit Contemporary Arts in Colorado.

Any readers close to Pagosa Springs, go and check it out.

Visit the site to learn more. Hopefully they will soon have pictures of the installation online.

Shy Rabbit Contemporary Arts

Recent illustration: Giraffe

This is illustration of a giraffe was done for a colleague's birthday card. It is approximately 6 x 9 inches. It is a combination of media including graphite, watercolor, and colored pencil.

Painting experiments

I am working on developing some exercises or experiments that will help me loosen up. I tend to get focused on details and this tightens up my technique. This tightening results in surface that is too smooth and an absence of brush strokes.

Here is one that I have come up with. Readers please feel free to comment with exercises that have worked for you.

Paint directly from life within a specific time limit, such as 45 minutes. When the time is up the painting is complete.

I am planning on trying this with seated models. I think most of my friends could sit for 45 minutes. Especially if cocktails were involved. Working from a still life would work too.

I plan to set up the palette in advance by mixing some of the colors that I will need. For an exercise like this the panel (painting surface) will need to be relatively small 18 x 24.

A friend's request for help with an art project

Patrick Kinne is looking for help on a new project. Take some time to share your ideas with him.

http://rustytrains.wordpress.com/2008/04/24/new-project

Online Community for Artists

In Minnesota we have MNArtists.org and it is great but I find that the online discussions aren't as rich as they could be.

Please comment on your favorite online community for artists. Where do you go to post questions about techniques, about the art market, about art history, or to tell stories about yourself and your work. Have you visited other such sites? What makes one stand out?

I would like to have an active, open, and safe dialog about art making. I look forward to any suggestions and will post more about those I have tried.

Mexico

In March I had the opportunity to visit Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. I became fascinated by the work of an artist who was represented by several of the galleries I visited. His name is Sergio Garval.
His drawings are full of gesture and iconic imagery. The narrative of his work runs from folklore to scenes of contemporary life set in a post disaster landscape. The surfaces are alive with his process. This is painting. The paint lives on the surface in a way that reminds me of Pearlstein and Freud.

Visit his web site at http://www.sergiogarval.com/

Patrick Kinne - Featured Artist - Intermedia Arts - Minneapolis 55408 Show

My studio-mate, Patrick Kinne, is one of the featured artists at the 55408 show at Intermedia Arts. Check it out.

New Studio

Another part of my renewed focus on portraiture and commissioned work is renting a more professional studio space. I have done so. I am sharing a space in the historic Calhoun Building on Lake Street with artist Patrick Kinne.

I will post photos of the new space soon.

New Site Design

treden.com has now been completely redesigned. I have decided to focus on my art work. This includes changing my web site from an omnibus of things I do to a portfolio of my art.

I want to focus on portraiture and commissioned work. The design of the new site is meant to communicate that. I hope to get many new clients.

Check it out. I welcome your comments here.

http://www.treden.com

Art Educators of Minnesota 2007 Awards

At the 2007 annual meeting if the Art Educators of Minnesota on November 2. Susan Rotilie and I were awarded the Museum Educator of the Year award. We joined a group of dedicated art educators who also received awards and recognition (seen here). It was a wonderful honor. Thanks go out to all art educators for their support.

Portrait of Aneka

This is a portrait of my wife, Aneka, that I am working on. I experimented with the ground preparation. While the last coat of gesso was still wet I broadcast into it glass microbeads, similar to the type used to make white highway lines reflective. The concept behind this was that the reflective ground would give the paint layers an added brilliance. I think it was successful.

The negative aspects of this technique are that initially the beads absorbed a lot of paint. This might be avoided by varnishing the beads layer before beginning painting. The texture of the beads was hard on my brushes and gives the finished piece a specific look, like it was painted on sand. I am not sure, yet, if that is a bad thing.

North Star Roller Girls Proposed Halloween Poster

My friend Greg asked for my assistance with bringing his design to life for this Halloween's bout poster for the North Star Roller Girls.

Greg designed the layout and the character. I inked his drawing adding some of my own ideas. Together we colored the image using Photoshop. Below is the poster we submitted to the team. We haven't yet heard if they will use our design.