Monthly Studio Update - May, 2007
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Studio Update:
Open Studio
I live in a cool pocket of artists' lofts on the border of Williamsburg and Bushwick in Brooklyn, only 15 minutes from Manhattan. I will open my studio up for viewing on the 2nd and 3rd. There will be lots of new work available. It's a great weekend to see all the energy going on around here. --- About last April's Update, I hope you scrolled down--I had some good-natured, black-humored fun with my April Fools' joke. If you didn't, go back, because there was a real update further down the page.
It brings me a lot of pleasure to show you this painting. I painted it while I lived on Staten Island in 1982/3. Riding back from Manhattan on the Staten Island Ferry I would memorize the lights and feeling I had watching Manhattan--keeping that in mind I painted this. It may seem strange, but after 9/11 I had no interest to exploit the image. Though, I do feel a sense of pride that I honored the Twin Towers when they were the life of the city. It's a little like being glad that you have told a love one that you loved them before they pass on. --- Last week I gave a 3-day intensive workshop in St. Petersburg, Florida. The model, the artists, and the location all came together for a memorable time. I didn't take my digital camera but, hopefully, I will get the participants to send me digital images of what they did. --- A few days ago I was interviewed for Kaizen conducted by Virginia Murr and Stephen Hicks. It's a publication of Rockford College's The Center for Ethics and Entrepreneurship. The hard edition will be out late May, followed by an online version. --- For 3 weeks of last month I worked on Venus. I had hoped that I could have finished her, but after two weeks of work, I ended up wiping most of the work off. Oil is wonderful because you have time to take off the most recent layer without destroying all the good work.
Meredith came back for some more modeling for Venus.
I went back into this thumbnail, checking the movement of the light, the rotation of the forms, spatial stuff--it's really helpful. Notice that her face is more neutral-toned than the light on her chest; I will utilize these nuances as I put the finishing touches on her.
Reducing the thumbnail in size here, gives you a sense of how I see it in my studio. When I contemplate the life size painting and the thumbnail from a distance, I can see, with some amount of certainty, what I exactly need to do next.
In the second session with Meredith I drew with pastels these hands. It makes, fairly clear, the warm and cool hues. --- I would like to show two paintings in my small collection of other artists' works. Melissa Hefferlin painted the portrait below after she had apprenticed with me. There are many things in art that are inexplicable, like how a painting can convey mood or psychological depth--in this one, I feel love and sensuality. You can view Melissa's work here: http://www.melissahefferlin.com/
Bradley apprenticed with me while he was at Otis College of Art and Design. He painted this for and in response to a postmodern art class he was taking, in which he was free to make anything as art. He was labeled a fascist by his classmates because he painted and displayed figurative works. I had told him he could do exactly what the teacher wanted--like emulating her star pupil, who sowed the eyes of goldfish to its tail for his five-week project. Brad could always reject the PM knowledge later. Or, he could paint what he wanted, such as his emotional response to the class and its teacher. Which, obviously, is what he did. I love this piece. I would love to have more work of other artists, but for that, I need to have home/studio compound. I have always turned my living environment into one big studio, and it is confusing to collectors to have paintings by other artists on the studio's walls. Right now these paintings are in my small bedroom. --- Some months ago I unpacked art that had been in storage for some 12/13 years. The two portraits above where in that cache, as well as over 45 studies for Denouement, you can see a presentation of creating that work here: http://newberryworkshop.com/Tutorial/denou/denou.htm Also in that cache were studies for an abandoned project. I was kind of impressed how thoughtful my preparation was for that project and I thought I would share it with you; I was 25 years old. My goal was to make an epic painting, 9x14', with lots of life-sized people in it. The title and theme was The Individuals' Revolution. I didn't follow through with the project, not for artistic reasons, rather, I knew it would take at least 3 years of working around the clock. I didn't know of anyone or any organization that may want to buy it, so I reluctantly let it go.
This is one of the final drawing compositions. I subscribe to the Renaissance technique of layering the skeleton with muscle, skin, and then clothes. It's a great deal of work, but there is no substitute for the beauty that method creates.
I like the rhythms in this work; the three guys on the right, and the central group. But, everyone is a little frozen looking, like it was staged for the theater.
It's a long time ago, 25 years, that I drew this, my guess is that it is the last sketch for the idea. It has a more organic (flowing, loose shapes) composition. Creating a hill for the setting gets rid of the staged look.
I was very impressed seeing this thumbnail again. It is the abstract design for the grouping of the people. It uses a modified "X", with hints of shooting rays. The angle of the flag pole would be an essential ingredient. This construction process I surmised by studying da Vinci and Michelangelo. There was absolutely nothing in my art education to support such an undertaking. The following are the studies of the figures for the project.
In the late 70"s I lived sometime in Holland, and studied at the Free Academy in The Hague. This is where I first learned lithography. Below is a portrait of Ton Simmons, '79, drawn/painted on lithograph stone then printed on fine paper. Ton is currently the artistic director of Dance Works in Rotterdam, Holland. http://www.danceworksrotterdam.nl/eng/company/leader.htm
Here is another lithograph, a self-portrait. My college education was almost exclusively postmodern. This piece is from my period of transition from influences like Rauschenberg and Jasper Johns towards a later realistic style.
Continuing with self-portraits, this is a conte drawing. I have always liked my loose, gestural drawings--I just let go and draw as fast as I can without any thought. As a mature artist I see this process simply is one among many tools to use.
This self-portrait was painted one particular night. That night, I was the odd man out of love triangle. I had a lot of difficult feelings as well as many great ones. Though it is too close to home for me to judge, I think I captured some of those conflicts. The mouth looks sensual, relaxed. Each eye is different, one looks almost blind (!), and one is slightly reddened. ---
3-Day Intensive Pastel Workshop in Central Park Late June or Early July (Dates to be announced at www.NewberryWorkshop.com) If you are interested in taking the workshop, contact me. --- I think that pretty much wraps up the Studio Update for May.
Michael Newberry
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