the realm of observation

Paint what you know. - Andrew Wyeth

Here the danger to be avoided and overcome if it arises is the inevitable temptation to neglect some aspects of the object and to modify others in order to 'impart health to form', which is the beginning of art. We are in the realm of observation and of the mind's effort to describe it.
- Etienne Gilson, Forms and Substances In The Arts

(Still life) does not invent things for its own sake, or indulge in fantasy or caprice. The constant return to familiar things is a mark of sobriety and self-restraint, a refusal to enter into flights of imagination; on the contrary, their aim is to dispel illusion and remind vision of its actual place and powers.
- Norman Bryson, his essay Rhopography in Looking At the Overlooked


I thought these two egg tempera paintings would be an appropriate way to end the year. I was motivated to work in water-based media, specifically egg tempera and watercolor, after moving into a smaller space two years ago. My bedroom is at one end of the room, my work area at the other - - - the typical New York City compromise. So I was forced by necessity to work at a smaller, more manageable scale and to re-orient myself to how I work. The lives of painters can be an unreasonable balancing act, with the artwork always getting too little attention. And periodically we drop out only to resurface later. I have yet to hit my stride but continue to work at this and am making progress. I am pleased with these two paintings (the one of the pine cone is not finished yet) and I am happier with where my efforts stand than I was two years ago. Or even one year, for that matter. But Art is a hungry beast - - - the more you give it the more it demands. With more space, I suppose I would try bigger paintings, but I once had a separate, bigger studio and never got a damn thing done, anyway.

And I used the term "Art" a moment ago. I always found that term a bit pretentious but don't have another to use right now. For me it's Painting, for others it's something else.

But back to my previous comment - - - I started focusing on water-based painting media and really enjoy the control egg tempera affords. I make it fresh with egg yolk and dry pigments and have not developed beyond the initial baby steps. There is a painter by the name of Robert Vickrey whose work in egg tempera is really amazing. And he has completely broken free from the tight, fine cross-hatching technique that has been employed for centuries. To look at his work, you would think it's airbrushed or something, but it's not. I have both his books on egg tempera technique listed in the Materials & Techniques section of my other blog, Bullock Online Library (the link is included nearby). I have started with the traditional process of making the paint fresh in the morning before starting work, developing the slow, patient cross-hatching to render the image. It is time consuming but, also, meditative. If you are not in the right frame of mind "meditative" turns into "maddening" very quickly. If you click on the images, the brush work is magnified.

So this will be my last blog entry for 2008. I hope you all have a blessed and safe New Year.