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Oscar finds a home.

May 24th, 2022

Oscar finds a home.

I know that the title makes it sound like I'm writing about a real estate property ad, however I'm talking about art and finding the right fit.
Painting is a solitary adventure. Generally, you are alone, coming up with ideas and then putting them down on canvas. You never really know what the reaction of others will be to your work until you post it online or exhibit it. The reactions people have can be surprising. I have seen anger (yes, someone once demanded my painting be taken down), laughter, and even someone bursting out in joyful tears.
I'm generally optimistic and hope that the joy that I have when painting comes through and is shared. However, sometimes it takes a while for a painting to find a home. When it takes a while to find the right person, who can appreciate and cherish your work, it can be frustrating. Especially, when you honestly feel that you have created something unique and worthwhile. But alas, everyone has their own take on things and beauty is in the eye of the beholder. However, it is worth the wait, when you finally make the sale and make someone happy. I am glad this portrait of Oscar Peterson, along with the 2 other paintings in the triptych, have found their home.

Venice, surrounded by water and art

May 24th, 2022

 Venice, surrounded by water and art

Had the pleasure of visiting Venice. Found it easily exceeded all my expectations. St. Mark's square, the Doge's palace, Rialto bridge and the Grand Canal...magnificent. The city on the water had grown organically and spread out like a giant labyrinth. Having the luxury of time, I would just let myself get lost and soak up the atmosphere.


The Venice Biennale was going on at the time, so I would often end up at the exhibits Originating in 1895, this international art and film festival showcases innovative modern art. Avant-garde, Pop Art, Abstract Expressionism, Modern Contemporary. 30 nations have permanent exhibits in the Giardini park. Countries, without a Pavilion exhibit in venues across the city. Incredible concentration, when you think that the entire city only encompasses about 8 square miles.



A visual buffet, with something to suit every taste. Some whimsical, some intellectual, some just plain baffling. One consistent exhibit theme, was a series of televisions, playing simultaneously, at full volume, in different languages. If the idea was to move the crowds along, it worked brilliantly.


Another exhibit had a box made out of chain link fence, bit of a maze inside a maze-like city. One located in a former domed church, invited you to lay down on cushions and watch a film projected on the ceiling. An immense variety of artistic expression. For the most part, clever and thought provoking.


The art that generated a visceral reaction for me, was found in the more traditional setting of Gallerie della Accademia. I realize that this type of art is not fashionable today. Maybe I'm bucking the trend. But trends come and go, for example Michelangelo once quipped "Oil painting is for amateurs." How long the latest popular fad endures, no one can predict. It worked out well for me, because I ended up having the gallery to myself.


Before my visit, I had never appreciated the scope and genius of the Venetian renaissance masters, Titian (Tiziano Vecellio), Tintoretto (Jacopo Robusti) and Veronese (Paolo Calliari)*, always overshadowed by the Florentine big three, Michaelangelo, Da Vinci and Raphael.
In the Scuola Grande di San Rocco, there is an x-ray of one of Tinteretto's paintings showing his minimal underpainting. Which when compared to the finished piece, demonstrates his artistic confidence and ability to paint on the fly. Famous for his productivity and speed he was nicknamed "Il Furiouso".


Whatever your art preference, modern or traditional Venice delivers. Plus, there is always the canals, gondoliers, and the incredible food. I highly recommend the seppie col nero (cuttlefish ink pasta).


* The critic Theophile Gautier wrote in 1860, that Veronese was the greatest colorist who ever lived, greater than Titian, Rubens, or Rembrandt because he established the harmony of natural tones in place of the modeling in dark and light that remained the method of academic chiaroscuro. Delacroix wrote that Veronese made light without violent contrasts, "which we are always told is impossible, and maintained the strength of hue in shadow.


"I think I am beginning to learn something about painting."

Master artist Tiziano Vecellio, known as Titian, quoted in his 70's

Interviewed by a young art lover...

May 24th, 2022

Interviewed by a young art lover...

Sometimes you have the opportunity to talk about your art with a younger person. Maybe they are inspired by something you have done and are curious. Possibly, with a little encouragement, they may one day become the next "big thing" in the art world. Or maybe they just need to get a paper done for their art class, and your name was the first to pop up on Google. You never know. But it is always nice to be able to lend someone a hand, whenever possible.

I recently received an email from a student at Mount Tabor High School, asking me some questions about my work and Fauvism.
Her questions made me take a moment and think about my process and then try to convey an idea of how I go about it. A useful exercise, because it makes you think about a lot of things you probably do instinctively. Here is my reply to her interview questions:

Dear Anna

Appreciate your interest and hope I can be of some help.
First, let me start off by saying artist create art, art critics create "isms". It may be a curse of Western culture that we love to categorize everything and put them in neat little boxes. It simplifies things but also is reductive and often inaccurate.

You may be aware already that Michelangelo, DaVinci and Titian never saw themselves as "Renaissance" .
Monet, Degas and Renoir never called themselves "impressionists", which was a derogatory term used by a contemptuous art critic.
The same negative attitude was responsible for the word "Fauvism", which comes from art critic Louis Vauxcelles. Vauxcelles was not impressed with the the 1905 Salon d'Automme which featured work by Henri Matisse, Andr� Derain, Charles Camion, and wrote "Donatello chez les fauves" (Donatello among the wild beasts), The term Fauvist derived from that.
It is amusing today that the artist to become the most famous of the group, Matisse, was the most universally derided.
Honestly, I just paint what I enjoy. Sometimes my style changes depending on my mood. My work has been described as contemporary, vivid, colourful and playful. Many call it Fauvist, others Pop art, graphic or often Native (refering to people like Norval Morriseau). What my work is called is up to the viewer and what they take from it, it is all good. I don't get hung up on "isms" just focus on creating.
Answers to your questions:
1) The first step I take when doing any painting is finding something that excites my interest. I love nature, animals and travel.
When I travel, I take a lot of photographs that I use to spark ideas when I get home and decide to start painting. What I look for is interesting lines, good contrast ( light and shadow). I'm never worried about colour because I create my own. Sometimes, though not always, I will do a pencil drawing on paper first. This is just to give me a chance to really "LOOK" at the subject and get an understanding. I love drawing and find it meditative and relaxing. Other times I just get right into it and start putting paint right on the canvas. I use acrylic paints which have the advantage of being opaque, drying fast and not smelling chemically. Acrylics also allow me to paint over my image if I don't like something and want to make changes. Changes can happen often, if I see something that doesn't work well or I get a better idea.
Many young artists are afraid to make mistakes and so take forever to get started. My advice is to dive into it, put paint down, just do it. Stuff happens, sometimes great, sometimes not. You then get to make decisions, improvements. What people call mistakes are often just learning opportunities. Just enjoy the action of applying paint and seeing how the colour relates to each other.
2) In order to prevent objects from becoming to patchy, I start to design with large shapes, flat colours and simple backgrounds, choosing colours that compliment each other and make each other pop. Usually, I pick a colour that is going to be dominant and takes up a larger area. After that I may come back and hit it with some more details and flashes of colour.
That being said, I have actually done a lot of paintings that were "patchy" using dabs of colour. Monet the greatest of the impressionist painters was the master of the patchy, random looking paint. If you ever have the opportunity to see one of his paintings up close you will be surprised at how patchy it looks. However, from a distance it comes together and shimmers. That is his genius.
3) I never plan out in any detail where the colours will go. Some artists, like Alex Colville, are meticulous planners. Personally, too much planning takes the fun out of it. Sometimes, I have a general idea of what the end result will look like. But if I am painting away and I start to like how some colours are interacting then I will follow that direction and explore where it will take me. That doesn't mean I am always happy with the end result, but it is not the end of the world. I can always start over or do another painting.
Often I take tubes of paint and slap blobs of colour down on the canvas and see where it takes me. It is a good creative excercise and helps you to come across different colour combinations. Try it!
4) Your use of colour depends on your goals. If you want to learn how to mix colours, start with the primary colours blue, red, yellow plus white. You can mix up any colour with these 4. Cobalt Blue, Cadmium red, Cadmium yellow work well together.
However, if you are interested in doing a fauvist style, you will notice they used a lot of different colours. Remember, paint sold in tubes was just invented at that time. Before that, artist spent a lot of time grinding pigments and mixing them with various oils. The painters at the turn of the century had the luxury of popping open a tube of paint. Find an artist with colours that appeal to you, then take a picture of their work and bring it with you when you shop for paint.
5) Fauvism uses bright colours, simplified detail and spontaneous brush strokes, a continuation of Impressionism really.
To get a good feel for it, first make a copy of a Matisse painting like "Woman with a Hat" or his "sel-portrait in a striped t-shirt".
That will give you an idea of the way he used colour, his brush strokes and simplicity. After you are done that, put the painting away, keep your same colour palette and without looking at his work create your own.
Hope that helps. Have Fun!!
Derrick

Artists and Inspirational Pets

May 24th, 2022

Artists and Inspirational Pets

Just recently, our beloved little dog Keaton, succumbed to a faulty heart vavle and passed away.

A little white and tan whippet, she was my constant companion, so it was only natural that I sketched her often and she ended up appearing in many of my paintings.

Whippets are among the most agile and speedy of dogs (36 mph/58 km/h). They have been called the poor man's racehorse. Though incredible to behold, trying to capture her in full flight or when
cavorting around in acrobatic spins was impossible.

These intermittent burst of incredible energy were punctuated by long periods of rest and relaxation. She never met a couch she didn't like which made her an accommodating model. At rest, her flexible, contortionist body, made her an interesting subject.

Not surprisingly, pets have been inspiring artists since they first picked up a piece of charcoal. Of course the bulls, wild horses and bison depicted on the caves in Altamira, Spain or Lascaux, France
weren't pets. But the fascination with animals was clearly there.

Examples of carvings and paintings of pet birds, cats, dogs and monkeys are found throughout ancient Egypt. Minoans, Greeks and Romans depicted there pets in mosaics. During the Renaissance, in one of Da Vinci's more personal portraits, Cecilia Gallerani holds a pet ermine.
Rembrant's etchings, show cats lounging by the fireplace. In the modern era, examples abound.

Why this great fascination with artist and their pets? Is it simply because they add quality and joy to our lives, something we hold close to our hearts? Maybe we've been conditioned like everyone else, by Disney critters, to think of them differently, almost human. It takes little effort to think of some of the pets in modern media Lassie, Snoopy, Scooby Doo, Felix or Garfield. Even Superman had a Super Dog and Super Cat.

I'm not sure there is one definitive answer. I am just thankful my wife and I have a small collections of pictures, paintings and sketches that capture enjoyable moments with our special little friend.

Derrick Higgins