Crayolas and Marbles in a Mason Jar

Acrylic on gessoed hardboard, 12 x 12''

#193, 2011

I used a flash when I did the photo study for the painting. What intrigued me about this image was how the light was retained within the jar while the outside remained in obscurity. The glass itself became a conduit to absorb the crayons colors and give the impression as if the light was actually coming from inside the jar and not from another source. 

This is my second entry that will hang in the Realism exhibition to be held at the Mason Murer Fine Art in Atlanta. The show regroups many artists I've had contacts with since the inception of this blog. Needless to say, I am thrilled to be showing alongside them and equally excited to show with so many artists that I have admired (one for as much as a decade) and many that are new to me. The opening reception will be held this coming Friday, April 8, from 7pm to 10 pm. The show continues until May 12, 2011.

UPDATE- To view photos of the opening reception- please visit Neil Hollingsworth's blog at this LINK . Thank's Neil!

-SOLD 

Sheriff Woody & Crayolas

Acrylic on gessoed hardboard,

10 x 12'', #181, 2010

Pixar's Toy Story was release in 1995, the same year my son Jean-Luc was born. It was the studio's first full-lenght film and the first ever feature done using computer generated imagery. When Jean-Luc was old enough to talk, he started asking to watch the VHS tape, and has probably viewed it dozens of time. By the age of three he had rename Buzz Lightyear, Buzz Suckle.

I was a fan of Pixar from the get go. They set the bar very high for themselves and other animation studios. Not only are the visuals completely mind boggling, the scripts are always so brilliantly written and the choice of voice-over actors truly bring the characters to life. No studio has received more critical and commercial success as this franchise.

Toy Story 2 was released in theaters in 1999. Jean-Luc received the VHS tape as a Christmas gift when it was released the following year. In the same box as the film was the entire collection of small action figures that could be purchase at McDonald's with or without the Happy Meal.

Toy Story 3, Pixar's 11th feature film was released less than two weeks ago and has already grossed 335 millions worldwide and is most likely to break the studio's worldwide gross of 867 million held by Finding Nemo (2003). I saw it last week-end with Jean-Luc at my side. The final 30 minutes are extremely sentimental and I did find it hard to hold it together. Andy is moving on to college and the storyline follows his toys as they are accidentally put at curbside in a garbage bag instead of in a box in the attic in storage. Only a few of his toys remain. As Andy outgrew many of them, some were sold at a yard sale including Woody's significant other, Bo Peep.

Jean-Luc's toys have had a similar faith. He is not a pack rat nor a hoarder. Most of his toys have also ended up in yard sales, given to smaller children or donated to charity. I've kept Sheriff Woody Pride in my studio since he parted with the rest of his toys from Toy Story. I knew one day that I would want to paint him.

Jean-Luc with Woody & Jessie
Disney World, Orlando - 2005

A mason jar's main utility is of preserving. With this painting I am preserving the essence of Jean-Luc as a child, the many parallels of growing up and the role Pixar's films has had in capturing the imagination of generations young and old.

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Update- Dec 18, 2010- To date Toy Story 3 has become the most successful animated feature film in history. It has amassed an staggering world gross revenue of $1,063,143,492 making it is the first animated film to break the 1 billion dollar plateau. It is currently the 5th highest-grossing film worldwide of all-time (behind Avatar, Titanic, The Lord of the Rings: The return of the King, and Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest.)

-SOLD

Crayolas on Lichtenstein

Acrylic on gessoed hardboard, #168

5 x 7'', 2009

A simple composition of layering objects. A cat's eye marble on a basic 8 Crayola Crayon box, on the cover of Pop Art, an art book written by Tilmon Osterwold, with M-Maybe by Roy Lichtenstein on the cover. I only displayed the primary colored crayons from the box, as they are the colors used in Lichtenstein's artwork.

Roy Lichtenstein (1923-1997) was an American pop artist who's work was heavily influenced by both advertising and comic book style. Even though my own work technically is very much rooted in hyper realism, Pop Art has a definite direct influence and my love for primary colors probably started here. I've had the chance to view a lot of his work in major art museums in both North America & Europe. His art is also displayed in public spaces including the tuilerie gardens of the Louvres in Paris, the J. Paul Getty Museum grounds in LA, the Reina Sofia Museum in Madrid as previously posted on my blog, and the large 6 x 53 feet Times Square mural entitled Next stop, Times Square (1994) in the New York City subway station at 42nd & Broadway. Although it was completed 3 years before his death, it was only installed on September 5, 2002. I got to see it on November 4, 2002 when we visited NYC before running my 2nd NYC Marathon.

Part of my solo show- Near and Far - October 16-30, 2009.

-SOLD

Behind no. 8

Acrylic polymer emulsion on gessoed hardboard, 6 x 6"

Painted Sept. 23-30, 2007, #133.

Cropping the subject matter really tight while playing with scale, I was able to create a painting that seems to have the same impact as the four-times larger "Child's Play". The shooter marbles are exaclty the same size in both paintings. The fact that the crayon box is being reflected on the right side of the little glass sphere, weighted heavily on my decision during the imagery selection.

I used digital photography in a painting for the first time in 2005. This spring, I purchased a new digital camera, an Olympus E-500 EVOLT 8.0 megapixel SLR. To be able to take a few photographs and see the images within minutes, compared to the whole hassle of film, where you needed to take a whole roll of 24 exposure, pay to have it process only to find out that they weren't good enough, is a gift unto itself. It has already played a large role in my art. I was still using film more than 50% of the time prior to getting the SLR camera.

- SOLD

Child's Play

Acrylic polymer emulsion on gessoed hardboard, 12 x 12"

Painted August 25 - Sept. 2, 2007, #127.

Crayons have been around since 1903. They are still the first tool of choice for all novice artists. This box set is a replica of a 1903 design. Monopoly made it's debut in the early 1930's. It is believed that more than 700 million people have played this board game.This painting has a feeling of nostalgia, yet it is as relevant today as when I was growing up. When you have children, you do revisit your own childhood on a variety of levels.

-SOLD

On a sadder note. One of my all-time favorite artist, Ken Danby passed away yesterday during a canoe outing in Algonquin Park, Ontario. He was 67 years old. His art book Ken Danby: A New Decade purchased in the late 1980's was a great point of reference, and influence me greatly in my pursuit toward a higher form of realism. I had the great pleasure to view his solo show, Earth, Sky and Water; Ken Danby - Landscapes at the Bernaducci-Meisel Gallery in New York City during the month of November of 2002.