A Life Of Its Own
I am continuing my Twelve of Twelve series, in which I have chosen 12 studies to enlarge up to 36” x 36”. There will be many observations that I want to share along the way.
I believe the most important piece of creating art is the emotion and energy. Can you recreate the original piece of art or study and still retain its essence or soul?
I have seen artists try to copy the original by tracing, using the grid method, a projector or printer to enlarge a painting. What happens when you do this?
It is a priority for me to not only keep the integrity of the original piece, but also not to lose its freshness and vitality. And as I scale up the small studies to a larger format, I have to allow the creation to have a life of its own.
Some of the undertakings I considered prior to increasing the size were:
- Keeping the same mediums and substrate; arches oil paper, oil paint and cold wax, mixed media
- Establishing the major shapes and composition, and allowing change if needed to make stronger
- Understanding the original and its transparencies, layers and textures; what came first, what is over, what is under, how can I increase the same effect in a larger scale
- Using the same tools but larger, that includes stencils, rollers, bowl scrapers, brushes , etc.
- And what is the mood and essence that I want to repeat from the original piece?
As I enlarge the original, I am always focusing on improving the composition. But, I also had to allow myself to drift off into another direction if called. I still want to create something new and exciting. The study is the starting off point, not the destination.
6" x 6" Study
The painting above is called “The Year of the Ox” and is the second painting of my “Twelve of Twelve” series. I hope I captured the energy and celebration of the coming Chinese New Year, “The Year of the Ox”. We have all had a tough 2020. “The Year of the Ox”, brings us the opportunity to work hard and deliberate and also to acknowledge the opportunity for resetting our lives to create a more positive future for ourselves and others.
