Telling Stories

A Dream Of Joy & Sadness 11x14" Oil

I am often frustrated trying to reach this goal I have in my head for the way I want my paintings and drawings to be. I am searching for a certain something which is hard to pinpoint. I am looking for more story, more expression in the work.

The Complex Simplicity Of Opinions

"I want to touch people with my art. I want them to say, 'He feels deeply, he feels tenderly.'"
Vincent van Gogh

The movie "Loving Vincent" is set to open in theatres shortly. This ground-breaking movie is entirely hand painted, and I am eager to see it. Not just for the way it was crafted, but for the story of Vincent. Much of what he wrote over his all too short of life really resonates with me, as I'm sure it does for many other artists.

Another morning painting at the pond with a Common Snipe peeping away, and various other birds singing. I got this tiny painting done before teatime! The dog didn't even notice I was gone.

A post by Roberta Murray on Instagram

Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary

What A Sweet Duck - 8x10" - Oil 

It's been a really long winter here in Alberta. As I type this, it's the end of April and it is still snowing. All winter, between the weather and caring for an aging dog, I had hardly been out of the house aside from weekly trips into town for groceries, and the odd trip to a nearby city for appointments. I was decidedly housebound and eager to see green and get outside to paint. This funk had extended itself to my work at the easel.

Of Poetry And Painting

Wild Winds Sweep The Green Earth - 8x10" - Oil

In a previous blog post I mentioned getting greater value from books about art ideas, theories, and other artists thought process. I want to talk a little bit more about that and how those kinds of books can have more influence on my work than technique or how-to based books. I have just started reading some of John Ruskin's writings which is opening up ideas for me, which have been sitting just beneath the surface but I wasn't fully coming to grips with yet.

He has a section where he compares painting to poetry, which really piqued my interest because I share this idea. While many painters compare the similarity between painting and music, for me I see it as more closely following poetry. What Ruskin was talking about was how art patrons seemed to favour paintings which portray the world exactly as it is, but if the highest ideal of art is to imitate what already exists, why not just have a mirror on the wall, or open the window and see what is there in front of you. 

"The difference between the ordinary, proper, and true appearances of things to us; and the extraordinary, or false appearances, when we are under the influence of emotion, or contemplative fancy; false appearances, I say, as being entirely unconnected with any real power or character in the object, and only imputed to it by us."
- John Ruskin 

 He further goes on to say how if poetry just stated what exists we would not be moved by it. Compare "the sky had an orange glow on the horizon with clouds building"', with "clouds billowed up in a crimson sky like the lust of new lovers". The first is just a descriptive sentence that may be more suitable for a news report - nothing to make it endearing and exciting. The second, poetry filled with emotive suggestion that engages the imagination.  Without the heart and passion of the author putting into words a simile of what he feels in his heart, rather than the facts before him, there could be no poetry. The same thing exists in art.

"Amongst the painters, and the writers on painting, there is one maxim universally admitted and continually inculcated. Imitate nature is the invariable rule; but I know none who have explained in what manner this rule is to be understood; the consequence of which is, that everyone takes it in the most obvious sense - that objects are represented naturally, when they have such relief that they seem real. It may appear strange, perhaps, to hear this sense of the rule disputed; but it must be considered, that, if the excellency of a painter consisted only in this kind of imitation, painting must lose its rank, and be no longer considered as a liberal art, and sister to poetry."

Ruskin goes on to compare the paintings which imitate nature truthfully belonging to a class of historical documentation in painting. The other, where the painter embellishes the truth for emotive suggestion belongs to poetry. It is the artist trying to capture how the subject moves him, or makes him feel that leads to more meaningful art. This is the thing, the poetry, I strive for in my work. I am not in interested in having the viewer look at a painting and say "oh yes, this is Mount so and so painted from the third viewpoint in mid-September at 7:00 pm". I want them to think, "I remember that warm autumn day when my lover and I strode hand in hand along the mountain lakeshore, and the late day sun set the rocks aglow to which they mirrored a song welling up in my heart".

Wild Peaks Rose - 8x10" - Oil

My husband is my sounding board and confidant for all aspects of my life. In art we do not always see eye to eye. He comes to art without any formal understanding of it beyond simply what appeals to him, and what he has thought the measure of excellency in art was - namely being the ability to realistically capture what exists. How many times have you heard someone in amazement exclaim the painting looks just like a photograph, as if that is the defining measure which makes it great. I have over the years been swaying his ideas on that aesthetic as a measurement of arts merit. 

My argument has always been, how hard it is it to reproduce that which exists? You look and put down a visual truth as it exists as surely as a child tracing the outline of their own hand (not to say there isn't considerable skill involve or to suggest the execution is as easy as tracing). But to translate what you see into the emotions and spiritual attachment you feel towards it is a far more difficult task. You have no roadmap telling you how to do it. Take all the workshops you can, read all the technique books you want, and you will be no closer to being able to put your emotions (as it relates to your subject) down on canvas. That is why painters like Degas can create such a strong emotion in me that I'm likely to fight back tears in the presence of his work.

That is why contemporary painters like Carolyn Anderson, Michael Workman, or Quang Ho, who seem to capture the emotional essence of a subject without realism, can move and inspire me more than the highly realist approach of others.  High realism is easy to understand. There is nothing left for the viewer to do but look and acknowledge the faithful reproduction of that which exists. The familiar and known is easy to understand. Poetry and emotion, on the other hand requires engagement from the viewer. They need to apply themselves to interpret the image and fill in the story as it relates to them. In creates a deeper level of engagement, just as poetry requires a deeper level of thought to interpret what the writer is really saying. 

I do want to say that I don't discount the hard work of those artists working in the realist genre. The mastery of technique and the patience to work in this style is impressive; and I often think if I had the discipline to study this way of painting I may not struggle so much at the canvas to lay down the poetry inside. But then I think having any kind of calculated approach would be a barrier from that internal truth which I am interested in trying to portray. Perhaps it is the very struggle to express the emotion which gets to the heart of it in the first place.

In just a few short pages, Ruskin has set to words what I am striving for; of what I understood in my heart but couldn't articulate well. There are other books, such as Robert Henri's 'The Art Spirit', which are able to generate a much deeper understanding of what I am trying to achieve at the canvas in a more profound way than technique based books. 

A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Easel

Moon Rising - 16x20" - Oil

My painting mantra has been "I don't paint the landscape. I paint my spirit disguised as the landscape." I often stray far from those intentions, however. Sometimes I do paint the landscape as it is without reflecting on my mood or spirit at that time. If I was strictly painting from my inner spirit I would not use references, but I often do use one. Granted I try to find a reference (or references - I often use several at once) that suits the mood I want to convey, but I'm still basing it on a particular time and place. 

 

Who Said Being Stubborn Was Bad?

Backstage Wait - 11x14" - Oil on linen

Post Workshop Blues

Day 3 Long Pose - 11x14" - Oil on panel

I'm Doing It All Wrong

Benalto Farm - 11x14" - Oil on canvas panel

Art is subjective making it hard to find a definitive answer of what is great art. Sure we have answers from various experts on historical art and why it should be considered great; and even experts on modern art, but few of us will agree with those opinions. As a painter it is up to me to figure out my own standards. What do I like. What do I want my paintings to say and how do I want them to look?

Storm Dodging

The Driveway - 8x10" - Oil on panel

Wow, I didn't realize it has been over a month since my last post. I've always said that I can paint, or I can write. I can't do both; and since it's summer (almost) painting is in full gear. Our plein air season is short in Canada, so I have to make the most of it. 

I got a new Strada easel (thanks to my photography royalties) and had to take it out for a test drive Friday night. Only problem was we had stormy weather. It had been raining and blowing most of the day. There was a break in the storms and the sun was casting some beautiful shadows across the driveway, so I set up and went to work.

No sooner did I start then more clouds rolled in obscuring the light. Then the wind picked up and the rain was right behind it. I tried to finish up inside but I had done a bad job. The next night the weather was exactly the same, so I took another stab at it.

I changed my composition a bit from the first night. I didn't like the angle of the driveway. Much happier with the results now......though looking at the photo I see I have a few edges at the end of the driveway that need to be softened. 

Painting Painting Painting

Learning To Fly - 8x10" - Oil on panel

Art Sale This Weekend

Xanadu Gallery

Angel Can Fly - 16x20" - Oil

Lost Momentum

Skaters On Bower Ponds - 16x20" - Oil on canvas

How To Create Trouble

Angel Can Fly - 16x20" - Oil on canvas

Vision Quest Part 2

Blackfoot Chief - 11x14" - Oil

Vision Quest Part 1

The Planter - 8x10" - Oil on canvas

BoldBrush Selection

Eastern Sky - 9x11" - Oil on canvas panel

So pleased to have had Eastern Sky selected as part of the FAV15% October 2014 BoldBrush Painting Competition.

How Long Did It Take To Paint That

A common question many painters get asked is "how long did it take you to paint that?". It's a question many artists hate. Why? Because the answer isn't straightforward. 

The Power Of Inspiration

Four Dancers (After Degas) - 11x14" - Oil on canvas panel