Sifting

Topaz from Brazil #97975

    

   It's been almost a year from my last bit of blogging and lots of events, large and small have occurred. Professionally, in January I started a new series of paintings based on rocks and minerals that I am exhibiting in July.  Images of them are up on my website under the heading Conversation. You can read my statement about the show there as well. Here, I thought I would do the back story and share a few other thoughts that I have had as I have begun to research and find new ways to paint, using these specimens.

      

      Back in the early 90's I took a field trip with my sons' class to Harvard's Natural History Museum. There, I was particularly struck by the rocks and minerals section. I took some photos, thought about trying them in paint and then forgot about it. I came across my pictures earlier this year and decided to follow through. I just recently made my third trip to Harvard to "collect". I also stopped into the Natural History Museum in New York and frankly, if this continues, I will have enough material for an eon worth of work. 

Here is one of my photos, taken in bad lighting, with the example under glass, and next to it, my painting. The specimen is small, about 4 inches and my painting is about 7 inches on an 8 inch panel.

   
 I've chosen to paint my studies in oil on panels that are covered with a fine threaded linen. This allows for detail as well as drag on the brush. First though, using Photoshop, I isolate the specimen, sharpen and heighten the color and contrast, print it out and then paint from that image. As you can see here, there's a fair bit of difference between my model and the painting. A scientific renderer would object with how I have interpreted this one. I went to a botanical drawing workshop once and was admonished for taking liberties. But for me, the work is more about exploration than  duplication.

          

As I started accumulating finished studies they reminded me of the National Geographic illustrations I enjoyed so much, growing up. There is a bit of a retro feel to them and they seem to "bounce", even as I try to tone them down. It turns out there is a book published of a Century National Geographic Illustrations and here are some terrific examples;

This is by John Sibbick and the kind of thing we all remember seeing and loving as kids. When I went to the site where this was, there was a comment that the raptor needed feathers....no critique on the art....which couldn't possibly be more exciting.

 

 This is a fold out (click to enlarge..it's full of stuff) by Eric Hanson

Really, this is fabulous work. The examples above move toward the fantastic and then below, is another painterly graphic that illustrates a specific natural phenomena. 

In this case a peat bog in all its glory by John Dawson. 

It reminds me of John Ruskin and Beatrix Potters' work.

This somewhat surreal painting from 1950 is a blue bird of paradise by Walter Weber.

 (I love that pink sky with the brown trees.)

      You can access these illustrations as well as their vast photo collection at the National Geographic website. There are also time lapse videos of artists doing their work.

      My personal attraction to the rocks and minerals comes primarily from all the associations that arise.              

In these examples I jump right to the Futurist sculptors like Boccioni.

The Topaz specimen at the top of my blog seems to have a layer of ocean within it and mountain peaks on top. As I paint it, it will undoubtedly morph again, with more hidden qualities revealed.

I found this last illustration when I searched minerals / illustration. Seems like an auspicious and appropriate end....Thanks for reading!

Separating Sulfa Crystals by Thorton Oakley