With the passing of my exams and moving back for the summer, I’m beginning the process of organizing for artistry this summer. I spent the afternoon cleaning a 4’x8′ canvas that I have the hopes to begin a landscape painting in the style of Thomas Cole, Frederic Church, John Frederick Kensett, and the likes of the luminist painters. I would be interested in the desert mountains of New Mexico or the pristine beauty of the Minnesota lakes. I’ll be doing some sketches and photos first.
Summer also means that I’ll have time to educate myself on the artistic principles that I value. No offense (actually, please take offense by this), but my university hasn’t quite taught me to develop artistic skills. My head has been pumped so full of modern art ideals and rationals… the conceptual. Why not just create what makes you happy? Why be so labored down by trying to make work that will make it into galleries? My goal as an artist is not the gallery. It’s the experience. It’s the final product. I’ve been told at times that what I do is illustrational. I’ve been told there’s nothing wrong with that. There’s always a “but.”
Well, what makes me enjoy art is the illustrational, whether it’s something a band could use as cover art, or the direct beauty I see in nature being captured in oil, or even the comic art that I’m striving to learn how to do. Those are my goals. I bought a tablet to read eBooks on, and I’ll be breezing through anatomy, perspective, books by Christopher Hart, Andrew Loomis, and Stan Lee. Digitally, I’ll be taking notes on Phlearn tutorials and lectures. And so the summer begins…
