carpe diem

I am on the cusp of several things right now but have produced nothing. No pictures = no blogee. But this morning I was looking at some photos taken by Vic Kirby at his beautiful home in Todos Santos, Mexico, and was especially drawn in by the light. This beautifully simple photo inspired me to dash off an equally simple (but not very successful) 11" x 14" oil sketch. The format and colour palette are different and I haven't managed to capture the magic of Mexico's light, but it was a good exercise in trying a hard-edged, geometric composition. I do a lot better with organic lines.

Anyone care to forward me an airline ticket so I can research the light quality firsthand? :)


21-11-10
I looked at it again today and it's actually quite beautiful so I take back everything I said above. It's all about the surface quality, though -- the blending of colours and texture and oh, the lusciousness of oil paint and the way it plays with light that is impossible to achieve with acrylic. I painted it on panel primed with the Gamblin oil ground I bought awhile back and the paint sits on the surface like nothing else. It photographs as an image quite poorly, unfortunately, but as an object it's quite a lovely thing. And I can write this and toot my horn 'til the cows come home because I don't think anyone is actually reading this. It's kind of great having the freedom to be as egotistical I want!