30 July, 2012

Exhibiting in NYC


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Enduring Brilliance!
September 4 - September 28, 2012
Pastel Society of America at 40
Pastels Only Juried Exhibition





My original pastel, Forest Pond, will be on display at the exhibit.


28 July, 2012

Tahiti Was Good For Gauguin

The Moment of Truth (I), 1892
o/c, 54.5 cm x 31 cm
Paul Gauguin
Cincinnati Art Museum

I wish I was born in the nineteenth century.  Maybe I'd have taken a long Tahitian retreat, like Gauguin, or Matisse. Actor Marlon Brando figured the same.

27 July, 2012

a thing of the mind

"Pittura est cousa mentale"
Painting is a thing of the mind.
Leonardo da Vinci

after da Vinci
@14x12"
Conte & White Chalk
Casey Klahn


25 July, 2012

Hopper Houses Today


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Cape Cod Afternoon,1936 
Oil on canvas, 34 x 50 inches
Edward Hopper 
Museum of Art, Carnegie Institute, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.  Image form ibiblio.



Hopper Houses Today

h/t Gerard Vanderleun

24 July, 2012

WFMIT?

What Fresh Mess Is This?
Casey Klahn

Just kidding.  I'm tentatively happy with my first oil start.  More tubes are on order from Seattle, so I can actually color this baby in.

So many questions I have.  Will I leave the impasto textures, or will they just get in the way of the varnish? Will I trench-in a new power line, or fish around for the old one?

Drywall plans are on the drawing board.  One step at a time.

21 July, 2012

The Barn Studio Project




The idea to use the barn for a studio has been going around in my head for some time.  I was warned about the downsides, and there are many.  But, the space is big, and well ventilated for when I want to try my hand at large oils.  We'll see how things turn out as I use this for a temporary oil painting studio, at least while the weather is good!

20 July, 2012

Green Grows the Ground

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Green Ground
3.5" x 4.5"
Pastel
Casey Klahn

This new work is being auctioned at the Daily Paintworks!



15 July, 2012

Summer Painting Outdoors

This is the informal iPh photo
Forest Interior 3
@6x10.8" 
Pastel
Casey Klahn
en plein air


14 July, 2012

Pastel-Box Famous


Edgar Degas
Georgia O'Keeffe

Degas' box picture from La Maison du Pastel website.
Georgia O’Keeffe’s pastels from Pilgrimage (Annie Leibovitz, 2011).

12 July, 2012

Modigliani - Love, Nonsense & Life

Modigliani, not looking well, 1919.

Amedeo Modigliani (July 12, 1884 – January 24, 1920) has been the subject of a couple of feature movies.  Mostly, they cover his love life, which lacked no drama.  I take that back - the more recent flick is also very much about the artistic process.  Critics and the public hate it, but I loved it.  The metaphor of his grand premier compared to a bloody mugging in the snow is rich, and I liked the way he consulted his boyhood self from time to time.  


Watching the 1958 film, Les Amants de Montparnasse, in French, is a nonsensical treat for me, since I don't understand the language.  


Happy Birthday, Modi.  


Here is a You Tube of his paintings streamed to some music with an Italian title about love's consequences.  I like to watch these with the digital projector on the big screen.  Maybe some of his great style and visual grace will rub off on me.









11 July, 2012

Ahem. I Painted in This Guy's Studio, Once. Just Sayin...



My friend, oil painter and pastelist Ken Elliott, is not shy about putting down color.  Watch this fine artist create a colorist landscape, in its entirety, on video.  



For The Color blog.



Yellows Across the Lake
oil on canvas, 40 x 40 inches
Ken Elliott

10 July, 2012

Hopper, with Mood Music


The work of the American artist Edward Hopper is so moody and evocative, that more than a few amateur videographers have tried to distill his images with a track.  Which one of the following works best for you?

Yes, a sublime waste of time.  But, you get to soak up some great Hopper while doing it.

Edward Hopper to Claude Debussy

or Benny Goodman
(and Edward Hirsch)

try Eric Satie

and finally, Mr. Tom Waits at Closing Time.


Video attributions embedded in videos.



Hopper was so tied into his subjects that when he outlived them, his output died, too.  Don't be sad about that - stand up and cheer for what he gave us when he did.





09 July, 2012

High Branches


 High Branches
@10" x 8"
Pastel & Charcoal
Casey Klahn




I added that edge in Photoshop. Is that fair? I feel that presentation is a good thing, especially with works on paper.  In real life, though, this work would be framed with a mat.


07 July, 2012

In The Summertime

 High Branches
@8" x 10"
Pastel & Charcoal
Casey Klahn





Excuse me for having nice weather, while I know many of you are suffering under extreme heat.  I count my blessings. 


I made an extra effort to work on my plein air at the lake this year.  


I'll try to photograph the handful of pastels I completed over the holiday, and post them here, soon.  Happy vacations, everyone.


Bob Dylan has something to say about summertime, too.

02 July, 2012

Go To Market



You Must Find Your Market.

Sometimes you have to push yourself to market in a cart, so strong is the inertia defending the marketplace from you. I find this especially true in the summer, when family, chores, and focus on art-making occupy my time.


Here are some great links for art marketing to get you revved-up.


What Are You Really Selling?, Cindy Haase.
Daily Paintworks, Carol Marine.
Art Biz Blog, Alyson Stanfield.
Marketing Mondays, Joanne Mattera.
The Painter's Keys, Robert Genn.

Photo attribution lost, sorry.

01 July, 2012

Palettes



"Colour Trend Visualisation
each chart represents an individual painting with the five most prominent colours shown proportionally."
Degas, Matisse, Gauguin.

The limit of this is that all color is relative, but the idea is a knockout.  Love it!

Abstract Expressionism, Art Criticism, Artists, Colorist Art, Drawing, History, Impressionism, Modern Art, Painting, Pastel, Post Impressionism