29 November, 2015

Portraits Are What I Do Now




Vincent in Rejection. 2015. Pastel. 12.5" x 10." Casey Klahn.


Without overthinking it, my art has become about faces and figures. Expressionist and (forgive this phrase) Matissian is what I wish to do. By Matissian I mean decorative, which was Henri Matisse's way of describing the abstract elements of artwork. 

The struggle is between the narrative and decorative styles. They are in opposition to one another. It turns out that if I can avoid the narrative in these portraits, then they become more powerful.

I have made several attempts to render Vincent van Gogh without looking at his paintings. This is the first time I liked one.

Why not post the Don McLean tune? Please enjoy.









2 comments:

Nazareth said...

Well you certainly nailed the Van Gogh feel/look in this one- I definately see and feel a vincent vibe to this work- It's uniquely yours of course, but it Draws from Van Gogh very well- Very itnerestign piece

Casey Klahn said...

Read Matisse's essays and interviews in Jack Flam's On Art, which is about Matisse.

Also, I have collected his pointed quotes on his color use on a Pinterest board. Let me find the link...
https://www.pinterest.com/caseyklahn/quotes/

For my part, I want to be intuitive; I keep my colors close at hand in the palette, and I don't have to sort for them. Yes, they do begin to adopt meanings, in correlation with the overall form, after time. The trick is in reading the meanings.

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