Which Artist Lives Here? Abstraction vs. Realism vs. Process - A Tag Team Battle

Ponte Vecchio - Old City

@7" x 6"
Graphite on 70gr. Sketch Paper
Casey Klahn

In the past, before I had this blog, I worked hard at unifying my work. My Colorist American Landscapes are a nicely coherent body of work, where abstracted landscapes reveal color stories that speak immediately to the viewer.

Now I have started posting both finished and process sketches, realist paintings (usually of Italy), realist farmscapes, and some abstracts. You may be asking yourself, "How many artists live here?"

I am not, as far as I know, Schizophrenic. In fact, I'll go out on a limb here, and assert that I am not. But, I do enjoy expanding my limits. Growing my artistic abilities, if you will. I have had an urge for some time to return to my realist roots. So, I started the 100 Paintings Project which stays focused on the Italian Landscape and realism, with effects of my colorist tilt. Then I put it on another blog, hopefully to reduce confusion between my styles and genres.

It's perfectly okay for Pablo Picasso to inhabit any number of genres. But not an unknown such as myself. BTW, I saw an awesome artist's tagline the other day : "So-and-so, the nation's favorite unknown artist". Anyway, my goal is to stay focused for both artistic and marketing reasons. At the art fairs, I am rigidly focused on one style for just those reasons. You have mere seconds to impress the passerby, and they don't want to be confused about how many artists are showing in that booth. Also, the fair committee takes a dim view of non-coherency.

But, here in blogger-land, I have become motivated by so many of my blogging chums and also by the famous artists that I research and oogle at on the web. So, first came some drawings. Then I fell totally off of the wagon and posted some of my abstracts, too.

Plus, I have gallerists looking in on me. They probably say, "this guy's not focused".

I am happy to be more inspired and ready for growth in my art. I want to return to figurative work, too. But, I am determined to always have a fine art body of work that stays unified. I make sure that I always have at least 40 framed pieces of these, as well. That way I can go to the art fairs and not run out, and I am ready to hang a gallery show at the same time. The probable solution for me is going to be to put up a static website that houses my Colorist American Landscapes, and keep this blog for process and broad subjects.

I am really pleased to have painted a new Colorist American Landscape around the subject of barns and outbuildings. Look for me to post it here at the end of the month.

One thing that I discovered has been the answer to a question I have been pondering for some time. I always felt that the abstracted works (see a page of them here) were harder to do for me than strict realist work where the subject is more centered on the illusions of perspective and the goal is to allow the viewer to "read" the landscape as they expect it to be. That's a forest, leading down the hill to that set of buildings. Stuff like that.

I kept thinking, "If I return to stricter reality, will the requirements of perspective and rendering be harder than these intentionally abstracted ones?" Turns out that the realist ones are easier for me, just like I suspected. They are improving as I go along, but I fail less often, and I can leave them on the easel to change a diaper, put in a movie, make lunch, etc.

On the other hand, the Colorist Landscapes require strict focus, and the finished painting needs to be done in one (or close to one) sitting. More failures happen, even though I have been at it for a number of years, now. I have found that the requirements of good abstract work are more taxing on my brain, and simple compositional mistakes have a greater impact.

Alpine Italy

Morning Buttress
4.5" x 4.75"
Original Pastel
Casey Klahn
$100
Plus Tax & Shipping
Buy it Now via Comment or E-Mail

Post Day at my 100 Paintings Project.

Italy Post Day

La Ca, Italy
4.5" x 4.75"
Original Pastel
Casey Klahn
$100
Plus tax & shipping, still no bidding required.
I invite you to buy it now by posting at my comments or via e-mail.


Up early this morning to wash a blankey that my 4 year-old Ameilia is crying about. It's okay, though, because I wanted to post an Italian Landscape today over at the
100 Paintings - Colorist Italian Landscapes. It looks like I've succeeded in an alpine scene. Being a broken-down alpinist, myself, I have a thing or two to say in my mountain drawings.

Meanwhile, while I wait for my intrepid photographer to chronicle that one, please enjoy this favorite from my other blog.

Post Day at 100 Paintings

La Ca, Italy Casey Klahn

This is the finished work from my La Ca sketch. Visit it at http://www.100italianpaintings.blogspot.com.

Van Gogh Work Finished

Passing Around the Corner
Pastel
Casey Klahn
$100, Buy it Now
100italianpaintings
or post a comment to purchase
Plus tax and shipping where needed

Here is the final painting for my van Gogh project.
I backed off of the desire to "be" VG, and decided to use my own style, plus influences.
Tomorrow we'll put the apparition back in his resting place, beside Theo. With summary. Or, is that eulogy?
Do hop on over to my new blog, 100 Paintings-Colorist Italian Landscapes.
I will be posting a new pastel painting of Italy every 100 hours , with a colorist twist. When I get fully up, I will be putting them up for auction, with a 100 hour duration for bidding. Early viewers will be offered the flat $100 rate, plus tax & shipping.
After the one hundredth painting, I will cease making Italian landscape miniatures.

My Inspiration for Colors

The Church at Auvers, 1890

"I have a larger picture of the village church-an effect in which the building appears to be violet-hued against a sky of simple deep blue color, pure cobalt; the stained-glass windows appear as ultramarine blotches, the roof is violet and partly orange. In the foreground some green plants in bloom, and sand with the pink flow of sunshine in it. And once again it is nearly the same thing as the studies I did in Neunen of the old tower and the cemetery, only it is probably that now the color is more expressive, more sumptuous." van Gogh to his sister Wil.

The Old Cemetery Tower at Neunen, 1885
van Gogh

I am indebted to Wikipedia's entry about this image, featuring the letter and the two images that VG is writing about. Also, Katherine Tyrrell brought this church painting to my attention as a possibility for color ideas for my own The Old Man Rounds the Corner pastel.
Remember that you can review VG's letters here, and his paintings here.

Now, I want to list my observations about the church at Auvers by van Gogh:

• As always, VVG describes his paintings more by the color composition than by any other descriptors.
• He has noted two paintings that center and focus on a tall structure. I learned to do this in Italy to succeed in handling complex architectural subjects.
• He eschews perspective by minimizing aerial effects (lighter, less yellow as an object recedes to the background); rather he wants to concern himself with full intensity of color as much as possible.
• I feel that separating compliments, such as orange and blue, or violet and yellow by some intermediate colors or objects, still allows these combinations to pop. Similarity in value helps.
• Character in the structure (is it similar to a person?) is provided by loose rendering, crooked lines, and amorphous masses.
• He uses shadows here, which is less common for him. That's good since I don't use them much, but need to in my painting.
  

Going forward, I will have to decide how I feel about my picture, with it's competing elements. The bell tower is not the sole architectural element; the man competes for attention. They both compliment one another as far as symbolic meaning are concerned.
Is the "old world" going around the corner? Is the church relevant to today? What about Italy? What is it's place in modernity? Is my painting too dear, sympathetic or nostalgic? Do those feelings have any place in art, today?
I actually have completed the small sized painting of the old man and bell tower. It, along with 3 or 4 works are ready to be posted, once the photos are produced. But, this smaller one is part of my Colorist Italian Landscapes; 100 Paintings project. I wish to create a bigger one for my VG project.
I am intrigued by Katherine's assumption of the old man's marks and tools. But, I guess I have enough on my plate for now, and will have to be satisfied with discovering his color process in my painting.

Facade in Riva Del Garda

Facade in Riva Del Garda
5" x 4.3"
Original Pastel
Casey Klahn
100 Paintings, Colorist Italian Landscapes
$100

It looks like it's been at least 100 hours since I posted my last Italian Landscape. So far, I have been keeping ahead of my schedule (pats self on back) by having the little artworks finished. I'd better hurry up and get those digital images made, so I can keep up with the posting!
Lake Garda is the largest lake in Italy, in the extreme north and in the foothills of the Alps. Go here for press mentioning this artist and the activities I was honored to participate in at Lake Garda. Here is the photo.
See the webcams here. Looks quite rainy today.

Italian Doorway

Italian Doorway

4.75" x 4.5"
Original Pastel
Colorist Italian Landscape
Casey Klahn
$100 SOLD
The first Colorist Italian Landscape will be in the collection of Nicole Caulfield

Offered to my patrons at The Colorist, without bid, while I am still tinkering on my new blog. Postage and tax, where needed, will be added.

100 Paintings - Colorist Italian Landscapes

Casey Klahn with Pastel Palette

I just wanted to get the proper tags and link names attached to my new blog painting project. Explanation here.
The van Gogh project (VG is always emulated in every work that I do) will be back in full force, soon. The Old Man Rounds the Corner is on the easel, now.

Paintings Preview and Rollout

Plaza with Red Building
4.5" x 4.75"
Original Pastel
Casey Klahn
$100
100 Paintings - Colorist Italian Landscapes
Framed Size, 10.1" x 10.1"
White Double Mat; Black Wood Frame

Here's a preview of my new project. It is a "Daily Painting" style project, with my own branding and some fresh ideas.
First of all, I bow to the one who I understand is the originator of daily paintings blogs, Duane Keiser. He also invented the 100 paintings and the $100 price point. He recently wrote that he expects repetition of his groundbreaking idea of daily paintings and the blog. He says that he appreciates when artists credit his originality, but he notices when they try to "fit" art into the daily blog format. I see the concern.
To be completely honest, I have been sitting on a big stack or two of custom and pre-cut double mats, with frames for 2 or 3 years, now. Framing prices being what they are, it has been a long term goal to utilize that studio stock. Thus comes the 4.75" by 4.5" size of these works.
Years ago, I did small landscapes exclusively. But as I progressed along with my Colorist American Landscapes, I adopted bigger and bigger sizes. It got to the point that I was doing almost nothing in an inexpensive size. That bothers me, since I want everyone to be able to afford original fine art if they want it.
Also, I think that I am now finding my "voice" in realistic Italian landscapes, in pastel.
My own project shall be themed around this number 100. There will be 100 paintings, then it will end. If you want more, that will have to wait for another theme and project.
In addition, each painting will bid at a starting bid of 100 dollars, and the duration of the eBay auction will be 100 hours.
This gets me off of the daily production schedule, and into a sane 3-4 day cycle instead.
The subject matter will be the Colorist Italian Landscape, based on my travel there, and my true passion for the subject.
In my Colorist American Landscapes, the abstract elements are favored over the actual landscape. In the Italian paintings, I return to my realist roots. This move was forced more by the subjects themselves than any other reason. They do, however, contain heavy colorist influences from my past few years' work in colorism.
What is more, I am offering this "patron's preview" to my growing group of viewers here at The Colorist. I will be selling them to the first come, first served at the flat $100 rate. No bids, just contact me at caseyklahn@msn.com, or post a comment, or call at 509-796-3277. Postage to be figured by Federal express air rates.
Break open a bottle of wine, or vino I should say, and enjoy this offering of very whimsical scenery from the country that looks like a boot.