Palettes . . . .

I had promised to breakdown my palettes for the Black and White show at Robert Lange Studios, which is still up through the end of the month. Opening night in pics: Amazing space, great art, and tons of people. (Sorry I am a bit late in posting this):
The Show!

With black and white, the addition of a few subtle color choices can start to bring a greater truth, or a more natural aspect, to what could be a limited depth of painting. What I noticed when putting a warm color into the shadow or into the light was that it made the grays (mixed with strictly black and white) appear very blue. At this point of my experimenting with this new palette I started thinking about temperature, and that is one of the most important aspects of a painting: the color relationships. My goal was to find a nuance and subtlety with my color choices. Each color added to the B&W mixture was very small, as a little addition shifted the color noticeably in one direction, either towards warm or cool.




'Turning Point' Palette:
Ivory Black - Alkyd Quick Dry White - Virdian - Yellow Ochre - Raw Umber




'Forbearancet' Palette:
Ivory Black - Alkyd Quick Dry White - Yellow Ochre - Raw Umber - Burnt Sienna - Phthalo Blue
This was the only painting where I blocked in the background with a graphic Pthalo Blue shape and the foreground with a yellow ochre - burnt sienna shape. Much like a landscape painter might tone the canvas before going out in nature. Usually this tone is a nice warm wash of yellow ochre/burnt sienna/cadmium red or any other This underpainting acts as a counter to all of the greens and blues in nature by using a color mixture that complements. It also helped me set up my composition. Once this was dry I worked wet on wet as per usual. However you can see little areas of these two punchier colors coming through and providing a nice injection of life to the painting.




'Provenance' Palette:
Ivory Black - Alkyd Quick Dry White - Hansa Yellow - Raw Umber - Transparent Oxide




'Zenith' Palette:
Ivory Black - Alkyd Quick Dry White - Hansa Yellow - Raw Umber


All paintings are oil on board and 24" x 12" in size.

Morning Ephemera

Today is a smattering of randomness from the studio.

First, a notification for all of those who follow the blog or are newcomers. I will be now posting regularly on Sunday, probably evening, so it will be there in the morning to start the week, and again on Wednesdays. Most of the time it will be about my process, however, if I get caught up and don't have something to put on the blog, then I'll post work about an artist I admire or think is interesting. I troll the internet quite a lot in my spare time looking for art and coming across a wealth of talent. As someone who teaches, I often keep a large library for teaching aids, for posterity, my own quarkiness, and subsequently for sharing with students and friends. I thought posting some of this material will perhaps lead you onto an artist you can appreciate and be inspired by. Since I don't follow one genre of painting or adhere to isms or feel unequivocally linked to a certain time period or movement, I'll just put up what I think resonates with me in that moment. What I do feel passionate about is making imagery. I don't segregate fine artists, contemporary artists, video game artists, concept artists, graphic artists or anyone else making a work of art. Often times I just want to be shown a little story I can get lost in for awhile.

Like this one from Adrian Ghenie:



A couple artists who personify excellent narratives are the Wyeth Family; N.C., Andrew and Jaime. While getting my degree in Illustration I like so many others fell in love with NC Wyeth and felt that was the essence of illustration, packed with emotion, drama, like one shot movies unfolding on the canvas.

With Andrew Wyeth I always thought it extraordinary that he paints of a nostalgic Americana that doesn't exist. Like remembering a dream when you wake up. Then rehashing what was going on behind your closed eyelids all night. You know that the impressions you are pulling from are close to the dream, but then again, why we dream is so elusive that the events recalled in the morning are never how it actually took place. As convoluted as it sounds that is my interpretation, anyways. Living for the first time on the east coast and visiting a few other states during the winter months it really dawned on me where Andrew Wyeth derived his palette and subject matter from. As someone who had always lived out West I couldn't quite fully connect with his body of work and it felt alien in a way. Not to say I wasn't moved by a number of paintings. However, once I experienced the stark beauty of the landscape in the colonial states during winter I fully understood. It was my 'aha!' moment I guess.

I am the most unfamiliar with Jaime Wyeth's work, yet as you can see from my sketch below I quite liked his personification of character. His portrait of JFK is the most often reproduced painting of the former president and interesting that at the time it was lambasted for various attributable flaws. He obviously knows about personality whether it be a flock of seagulls, a pumpkin self portrait, or a ram. Anyways, long story long, I drew this montage representing the three generations of the Wyeths' as I read a book about them. I've provided a new narrative from their elements.





Here is a detail of a my last painting based around the theme of Black vs. White. I'll post the full painting and accompanying thoughts, and ask you all a question.




Lastly, I know its Thursday, however, from now on there will be posts on Sunday nights for Mondays and mysteriously throughout the day on Wednesdays.

Upcoming Shows

Hi all,

I've got some work in a couple group shows next month. They definitely came at the right time. I am only now feeling settled in my new life in Raleigh and I haven't been able to produce as I would like. Yes, five or six months have flown by but its all been pretty good from an art perspective. Both shows are based on a theme which is awesome, and different for me. I have been a part of only one themed show before and I enjoy the variety and challenges they pose.

The first show is based on the theme of " a la cARTe", emphasis on the art, naturally. The Peterson Cody Gallery in Santa Fe is one among 45 galleries that work with the local restaurant scene, combining their efforts for a city wide event. Each gallery is coupled up with a restaurant and together they provide an exchange of culinary and visual arts, bordering on an education. I wish I could attend, drink all the wine, and be inspired by the work throughout the city.

This set of paintings is my contribution. I did the painting on the left with the female character first, really trying to create that sense of movement as a subway train rushes in and out of the station. After I finished the painting it I wanted to extend the scene, push the perspective, and carry it onto another canvas. ( I took the pictures, sorry. There is a bit of glare on the right side of each painting. I am rubbish at this but I think I have it now solved the problem by putting this task in the hands of a talented photographer. I know its not genius but harder to find one who deals with art than you'd think.)



The show will hang throughout the month of February:
The Peterson Cody Gallery


The second show is at the Robert Lange Studios in Charleston,SC. As you can see with the flyer the theme was Black vs. White . . . . .oooooh controversial. No, not really. I was seriously excited to tackle some subject matter with a limited palette and what is more limited than Black and White. I also stripped away the human element of my work and went strictly with architecture. Just one more factor in finding new subject matter, and its relevance and importance to artistic growth. My image appears in the web promo below on the bottom far right. (The facade of a building getting hit with light.) I've got a total of four paintings in the show, so go see their website come February 2nd to see all the great work.




This show too will be up for the entire month.
Robert Lange Studios

I have posted these new paintings up on my website, so have a look, but don't forget to check out all the other artists on display with the links above. Once the shows are up I will breakdown the palettes for each one considering I didn't use just black and white for the one show. There are subtle mixtures of color used differently in each painting.

My Website

thanks for stopping in

A Disaster . . . .

or new goodness. Not sure on this one.

I figured I would post a total disaster with some positives coming out of it.

It certainly is a one of those paintings I started, put down, and then started a different painting on top of that one, but ended abandoning this new effort as well. The second attempt did have a nice compositional relationship to the first, and I felt it could add to the piece. However, that wasn't the outcome and I pretty much tossed it aside. Since I didn't care about what happened to the front of the image I have been using the canvas as a support for other smaller paintings. The marks have been made at random and seem to breathe new life into the work, demanding my attention, whereas before I had no reaction. It seems to have attained a level of dreamlike quality that I was never able to produce in the original two ideas. Funny enough I like it now more than ever. Still I have no plans on sending it to any of the galleries that represent me. One of those open studios scores if someone has an interest in it.


Lastly a quick plead for your knowledge. If any one knows how to do a time elapsed thing with jpegs, much like a slideshow, please send me a link. I'm sure there is some fancy software out there to do it for me, but I'd rather not go down that route. Since I often take pictures of my paintings at various points in their development, I wanted to continue posting those here as slideshows.
Thanks for stopping in.

New paintings will be up later in the week in coordination with two group shows in February.

Update soon . .. .

A thought:






I am in two group shows next month and will be posting those paintings very soon. Also images from a side project as well.
All the best to you and yours in 2010.

Character sketches

I'm not the type artist who keep a sketchbook in the sense of one bound drawing pad, where all I do is fill it with drawings from life or my imagination, and nothing else. My artistic sense isn't built that way. Obviously there are artists who just flow with the pen or pencil and this is their main outlet. My moments of intense 'sketchbooking' are just that, moments, and nothing more, small bursts of time when all I want to do is draw. Often times I draw on whatever is near me and on the most immediate thing to get the idea out, however rough it may end up. Sometimes they are the most useless little scribbles but I understand what I'm doing whether or not any else would. I should probably post some of these quick 'visual thoughts' to show how utterly scribbly they can be. Along with these musings I end up doing many thumbnails of ideas and mainly use my sketchbook as a place for 'ideation', or idea creation. I think this word, however made up, is a brilliant summation of what is going on while figuring out the design and aesthetics of your thoughts. Then, I shift gears and want to do this creative searching on a canvas and I abandon my sketchbook but not my ideation. My goal would be for these explorations to be more and more refined as I develop.

The below character studies are examples pulled from various sheets of paper in the studio. Some are intended to add to the development of my paintings others exist just because I felt the need to draw.

100th Post!

Hi, to those that check in on this blog.

I have reached a milestone of sorts with my 100th post. When I set out to do this side project I figured it would fizzle out as I neglected it here and there. It seems like the internets, which as we all know is a series of tubes, has benefitted from me moving across the country. Since I have loads of time, as I am not out with friends and family, I sit here and plot my art world takeover. (To see my plan look down a few posts and it will all unfold, although there are already many contemporary artists who thought of it before me. Ummm, uh, I guess its genius?! Not working as of yet.) I would normally be putting up various sketches but I am having scanner issues. I just want my old one back, sadly I doubt that will happen.

In lieu of not posting any art as of late I am am going to offer up what I have left of a few prints for cheap.

Each giclee print is on archival paper and measures around 8.5" x 10.5". They were printed by Pearl Printing in Portland, OR, where they do all kinds of great fine art reproductions. Each is an edition of five and they won't be reproduced.

Since I don't have a fancy pay pal account you'll have to email me if you want any of these. That may change but as of now I am doing it on a little more personal level. I will send them out promptly. Just email me your mailing address and I will do likewise.

Here is what I have left:

Hurrying Home: 1 LEFT



Like Someone Caught In Prayer: 2 LEFT



Life Floods The Concourse: 2 LEFT



The Grand Entrance: 1 LEFT




Each one is only $10 dollars and $5 for shipping. If you want all four it will cost you $50. There are just two sets of all four available. I'll be off for a few days on holiday and will get back to anyone who emails me early next week.

Email me at joshuabarkleyflint@gmail.com

Thank you and have a happy Turkey Day or Tofurky Day, whatever fits your taste buds!

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Update:
One set gone!
I am only able to make one more set of prints, so if you want all four get ahold of me. As you will notice above, there is one print left for The Grand Entrance and Hurrying Home. They are all signed and number on the back, which I forgot to post earlier.

happy internetting!

time . . . . less.

Today is a reminder to get painting and keep painting until things are done. . . . . . and new ideas are explored.


There will be a few new paintings and some sketches up on the blog later in the week, so check back.

I have three new still-life paintings on the website.

Also, don't forget to peruse the November Issue of Southwest Art Magazine.

New Representation

As another month seems to fly by, and the Fall gives way to Winter, I have been getting a few new paintings prepped for two new galleries that will represent my work.

I am happy to have my paintings in The Peterson-Cody Gallery in Santa Fe,NM.



The Peterson- Cody Gallery, LLC specializes in fine contemporary realism.

At any given time, the Gallery represents the work of 25- 30 high quality North American artists working in a variety of media including oil, acrylic, gouache, pastel, bronze and hand-forged steel.

It is nice to be working with the great folks at The Peterson Cody Gallery. I will be participating in a series of shows through 2010 and will be detailing those here on the blog.




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In Raleigh, I will have new still-life paintings this month at Adam Cave Fine Art.



Adam Cave Fine Art is an exhibition gallery representing a select group of regional and nationally known painters, printmakers & photographers. His approach to keeping a tight-knit group of artists with a diverse subject matter (and mediums) should always be fresh and interesting. I feel it is important to play an active role in my 'new,' local Arts community and I am glad I will get a chance to show my work in Downtown Raleigh.



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I thought this blog was to show the inner mechanisms of my creative process and the art I wouldn't put on the website?
Sadly, I have to inform you that that is false. All I am going to do is put on news bulletins. . . . the art will cease to exist as I constantly tell the Internets about my events taking place. Which will actually become my new form of 'conceptual' art. I won't actually use oil paint let alone produce a tangible object. I'll become a celebrity artist and have other people paint my work. Then take credit for it.

So, check back and see what my new "staff members" crank out for me, while I fly around the world and have one man shows in Shanghai, London, and New York all at the same time!

Southwest Art Magazine Cover, November Issue.

I know the image is tiny so I will explain what it is below.

Southwest Art Magazine has chosen me as the first prize winner for a feature on:

' 21 Artists Over 31' - Talented Artists You Need To Know.

It is a tremendous honor to be showcased with a host of artists who are all very accomplished. I have seen a few images from the feature, however, I have not seen it in person, so I can't speak anymore about the greatness you will witness from the other artists. From what I have seen, it should provide a breadth of variety and different perspectives on art. In all honesty, I don't know how I was chosen above 2000+ artists who sent in their paintings. I'd just like to say thank you to the good folks over at Southwest Art and those putting the feature together.

Along with being in the feature and having an interview in the interior, my painting was also selected for the cover. The image is a cropped section of a more horizontal and panoramic interior of Grand Central Station. It comes as a great accolade and holds significant personal meaning for me. Here is a preview for the article:

http://artistsblog.artistsnetwork.com/Southwest+Art+Announces+21+Over+31+Winners.aspx


I look forward to flipping through the feature and see a wealth of other talented artists.

It's been too loooooooooooooooooong . . . . .

The new studio is up and running which has given me the space to paint, paint, paint. I had to dive right in on three commissions that collectors up in the PNW were waiting on.

Here is the first. It is oil on board at 8"x24". The long vertical format was a challenge. To fit the differing elements in there to make it feel like a real place in Grand Central I had to tweak things. As I have progressed through this series I have come to prefer changing, exaggerating, and faking the interior architectural layout. If you visit the station you will be able to tell that I move things as needed to fit my idea, first, and the design, second, or is it the other way around. Hmm.


I have settled quite nicely into my new southern lifestyle, and there will be more paintings coming soon.

Plus I will put up on the blog something real soon about purchasing sketches and small watercolors for a project that is in the works. They will be cheap and have plenty of variety in subject matter. More to follow.

Studies

Here are studies in gouache I have done in prep for two 15"x15" commissions. Each study is four by four inches roughly.

They will sit to one side of a larger painting I had done previously for this collector. The perspective has been skewed and exaggerated to follow the style we set up in the first painting. I'm trying to make a super-hero out of static buildings and objects.

Normally I would have done a few monochromatic studies but after the move all I had available to me was the gouache at the time. Although the colors don't directly translate to oils, these will give me a good idea of how the finals will look.

I'll post the finals when I get them completed.

Now Live! from the the East Coast . . .

Well, finally I am getting back to a routine after moving 3000 miles away, and starting again with my art in beautiful Raleigh, NC. I could do without the massively large, like carry your small children off large, bugs, however, I am even getting use to those. From what I understand the state bird is the mosquito.

I would like to thank those of you who have been leaving messages on the blog. They have been brilliant and I will get to respond to those of you, now that I am getting settled.

Illustration is my first love. Last fall I was teaching a gouache painting techniques class for the illustration department at PNCA (Pacific Northwest College of Art) in Portland. I have always liked gouache and have posted numerous examples on the blog. I tend to treat the medium much like I treat oils. It's good for going on location or working from a model where I am looking for shapes and color relationships. I don't necessarily ever come to a "finish" with these things, or they are just so quick that I never spend more than a couple of hours on them.

I recently read an article about Van Gogh and his famous ear, or lack of one. Although, he was mentally unstable and did untold number of weird things, like eating cigarette butts while out painting on location, there is a new theory on what happened to his ear. Gaugin did it! He lopped it off in a scuffle over a prostitute, that they both apparently were courting. The two were roommates above a brothel and Gaugin was well known for carrying a little saber with him at all times. If you want to read more I have included a link below:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/2009/may/04/vincent-van-gogh-ear

I thought it was good subject matter to explore and I felt I could provide some foreshadowing to the article with my treatment of the image. A final would have to be done in oils but this got me mostly to my initial idea. As with all preliminary work it has a few small things to iron out.



The following two image are simply two ten minute color studies. Where I have pushed some more brilliant, pure color is where I noticed reflected light really influencing the flesh tones.





Again I'll get this blog thing rolling more regularly now and thanks for showing up.

OPA Western Regional

2009 OPA Western Regional Show
My painting "Dreams of Near and Far" was juried into the Oil Painters of America 2009 Western Regional Show.

This year the showcase gallery is the Howard Mandville in beautiful Kirkland, WA.

Howard Mandville Gallery
120 Park Lane, Suite D
Kirkland ,WA 98033

Show Preview: Aug. 6th
Exhibition Dates:
Aug.8th - Aug. 30th.

www.howardmandville.com

There are always a lot of very good artists in these shows, please stop in at see the work.

New Paintings

I have added 8 new images to my urban scenes gallery on my website and 2 new images to the still-life gallery. All were a part of my recent one man show at the Cole Gallery.

The above is one of the new paintings titled "Freeze Frame" , 18"x24" oils.

Go have a gander:

www.joshuaflint.com

I am in the process of packing up to move across the country to Raleigh, North Carolina.
So posts will be slow, but, hey, you all are use to that. . . as I have neglected this little blog recently.

Maybe I can get a post up before I drive out on Aug. 1st.

If any of you have thoughts on this part of North Carolina send them my way, I'd love to know what I am stepping into besides wicked humidity.

Till next time.

American Art Collector Feature

I have been featured in a great magazine this month that highlights some of the works that will be on display at my Solo Show on July 16th, at the Cole Gallery. I talk about this current body of work and have a few thoughts in there about my painting process.

Artists Who Teach

As an artist who teaches I have been asked to be included in a resource for individuals looking for art instruction.

The website provides a huge database of artists who give back through teaching at some level, whether its workshops, private institutions, seminars, or universities.

Go have a look at see if there is an artist who lives near you that could be a valuable resource.

I have had many great teachers and just other creative individuals that were willing to put up with my badgering them for art critique and instruction. So I figure I can pass on whatever miniscule art ability I have got, if it could be helpful.

I think I need to go back and hit up this website because I saw some truly impressive artists on the roster.

And please drop Leighann Foster a line and tell her thank you for creating such a unique resource. Besides teaching there are other helpful links as well.


www.artistswhoteach.org

Informed Collector

The Informed Collector has picked me out as an artist whom collectors should know about.
I'd like to thank the nice folks over there for such a recognition.
Here is a nice summation about my paintings:

"Ah, the beauty of the moment! Exciting and provocative urban scene paintings that combine unusual angles, rich shadows and engaging movement. Seemingly mundane activates become beautiful poignant moments in the daily dance of life."
- Informed Collector

Go have a look through the other artists on the website:
http://informedcollector.com/nlarchive.asp?nl=1061


Also, I will be starting to post new images on my website (soon) for my one man show coming up in mid July. I will make a notice of it here as well as put up some other randomness that should go on art blogs.

Thanks for dropping in!

Empty Easel Article

There is an article about my work on a great website called Empty Easel. I really enjoyed the author's breakdown of my edge control in a painting. Although she says I make it look easy it is anything but the case, especially when I am in the middle of a painting. I fret constantly over edges, in a constant push and pull between crisp and soft, while wearing a path in the studio floor, as I look at them from distance.

There is also a peak at a few new paintings for my one man show next month in the article as well.

emptyeasel.com/2009/05/27/joshua-flint-a-glimpse-of-painted-motion/


Sorry! The link is now working. It's the only place to see a few new paintings, at least until the show gets nearer.

Quick sketches

Here are my early attempts at using this new calligraphy pen. It's not a bad implement but maybe a sumi would get better fine lines and thus the variety of thick to thin would be greater. We''ll see. Maybe I'll do a head to head comparison with this in mind. I do like using an ink pen as it forces me to be accurate with each stroke, and hopefully improve my eye.

Also I'll have some news about my one man show in Seattle next month at the Cole Gallery.

Yellow vs. Blue Show Collection

A big thanks to Robert and Megan for bringing in a great crowd on opening night this last friday, April 10th.
How do I know you ask? Well, I watched it via their webcam on the website. A lovely little touch that helps bring art into the modern age and allows those of us, who had work in the show but couldn't attend, a connection with the event. I watched for quite awhile and as an artist I just love people watching.

If you didn't make it, like myself, here is a look through the show, minus the crowds.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=me0jna3dBDs


-joshua

New Website

Hey Everyone,

I have put up a new website. Got see it at www.joshuaflint.com
The new website will be a formal endeavor where only my paintings and show schedule will be posted.
But don't worry I will still keep the blog rolling, and it could possibly free me up to get a little crazier with my posts, here. Maybe I'll just start ranting about stuff, could be art related, could not. Who knows what's going to happen, now that this will be an 'inside the artist's studio' blog.

Anyways go check it out, it looks like this:


www.joshuaflint.com

Upcoming Show and Demo

Robert Lange Studios
151 East Bay Street
Charlseton, SC 29401
www.robertlangestudios.com



Final Painting, titled "While the Winter Waits":


My process and studio shots:


Hey All,
I am in a Group Show at the Robert Lange Studios in Charleston,SC. Opening Night is April 10th and will be up for a month. If you are in the Charleston, SC area or happen to be in this lovely city during the show dates go have a look. With 20 Artists showing, it will be an excellent event with a plethora of quality work on display. I have four pieces in the show including the above still-life demo. The theme of the exhibition was Yellow vs. Blue. This is my 'blue' contribution. A pair of Grand Central Station paintings will also be hanging. I encourage all of you to have a look at the website.

Sketchbook pages

Here are a few sketches from me using a new calligraphy pen. I think it's going to take a little more practice to get used to its qualities, but so far it been a nice change from a pen that can't get thick and thin lines quickly. Although picking out small details with the ends of the pen has proved to be tough. These are all 5-15 min sketches from life. In one you can see I've added gouache later on.

I've got a few shows coming up in April, May and in July that I will put up on the blog as they get closer.
Also, a new website is under way and should be up in the next few weeks.

Thanks for having a look.

Steel Bridge, PDX

Steel Bridge, 36" x 72"



After much ado, and neglecting my blog, I need to get this commission painting up, now that it's done.
I had a great time with the piece and feel the overall intention that the client and I were going for, came out in the final painting. I had the liberty to stylize certain areas, like the cityscape. Since the scene is largely made up, this only added to the enjoyment in doing the final, as I didn't have any strict guidelines governed by the reality of the scene.

DETAIL:


(I've also notice that images become less saturated and less colorful when posted on Blogger, anyone else have this problem? Let me know if you have that same issue.)