Progress On The Lobentruck

Further progress on the "Lobentruck" that Terry Miura and I are working on. I also present the wining charcoal drawing from my Monday and Wednesday morning drawing class at Sacramento City College. My class voted this wonderful rendering by Anika Polyak as the winner by secret ballot. I have noticed that my truck, compared to Terry's and my student's, is stubby. Well, maybe that's because I'm a little stubby. I weigh about 185lbs. and am 5 foot seven and a tad inches tall. That's OK. My Lobentruck will not be altered. Consider it the opposite of an El Greco painting.

In Progress (Tour of Calif.)

I simplified the background foliage in color and value, took out some foliage in front of the capitol bldg. and deepened the bicycle shadows with slightly darker color (and by lightening the street). Worked a little with deepening some colors on the lead rider and rider coming out close to the viewer on the left. Thank you everyone for your suggestions including a fellow artist/blogger who sent me a photoshop manipulation...very cool. I am not done with this painting, but would be interested if you think I'm on the right track and moving forward. I have formatted my comment page to the old style as the "new and improved" blogger style was preventing people from posting their comments! Until Blogger gets that bug fixed, I'll stay an old fashioned traditionalist. Is it not fantastic how we can all share ideas?!

Painter Seeks Input

This is a painting I am doing for next year's Tour Of California. I like the sky, Capitol bldg., foliage, cast shadows from the riders, and the road.. I like the way the bicycle riders are coming along, but they are going to be the last element in this painting to be completed. It is this element where I seek advice. I am going to darken the faces, arms, and legs somewhat,but what else should I do to pop out the riders more is my question. Suggestions on that point and anything else? This painter seeks help. I have been awarded/tagged by three of my fellow artist bloggers: Theresa Rankin, Milind Mulick, and Barbara Muir . All three are great artists, and I'm honored to share the blogospheric art community with them! These things make the rounds on a fairly regular basis, but what I liked about this one is not only the call to pass on the honor to 7 other bloggers but to list 7 things about the recipient's life, so here goes---- 1. I cannot believe that in Feb. of next yr., I'll be 62! What's up with that!! 2. In 1966 (can you grasp that long of a time span?), I was flunking out of UCLA, because I was stupid enough to be a science major. Where in the f--k were my high school counselors!? Dejected, depressed, and disgraced, I spent my semester trying to understand integral calculus and quantum mechanical physics! I also played pool with my fellow science major room mate at the student union (the bastard understood all this stuff and could afford the time to play pool). I also built up a portfolio of drawings to validate myself as a worthy member of human race. This is one of my drawings that I did of the ceiling of the main library as I was vainly studying. At the end of the semester, I went over to The College of Humanities and Fine Arts, showed them my portfolio and asked if I could change my major and stay at UCLA. This was my idea alone and without the aid if any stupid counselors. They gave me an academic test, told me to take a summer class at my local community college, and said sure, you can come back in the Fall and be an Arts major!!! The rest is history. 3. I'm an adjunct art prof. at Sacramento City College and a full time artist. 4. Did I say that next year I'll be 62?! What's up with that! 5. Ta hell with it, that's enough info. except that I'm a Caucasian registered to vote,my wife, Cheryl is a great high school English teacher and dynamite knitter, and we both voted for B. Obama!!!! Seven of my fav. bloggers: 1. Terry Miura 2. Milind Mulick 3. Bonnie Luria 4. Cooper Dragonette 5. Jennifer McChristian 6. Rob Ijema 7. Carol Marine 8.And ALL the rest on my blog roll!!!

Here I go.

Ma plan is tuh end up with ma "Lobentruck" paintin to have a rough hewn Turlock country look if yer git my drift. Sumthin that ma brother, Billy Joe Bob Lobenberg would be mighty proud of. Wha sucks, he might even twist a few more arms and git it in the Turlock Museum of Modern Art side by side with ma huge portrait paintin! Now I ain't got a strict plan. I'm kinda feelin ma way here and there with ma values, colors, and such. I love irrigation pipes ta death y'all, so I put some in leanin against the barn and on the ground tuh emphasize sum forward motion. It ain't dun, but it's movin along now. Wish me luck, y'all! **Just added a pen/watercolor plein air sketch I did 2 yrs. ago at the site of this "Lobentruck"...rear end view with other abandoned old ranch equipment scattered about.

I'll be damned!

Hope all of you that read my ramblings have checked out Terry Miura's blog. I sent him this farm truck sinking into the ground in response to a farm truck he painted sinking into the ground that he posted on his blog. He then suggested that we both do a painting interpretation from said photo and compare the results. I got to determine the size and target date for the finished. His painting will be in oil and mine in acrylic. I have also distributed said photo to my college drawing class after a lecture about the phenomenon of derelict farm trucks slowly sinking into the ground after many seasons out in the open weather. They are doing their interpretations in charcoal on newsprint. Naturally, since I teach two classes of art per semester, I'm having my watercolor class do an interpretation in h2o. By secret ballot, both classes will pick a winner that will, sometime in December, be posted on this blog with Terry and my paintings. Should be FUN! OK...so here's the "I'll be damned!" part. The preliminary oil wash you see here is Terry's "start" ( his working title is "Lobentruck" and it's the 2nd photo). That's "start" and not "finished" painting. My reaction when I saw this start posted on his blog today not only was "I'll be damned" but "Am I too easily please?" I should have replaced "pleased" with "impressed" because impressive it is. At least I think so. Howbout you all, dear readers? The 1st photo with the over all red is mine painted on cradle board.

Just For The Fun Of It

This is a half sheet watercolor I did about two years ago. I painted it side by side with a workshop student of mine who wanted to do a portrait of this policeman and give it to him as a retirement gift. We worked from a photograph. He copied my painting steps so that in the end, the gift was HIS finished watercolor. Every time I look at this painting, I smile. Currently, I'm working on a commissioned painting to commemorate the '09 Amgen Tour of California (a race that Lance Armstrong will make his come back in), and a painting of an old farm truck that both I and a very talented Sacramento artist by the name of Terry Miura will be painting (from a photo I snapped two years ago). We have a rough due date of Dec. 15 to get together to compare our painterly efforts. These will be future posts with other stuff coming up in about a week or so.