Just when I thought I was stepping into my own and being all creative, I decided to take a look back at my favorite art pieces, and it is only uncanny how much they have inspired my current work.
It almost makes me feel like Laurie in Little Women, discouraged from practicing the piano because its just a “mediocre copy of another mans genius” but then I am encouraged by My man C.S. Lewis “Even in literature and art, no man who bothers about originality will ever be original: whereas if you simply try to tell the truth (without caring twopence how often it has been told before) you will, nine times out of ten, become original without ever having noticed it.
So I’m just going to keep growing and learning and expressing and creating art and capturing people memories and see where this thing takes us!
*I could do so many more of these, but maybe another time! these little guys take longer then i realized originally to make LOL
The Soul of the Rose. John Waterhouse. Romantic period. 1908
Flowers. Flowy Dresses. Warm tones. All the things I love.
The Shepherdess . William-Adolphe Bouguereau. 1889. Oil on Canvas
There is something about the shepherdess I have always loved. She is strong and beautiful, and in a dress, but she is tough. She works hard and is a professional at her job. She has rosy lips and messy hair. Also I LOVE environmental portrait's, and especially creative enviconmental portraits where I can capture someone in their environment, jsut being them, but then also taking it a step further and adding a creative twist.
Man in Oriental Costume. Rembrandt. Oil on Canvas
Heavy lighting. Golden tones. I love you Rembrandt.
The way Rembrandt played with light and contrast is forever an inspiration.
The Night Watch. Rembrandt. Baroque period. Oil on canvas.
The girl with the pearl earring. Rembrandt. Oil on Canvas
A study of hands. Leonardo Da Vinci. Charcoal on paper.
hands. Feet. Necks. Leonardo brought attention to the ordinary physical aspects of people and turned them into art. I see the beauty in the tiny things and the small details oftentimes overlooked, and i love that photogrpahy has given me a opportunity to help bring that beauty to others attention.
Self Portrait. Leonardo Da Vinci. red chalk on paper.
Da Vinci loved creating portraits of the elderly, and people with distinct and unique features. I definitely agree. The older people get the more their face tells a story. Every wrinkle, every laugh line. Every scar just makes someone more and more beautiful and interesting.
The Winged Victory of Samothrace. Greek. 2nd-century BC. marble sculpture of Nike
The importance of this piece and the shift it represented is why it has inspired me. Up to this point, statues were still and lifeless. The movement that this statue brought to greek art has also brought movement into my work. from posed and dull to LIFE and movement.
The Kiss. Gustav Klimt. 1908. Vienna Secession, Oil + Gold Leaf
OK the photo on the right is a little far reaching. but "The Kiss" has inspired me on a philosophical level... although I do love me some golden tones. Portraits before Gustav were very cold and still and while they were very iconic (symbols in the painting to represent the essence and life of the subject) Gustav wanted to keep elements of the iconographic painting, but with a modern twist.
Christines World. Andrew Wyeth. 1948
Again, the photo on the right is a little obvious, but a would love for my pictures to help people to dream. to believe there is life outside their small and known world