SEEING THE FOREST THROUGH THE TREES

You can tell a lot about an artist by whether they see forests or trees.

Some view a forest as a lot of individual trees. Others think that increasing the quantity of trees changes the quality of their appearance as well.

It's kind of like boiling water. You increase the temperature of water one degree at a time, until suddenly it changes from a liquid to a gas. Quantitative change turns into a qualitative change.

When artists draw a crowd, some choose to draw a lot of individuals:

Others don't draw every individual--but they like to imply every individual. Here, Frazetta puts a few representative figures out front, then uses stray arms and legs to suggest the balance of the crowd:



Here, Noel Sickles uses highlighting to carve individuals from the dark masses of crowd on either side of this painting. He is such a brilliant draftsman, he did not compromise on the individual characters the way Frazetta did, nor did he overwork the picture the way that maniac in the Renault ad (above) did.



Then all the way over on the "forest" side of the spectrum we have this lovely painting by Bernie Fuchs. He didn't even try to capture the individual personalities within the crowd.

He viewed the aesthetics of a crowd as totally different from a collection of individuals.

There's a point at which a bouquet of flowers is so large, it becomes a garden. Some artists persist in seeing the individual flower petals. Some create the illusion of painting every petal, using time saving techniques. Others step back and say, "my subject has now changed, from flowers to a garden."

TIME AND CHANCE HAPPENETH TO THEM ALL

Rasputin

Morton Roberts (1927-1964) was a serious painter, a child prodigy who graduated from the fine arts program at Yale University and launched a career as an illustrator for magazines such as Collier's, Redbook and McCall's in the 1950s and early 60s.


A frenzied peasant dance becomes an abstract design

He was one of a small group of gifted illustrators selected to illustrate historical series for Life magazine. While still a young man, he won respect for this series on Russian history:


Lenin greets the troops

Arpi Ermoyan wrote about this painting,

Roberts' composition is so well conceived that although the main character of the story, Lenin, is off to the left side of the picture, the eye is immediately drawn to him by the strategically placed red flag. The horizontal line formed by the tops of the soldiers heads also leads the eye directly to him.

This is clearly an artist who knew what he was doing.

Roberts also painted a series for Life on jazz and a series on opera.

Scene from a Chicago jazz club

New Orleans jazz

Detail from series on Rigoletto

Then, as quickly as his career began, it was over. In his mid 30s, Roberts died unexpectedly of a heart attack. He had spent his short time well, and left behind a small but beautiful legacy of work. But who knows what he might have accomplished with another thirty or forty years to paint?

None of us has a guarantee that we will live long enough to realize our artistic ambitions. We should remember the lesson of Morton Roberts as we evaluate each day's work.

Eric Lamb's - Land Yacht For Sale

I just got an email from Donna Lamb, informing me that her brother Eric passed away in early July from a massive stroke. He was the owner and creator of the Land Yacht Art Car. This car is for sale to anyone interested in owning and showing this wonderful Art Car. Eric we will miss your creativity and passion for Art Cars.

Below are some details about the current condition of this very unique
art car that has been neglected for a few years. With a little rust
patching, new body paint and finish on woodwork, it could pretty easily
be returned to its original glory. All accessories – such as flags,
anchor and masts – seen in its photos are still in the car.

Engine Condition:
Fires and runs well
Transmission engages

Engine Needs:
Tune up
Timing set/adjustment
Perhaps new alternator
Some of the wiring was hand made by owner
(I plan to buy a new battery and put on two new/used tires)

Body Condition:
No dents/damage
Rust holes on driver's door
Paint: hand/brush painted
Woodwork is solid but could use new finish
Windshield cracked and needs to be replaced
Wooden "forward deck" needs to be reattached
Interior is average for a car this age (1976)

If you’re interested, please email Donna Lamb or call her at (212) 645-2468 to make an offer. If you know someone else who might want to buy the car, she also would be grateful if you would pass this information on to them.

General Carbuncle Art Car

General Carbuncle Art Car Central

One of my favorite shows growing up in Athens Greece was the Dukes of Hazzard. Well the General Lee has resurfaced after all these years in a new skin. The base car is a Ford Capri covered in toy cars. The final effect is the amazing art car called General Carbuncle.

General Carbuncle Art Car Central - Side

General Carbuncle Art Car Central - Front

General Carbuncle Art Car Central - Door 01

General Carbuncle Art Car Central - Roof

General Carbuncle Art Car Central - Side

General Carbuncle Art Car Central  - Front Roof

General Carbuncle Art Car Central

Wolfmother

think i'll call this piece a fan-art :) i drew this based on a concept by Davi (his original piece), i just loved his concept/idea of it, something different and cool

also did some wolf studies, since i haven't done any proper studies before.. they're really fun to draw, the snarls are especially interesting to me, the way it contorts the default shape of the head

Mondrian Mobile by Emily Duffy

Mondrian Mobile by Emily Duffy - Art Car Central

Mondrian Mobile by Emily Duffy - Art Car Central

Mondrian Mobile by Emily Duffy - Art Car Central

The Mondrian Mobile was created by artist Emily Duffy inspired by 30's artist Piet Mondrian. This is one the first art cars that made an impression on me that inspired me to create the Mercedes Pens Art Car Covered in 10,000 pens. She is also the creator of the Vain Van Art Car.

A LITTLE ROOM

When Norman Rockwell launched his illustrious career, his first studio was a small attic room in a brothel. All afternoon a piano played in the parlour downstairs.

Rockwell later recalled, "a rough wooden stairway without railings led up to a trap door in the third floor ceiling." There Rockwell painted in a room so small that whenever one of the prostitutes who lived downstairs wanted to come up to smoke a cigarette and chat, Rockwell had to move his easel so the trap door could open.



The famous painter Rene Magritte lived with his wife for 24 years in a cramped three room apartment in the industrial suburbs of Brussels. The only space for his easel was in their small dining room. There he painted most of his pictures that are now hanging in major museums around the world.



Even the great Michelangelo worked in a small space. For a while, he lived in a tiny room under San Lorenzo, where his charcoal sketches on the walls can be seen to this day. At one point in his career, Michaelangelo constructed a hat with wax candles on the brim so he could work in the dark. Guided only by those flickering candles, he made some of the most beautiful art in the history of the world. Irving Stone quoted Michelangelo as saying that a small room is better for working than a large one, because a small room focuses the mind.



Sometimes I think my own work would be better if I had big skylights with good northern exposure, or large surfaces to spread out on, or a more current version of photoshop. Then I think again.