This is Frederic Chopin’s surprising  Polonaise Op. 53 image two. The surprise is to see so much music already in place.  I have not painted in this style since the Japan artwork in early 2016.  I do remember the difficulties with that similar commissioned  Kyoto artwork, and because this time of the year is busy, I knew I needed to find time-saving measures to meet my client’s timeline.  My first idea was to draw in lines that I could than use to guide the orderly placement of the music.  I changed the size , color and brightness, of each group to blend in with the background while still being able to connect to the music.

I than improved on an idea I used with the Kyoto painting.   Using a thin piece of plywood I cut out the music to size. I than attached a square post and guide markers.  It did not take long to than learned that I could use it as a musical stamp. This saves me from the tedious task of free hand drawing in each note.

 

This artwork has a background of Burnt Sienna that I covered with Burnt Umber light.  I than added Burnt Umber light to the bronze paint to get the shades I wanted with the main music lines.  The smaller accent lines I painted bone black.  For the music I am using the same Winsor & Newton Silver I used for the Japan work.  When I show the Japan work, as an example,  my customer like it for the silver made the music stand out from the background.

Scott Von Holzen

Comment:

Both the silver and the bronze are reflective acrylic paint colors, that change shades when viewed at different angles and in different lights. This effect creates a visual delight to the eyes.  It is as if you can see the vibrations of the music of Chopin move across the canvas.  Looking at this painting I feel the joy that is on display.  This unfinished Classical artwork is already making an impact. Chopin’s Polonaise defines this arts philosophy of making visual music that grabs at you emotions as if my notes where the sound.

Scott