Author: Scott Von Holzen

I am currently renewing an artistic adventure that first started in 1974, and ended in the early 1980's. A casual comment restarted the quest in art in 2004. Now, at night I am surrounded by artworks done and in progress, shelves full of art books, my music collection playing through a classic NAD amp and a pair of solid, classic free standing speakers, my piano, violin, blues guitar, and saxophone. So all is musical no matter what I am up to in the studio. Since I was a kid I have had the urge to be creative Now, in my later sixties, I am determine to know. I want to follow this to the end to see what these paintings, and all this music amounts to. This is probably the last great adventure I will have, so I am all in. So, watch out for nonstop music, canvases with multiple panels, with paint spread thick or dribbled on, words with meaning, and results that will challenge, push the meaning of music, and may even splash back. This blog's real purpose is to document my story in the making, and you are welcomed to follow along. Thank you for your support. Scotty Von Holzen

The Tango – Por Una Cabeza image1

Published on by Scott Von Holzen

Por Una Cabeza is an Italian Tango whose lyrics certainly do not translate well, and would not have been a first pick for the tango if it was not for the 1992 movie Sent of the Woman.  That dance scene made a lasting impression on me, that I had forgotten until I added this music to my potential artwork list.  Even though I have seen much better dancing on Dancing with the Stars, I am still touched today by this performance.

This Tango is my last major large artwork for this year.  It also uses the smallest canvases, five by seven-inch, and of immense importance this artwork, for the first time,  breaks a foundation rule that I shared with sheet music the entire twelve years of painting music.  What I have changed is that parts of the flow of the music are now offset. That means this art no longer matches the up and downs of sheet music.

I can blame that hesitation for this change on the musician in me that finds it extremely uncomfortable to break this greatest fundamental rule of sheet music.  The results of that decision is that I now can move this art style in different directions.   A bad effect will be that the casual viewer, along with musicians (my core support group), will find it difficult to follow the flow of the music.  This is a troublesome move that speaks to the art and not the reputation, to seeing where I can take music painting, and a rebuke to the need of conformation that all these ten-of-thousands of hours where worth all the effort.  So goes my choice, so goes I.

Scott Von Holzen

 

Scott

S_V_H Beethoven’s 5th Final

Published on by Scott Von Holzen
Beethoven’s 5th first nine notes. 21 3/4 inches high by about 25 inches in length.

Beethoven’s 5th Symphony first nine notes is finished.  I created two versions of this artwork that I showed at the Lakeville Art show this last weekend.  Everyone enjoyed playing the music, with reactions of surprise and smiles all around.  In this image you can see them both on opposite sides of the entrance.

Here is a short video with the music:

Scott Von Holzen

S_V_H The Full Beethoven image 1

Published on by Scott Von Holzen2 Comments

This first image shows the two similar artworks I am creating for the tent Art Show in Lakeville Minnesota. My theme for each of these paintings is The Full Beethoven.  What that means is that I am portraying the first 8 notes of his 5th Symphony.

Music courtesy of Wikipedia. Wow, that sounded good.  So good that I will be adding the music to each of these artworks.

It is unusual for me to make all the pieces ahead of time and then build the artwork.  Generally, I build complete sections of a project and then attach them on the artwork.  The plan to create these two same artworks together, was that I thought creating two of everything would save time. What actually occurred is that I lost efficiency by doubling everything, while at the same time trying to fix errors and solve multiple build issues. I have loss a lot of time and materials creating two of every mistake along the way. All the delays have resulted in me doing the three-step Tango throughout this project.

To paraphrase a favorite poet,  Robert Frost, “Moving right along, for I have no where else to be, and miles to go before I am finished.”

Scott Von Holzen