Category: christmas

The Christmas Song 24 inches by 6 feet. This is the 2011 Christmas painting so the approach to this work is more relaxed, less critical,  more decorative to match the season, and in this painting,through the colors and shapes, a work that celebrates the best music that just so happens to be heard only, in late November and December.

Listening to Wilson Phillips surprising version of the Beach Boys – In My Room.

The only thing that remains unchanged is that for the work to be considered successful the music must flow and the background needs to integrate with this movement to unite the work.   The sparse Chardin background actually works well with this Christmas music theme  because of the bright,broad flat colors, create a simply clean look.  It works.

To confirm if the artwork works, one method that is used is that when done for the night, I do not stand back and view the work one last time.  The work stops with last of the day’s efforts being ignored as the brushes are cleaned. The music, and the lights are turned off. The next morning, into the studio, with the lights coming up, and with a glance at the canvas it is obvious how the work is going.  A reason for with holding judgement has to do with the fact that these acrylic paints, although they appear to be dry to the touch fairly fast, in actuality their true depth of color only becomes apparent after a night of drying.  When standing in front of fresh work,  a short scan of the canvas quickly reveals  the obvious, whether the work is moving in the right directions.  Then without much, pre-thought of what needs to be done, or even what should be done, decisions are made and the day’s work begins. The art pushes forward.

Kid Rock – Cowboy

Maybe, there is something interesting that can be done with the note that starts this canvas, and the slur that ends this work.  Learning from and taking from Body and Soul’s Vermeer globes, a  thought is maybe spreading some circles around that first note and even tossing a few from it…… like snowflakes.  For for the slur, maybe reflecting the same efforts that where used in More Than You Know, will add interest and even more Christmas spunk to the work.  Just the right amount is all that is needed. The goal is keep this work clean, and vibrant.

The great one B.B King –  Outside Help

Aimee Mann – Backfire (an artist that has been a favorite for many years)

The Cars – My Best Friend’s Girl

John Coltrane – Too Young to Go Steady

Scott Von Holzen
[All the songs that are listed in these blogs, listen through a Bose system on a hand built computer, come form the collection gathered by this artist over the years.  I do not think there are any selections from eight track or cassette.  All of that music was repurchased, for this artist’s players have long since vanished]

The Christmas Song 24 inches by 6 feet. This music was written by Mel Torme in 1945.  Here is the information link to the Merv Griffin show. Every year there is a Christmas theme painting.  That then is printed to canvas and sent as this years Christmas card, to a select few, and to those that have purchased a painting from this artist.

Listening to Chris Knight – Broken Plow followed by In a Mellow Tone – Ben Webster.

The inspiration for the look of the background comes from a painting by Jean-Siméon Chardin, the Young Schoolmistress. Seeing the simplicity in his backgrounds, caught this artist eye and challenged his current thinking. Of lately, the hard fought effort has been to create backgrounds that clearly are aggressive and almost competitive with the music.  With Chardin what you see are simple backgrounds that result in a clearer, and a cleaner focus on his subject matter.  Most of the portraits done in Chardin’s time are full of stuff, but he choose a different direction, not only in subject matter, but in its presentation.

Steve Winwood – Hearts on Fire

I like it. Chardin looks modern if you would just update the clothing.  What you see above, then, is what came out of that Chardin painting.  I know, use your imagination.  This canvas is more of getting back to basics by letting the background simply serve as the foundation for the work.  In some ways it is a move back  towards the style of Rothko.

Madeleine Peyroux – I Think it’s Going to Rain Today.

The thought then, with this painting, is to accomplish something similar to what that plain old musical staff  does for sheet music.   But to be art, there is the challenge to go far beyond those plain 5 lines. This artist hopes to display in The Christmas Song, a background that is not only interesting ,  but also visually enhances the music that flows across it.  The music should stand out as the subject matter that it truly is, with a salute to the portrait style of Chardin.  Heavy creative efforts, and alternative thinking, will be required to pull that off.

Finishing with Stevie Ray Vaughan – Voodoo Child,  Tori Amos – Give, along with Duran Duran – Come Undone and finally Breaking the Girl – Red Hot Chile Peppers.  Having a hard time breaking from the music.

Scott Von Holzen