Category: Modern

Like a Prayer 24 inches by 8 feet:
Prayer is the third and final image in this made up trilogy: music themes dealing with faith.  It is going to be a hard fit.  Madonna was a favorite of this artist many years ago.  Prayer only surface during a browsing search for a new music theme for the next painting.  As always, it is hard to start on the next work until the current one is finished.  That is not the way this artist wants to work that is just how it works.  Since it was hard to break the mood of Thunder, Prayer seemed a logical choice.  The music has a lot of musical variations that help, and words that offer different meanings, but how small of a canvas could be used?  Hallelujah was ten feet.  Thunder was nine feet and length.  With some effort Prayer could fit on a chosen eight foot canvas.

Not much to look at.  The first picture is usually the results of  an exercise in putting paint on canvas in a effort to cover up big chunks of whiteness.  The color theme of Cyan just seemed a natural fit with this music.

Even after a music theme is picked there is some reconsideration that occurs because this artist knows that there are many great pieces of music that he will never have the opportunity to interpret.  There is this feeling that only the best of the best should be a considered. But, it just does not work that way. It is like what is happening right now, listening to Cherish by the Association that just happen to play, and knowing that there is something about this music that reminds the artist of days gone by. It is about the mood of the artist.  It is about taking a walk and the music just comes up next, that puts it in the mind.  It is about hearing  the music done by a different artist that surprises. It is about finding a part of the music that fits on the canvas size that is chosen to be used next. And it is about finding just the right words that makes the work  come together.  The art does not care what music it is portraying, it only cares that it is interesting, and fits.

Scott Von Holzen

Thunder Road.
Last night the feeling, that feeling of connection came back.  It occurred while doing some added brush work on the background in the open areas.  It was felt, and it felt good, and it was about time.  This canvas has been the main focus of attention since April 16th.  Strange, unlike most works in witch that into mood maintains itself fairly well, with Thunder there has been a lot of indecision,a lot of Bruce Springsteen music, a lot of life distractions, and a lot of exhaustion. Still slowly moving to completion this work will eventually find its own identity that will be finely tuned.  Thunder will then stand on its own magnificent self, a  visually triumphant .  At less that is the plan.

There was a thought that the eighth notes could be see as representing a stain glass look.  This than could represent a religious twist on the meaning of Thunder Road.  Interestingly, just after 9/11 there was a segment, on CBS Sunday Morning, about the correspondence’s friend who had died in the Twin Tower.   At his funeral Thunder Road was played.  That has stuck.  Maybe, there is more, and this artwork has much more to say then Oh Thunder Road.

Consistent with previous works there are many diverse colors, and like Hallelujah green was introduced on the Ties, and no where else. Still, this work needs a lot of work, especially with the notes, and right now there are no ideas.

The current art book being read is Portrait of Dr. Gachet.  Enjoyable, with many interesting details about this artwork and the art industry.  But, what spun things was the mention about there being fake Van Goghs.  That has lead to a lot of searching and reading.  It is interesting that there are paintings not painted by Van Gogh that that are worth millions  because just maybe, it is a work by Van Gogh.  So what does that say about art? Does it say that the demand for Van Gogh is so big that the really real hand of the artist,  is not that important? It is a wonder. It can be put to rest that the tens of thousands of brush stokes on all of these works of art have all been done by the hand of this artist.  Not sure if that is worth anything, but unlike Van Gogh that coped out, this artist is going to stick it out, just to see.  Just to see if it was worth the journey.  Just to see, and to know.  Hey, it helps that it is all documented here for everyone not to see.

Scott Von Holzen

Thunder Road, it has been a while since the last post on this canvas.  Progress was slow, but understandable.  In the image above you are seeing a symbolic picture of three quarter notes and three eighth notes.  More important, you are seeing the flow of the music. The progress over these many days was stalling out when different efforts to punch-up this artwork failed to unite the artwork with the music.  Stopping efforts with the eighth notes, the quarter notes quickly evolved when it was decided to paint  their stems similar to the no passing zones seen on two lane highways.    That work great visually and fit well with the music.

Back to the eighth notes still no unifying style could be found.  It because obvious that something similar to the eighth notes in Hallelujah needed to be found. Finally, at the end of an evening, an idea for a shape was found. Looking for help out came the Art Deco book, and while flipping through the pages there was spotted a picture of a woven rug on page 403.  The design of the rug contain a large wide rectangle whose one long side had been rounded.  That was all it took, and the next day that design idea and the color, Gold Ochre, was chosen for the ten eighth notes.  This took a couple of nights to complete, working the connection with the different designs already finished presented its challenges, that surprisingly solved themselves quickly.  The concerned, now looking at the eighth notes, is that they could be interpreted as having a stain glass look, and not the more mechanical feel that would be closer to the original design ideas. The design and colors used in any of these paintings try to reflect a certain atmosphere that the music presents.  That is why in Thunder browns and earthy muted colors are being used, with the addition of brighter colors to create push and pull,  and to bring in the feminine.

It is a simple as that, give’n enough time the art eventually leads the painter out of the abyss he has dug for himself.

Scott Von Holzen