The Troggs

S_V_H Love is All Around Final Image

/ Scott Von Holzen

 

This artistic style brings this found 60s peace symbol,

peaceS

and the faint memory of  this 60s Pop Art sculpture by Robert Indiana,
LOVE_sculpture_NY

 

and these new pair of walking shoes, that have improve my time,

 

shoesS

 

all together to create this image,
loveS

that is the word ‘Love’ on a small added canvas that is part of my latest composition, Love is All Around.

 

loveIsAllAroundFinal

 

I started this artwork on the first week of May according to my worksheet.  I finished yesterday. My free time is still limited, and summer brings on lots of must do demands, but I am still surprised that this work took so long. I do not see any big style changes or break through moves, but I do see the continuing evolution in how I depict musical slurs and ties.  As far as the three 8th notes, in this work, they again, like in the past, where a struggle.  I am not seeing much difference or movement in them. In truth the first Kyoto Bach is still hanging on the wall I looked to its lone 8th note for direction. Since each new artwork builds on earlier works all this is not surprising. I bigger problem, that probably took a week to resolve, was finding the right color combinations for the banding of the shafts. I ended up with four different color choices, which is something unique to this work.

What still is a mystery, that I shall never resolve, is why this smaller work took so long to complete. I must say the music never was a favorite of mine. I listened to my four different versions of Love is All Around, over-and-over to help me get a better respect for the music.  I also watch a few YouTube videos about the story of the Troggs, which was interesting. I guess the challenge was creating a painting that represents a love song that I was not in love with. That is exactly would I did. This artwork surprisingly is full of interest that is well done and creative by my standards.

All Around reminds me of Up On The Roof, because both of these artworks last panels have a dramatic impact. An interesting difference is that second panel and how it drops well below the others. There is a pause in this music represented by those three rest symbols on the upper part of the canvas.  I could have treated those rests like I have done in most of my other works, but I wanted to add more interest to the physical look and the flow of the music. That is why you see the lower music which represents the background notes heard between the voice. We will see how this change will affect future works.

I like the look of this work.  I believe it can stand alone or with the music. This is a commission work so it is not for sale, but prints will be available.

Scott Von Holzen

 

S_V_H Love is All Around image5

/ Scott Von Holzen / 2 Comments

 

loveAllAround5

I am finally starting to feel that this work is taking on its own uniqueness. This work started out with a unique physical look that I liked. The problem has been how to paint this love song in a way that expressing the love in this music in a way that connects this painting with that one piece of music. I believe that work done on the far right panel has made that happen.  That fourth canvas reminds me of a similar panel from Up On The Roof, but these ties and slurs have found their own expression.

Every artwork needs to make its point in order for me to feel that the time and effort spent on each piece of music did improve my understanding of this art form. Since these pieces are one-of-a-kind, that means even though they share parts and styles of earlier works, they somehow find some new way of expression that makes it unique. Each new painting adds an indispensable paragraph to this artist story. That is an intrinsic goal with each painting.

Art can be complicated, or it can simply be wall decoration. My choice is to paint complex. You the viewer will grasp an understanding what pleases.  I do offer clues and familiarity that can show the way, but for many that may not even be necessary.  My art is in one way like Egyptian hieroglyphics.  My paintings of music, in their own way, could resemble the beautiful figures and symbols carved into those ancient stone walls. Few people know what the meaning of the hieroglyphics, but they do know is that they are depicting something that means something  special carved meticulously into the stone thousands of years ago. This art is not that, old,  complicated, meaningful, or meticulous, but it does speak, at times beautifully in its own unique way, the history of music.

 

Scott Von Holzen

 

S_V_H Love is All Around image4

/ Scott Von Holzen

loveAllAround4

I have made slow progress on the artwork Love is All Around because of the coming of summer and the need to finish a Winter Vivaldi that I started January 5th 2014.  I have finished the Vivaldi. I think this seventeen footer and I both agreed that it was time to move on.

The big issue with Love is all Around is the struggled I have had with the staffs of this music. Usually, I spread light colors over a dark background and quickly finish the staffs.  That idea, although, did not seem to me to fit this work.  In the past I have used little boxes of contrasting colors for my staffs.  You can see a lot of this technique on the great painting Autumn Allegro 3rd movement Vivaldi.  I also used this same style for the ending notes of the Take Five artwork.  I am guessing I carried over that influence to this work.  My problem became my color choices.  This lead me to repaint the strips several times, which has slowed the progress over this last week and more. I am not sure if this will be the final changes to the staff colors, but for now I am moving on.

I believe I am correct that the client mentioned to me to not use any pink in the painting.  Well, in reality pink is a tint of magenta with added white to lighten.  In this work I could not resist using magenta. This is a love song, and too me magenta and love go together nicely. What I have done is use the solid color of magenta to stay as far as possible away from any perception of the ‘pink color.’

When I was discussing this painting with the client she mention these words “You gave your promise to me, and I gave mine to you.” which I can see how this could be a favorite part of the music. They speak to love between two people. I looked at these measures, but I could not find enough interest to work with.  I did find another section, near the end, which I made the choice for this artwork. Here you find the words, ” So if you really love me come on and let it show.”  This is a strong voice of expression, and the need for and to love.  At this climatic point in the song the music also showed a lot of interest. The choice then was easy:  words with meaning, and artistic potential.

I have a way to go.  I am not certain that I have a total understanding of what this artwork is trying to say or want from me. That means there is still a lot of work to do.

Scott Von Holzen

 

S_V_H Love is All Around image1,2 &3

/ Scott Von Holzen

loveAllAround1

 

Love is All Around consists of 5 canvas panels 69 3/4 inches in length by a  height of 39 1/4 inches.

The Troggs original version of Love is All Around 1967-68 peaked on the US Billboard charts at No. 7.

 

Wet Wet Wet version is from the 1994 soundtrack to Four Weddings and a Funeral, that became another hit in the U.K.

loveAllAround2

 

The first image of Love is all Around is from Monday. The above image two is from Tuesday evening.  All images that are image ones are about putting paint to cover parts of the white canvas.  It is about making that first statement. It is about making those first assumptions. It is about just getting it started.  A lot of work has already gone into this work. One of first steps is finding those interesting parts of the music. Then next is seeing what parts I like that might fit in the length of the work I chose.  Next, comes finding the canvases to fit the music, which requires trials to see what will work, and how the pieces will fit together.  Then there is a final check to see that all the music will fit correctly into the spaces provided, and that all the measurements are correct.  If that all makes sense I finally flipped the canvas over and screw and bolt them together. Now the artwork can be put on the easel.

 

loveAllAround3

Love is all around third image Thursday. I have taken some lessons from the 17 foot Vivaldi, still in progress,  standing next to All Around.  In the Vivaldi I used some stripping but unlike Take Five, I kept some open spaces. The method I used in the Vivaldi to create the feeling of winter snow in these areas was to strip them with my homemade squeegee.  I created stripping in a freer way, which is something I have decided to try to do more of. Last night I put down the first strip, a turquoise color, over the blue-green, and I thought it may work.  Tonight I knew exactly what I had to do, and that was to re-strip these area with a slightly lighter green. That worked to blend all the colors together, and helped to tone down the darker color, which allow the other, more formal strips to stand out.  Now I am happy, and near the finish for this background.  For now.

 

Scott Von Holzen