Velvet Underground
When I painted this oil painting I did not draw on the canvass first, instead I started with a burnt umber naple’s yellow mix and applied it strait to the 36 X 28 inch canvass capturing all the light and dark shapes of the reference material. The reference that was used for this photo was a combination of band photos that I used until the under painting was complete. I built the frame and stretched the canvass my self, primed it with guesso and began with a neutral under painting that I was then able to add color and value too as I saw fit. I keep on talking about an under painting with out explaining what it actually is. An under painting is just a dried layer of paint that covers the canvass and identifies some of the image’s light and dark shapes. After the under painting was dry, I was then able to go in with colored paint mixed with Liquin and linseed oil, this combination is called a color glaze, and then continued a refined process of rendering light on form. Disregarding the reference photos in the middle of a painting is a truly liberating experience and saves the work from becoming too photo realistic. If I had followed the reference material too stringently then the movement and motion that blend into the composition of this piece would never have been realized. The lights and colors that illuminate the band members were conscious decisions about color balancing and values. It was a lot of fun to play around with the reflective light on forms as the work progressed. In the design the motion of the bass guitar player’s hand in the center works well with the rule of thirds to not to center focus on the action. Instead the eye wants to move away from the center and find other shapes. Interesting too in that the angular elements of the piece dump your eye right back into the center and the searching begins all over again. I hope you all enjoy.
