Wednesday, December 21, 2016

Landscape Painting inspired by Wolf Kahn




Through this painting I learned chiefly how the variance of brush strokes can lead to a more interesting piece. As opposed to using the same technique throughout the work, changing how paint is laid down can create an interesting contrast between elements--such as the background, foreground, and objects--in the work; for example, using wide texture-filled brush strokes for a stump and then layering that with the dry brush technique.
Another thing I learned was how to truly work from background to foreground, not just with laying down large swaths of color for the literal background of the piece, but working also back to front with the elements (trees, clouds, a bush) within the painting. In my painting I put down the background, then worked on (what I think is) the sky, and finally added in trees (again going from back to front).

The final thing I learned was how to see not only color, but to see in tints as well. Although the assignment was to change the color of the original painting the tints were supposed to stay intact. This threw me off initially, as often my tints would be darker than demonstrated in the Wolf Khan paintings and I would need to reevaluate my piece.



The mood of Khan’s painting changed from peaceful to energetic and dark as the color scheme went from greens and yellows to reds and blues in my painting. The similarities between the two pieces are in the composition and in the brush strokes. Khan doesn't use many solid colors and neither does my rendition of his work. The works differ in their color schemes and mood. My work has slightly darker tints in it as well, and the mood is more energetic as a result of my colors being more intense than his.

Thursday, December 15, 2016

LMC Unsung Hero Planning

The story which motivates me the most is the one of the "The Berlin Candy Bomber", Gail Halvorsen. His is a story of giving hope--in the form of candy--to children during the Soviet blockade of Western Berlin following World War Two. The population of West Berlin was cut off from supply routes; little food could travel within the border leaving many citizens starving, especially the children. But they weren't just starving for food, they were starving for hope.

Possible visuals for my LMC Unsung Hero:
- Chocolate
- Gum
- "Captain Wiggly Wings" (He would wiggle the wings of his plane as he landed)
- "Operation Little Vitties"
- "Without hope the soul dies" (Said by one of the children who received a chocolate bar)
- West Berlin