re-work of "by the creek" / momoyama 24x26” /  by Philip Tarlow

momoyama, 24x26” at the end of my painting day today

2:45 PM: after completing work on by the creek, i found a 24x26” canvas sitting on the floor. it had been painted over and i can’t find a record of what was underneath, so i named it momoyama and began work on it after painting over the surface with the same yellow i used on by the creek. then ip proceeded to introduce 2 figures, and we’ll see what happens on the first day of 2024!

by the creek 37x35” as it looked at 1pm today

1:13 PM: i was intending to put by the creek aside and stretch some smaller canvases today. but, after reading another few pages of the unknown matisse last night, i had made a note to myself to check out le bonheur de vivre and when i studied that 1905 breakthrough masterpiece, i just couldn’t resist painting over that overloaded composition with yellow and working into it with some of my familiar figures viewed from above.

from a review of the book: This book tells the story with clarity and literary skill so as to make the book almost un-put-downable. It is mandatory reading for any layperson seeking to understand Matisse and his work. It is recommended reading for anyone seeking to know Matisse better than any other source will allow

a burst of energy took over, lasted for a little over an hour and now i’m going to leave it, since anything further that i do today will be coming from my head.

le bonheur de vivre, matisse, 1905 5.6x8 feet

re-work of yesterdays revisions to by the creek" /  by Philip Tarlow

by the creek, 35x37” as it looked moments ago following a few more adjustments. more in the morning.

2:46 PM: i toned down and or eliminated some of the brighter whites, which i was intending to do in the morning, when there are a few more adjustments i’ll make when i’m fresh. right now, i’m ready for our afternoon trail walk.

2:13 PM: this is by the creek at the end of my painting day today. i think i may eliminate or tone down some of the whites tomorrow.

12:48pm, stage 2 of the re-work of by the creek. much of the story of matisse’s early life and struggles, which i’m reading every night for 15-20 minutes before falling asleep is seeping into my consciousness. combined with my ongoing study of momoyama, a period in japanese art which lasted mid 16th to the beginning of the 17th century, a new, deeper self awareness is occuring. this quote from the great greek poet andreas embirikos was the latest thing to move and awaken me. it’s untranslatable:

12:53 PM: here’s the current state of by the creek, 35x37.”

by the creek, 35x37” stage 1 of today’s re-work

11:54: i’m in the early stages of re-working by the creek.

revisions to "by the creek" /  by Philip Tarlow

by the creek, 35x37” following today’s changes

2:41 PM: yet another recent painting, this one last worked on 12/6/23 was revised today. as my vision and perception chnages, i’m moved to re-visit recent work in keeping with those developments.

in studying 17th c. japanese handscrolls, i continue to discover and go deeper with that part of me that can closely relate to their colors, patterning and introduction of architectural elements that help structure the compositions. i’m still at an early stage, but every day i go deeper with my capacity to make what i observe and admire my own.

BELOW: before and after today’s work

revisions to the drummer / instagram & facebook deleted /  by Philip Tarlow

the drummer 37x35” as she looked at the end of my painting day

3:07 PM: unusual for me to work so late, but i had to get her to this point before simplifying on friday. (i won’t be able to be in the studio tommow) she’s a tad congested, but awesome to observe. we’ll see what happens in 48 hours. let her breathe till then.

i’ve been working into the drummer, and here’s how she looks at noon. work continues; updates as they become available.

11:25 am: the drummer was last revised 4 days ago, when i went over the pick ground with a charcoal black, leaving a small area of pink on the upper left. i’m still not satisfied with it, and will do more starting in a feew minutes

10:49 just deleted my facebook & instagram accounts. so for info on my painting or other topics from now on, visit this blog.

3 recent paintings on my east wall today

"the orchid" reworked /  by Philip Tarlow

the orchid 35x37” as it looked after my rework. BELOW are before & after images

1:42 PM: the more i gazed at the orchid, which i last worked on november 24, the more the ground color annoyed me. it took over the composition and didn’t allow the figures, which were too heavily outlined, to play their part in the composition. in short, it wasn’t working.

so this morning i placed it on my painting table and began reworking it. the bright pink ground is now a muddy pink; the new section on the upper right is inspired by 18th c. japanese scrolls i’ve been studying, as are the white verticals, and a faint reminder of the floor of the acropolis museum has appeared on the lower left. the woman with the red shoulder bag is new as well.

BELOW: Ithe orchid before and after today’s modifications

DETAIL of the reworked the orchid

argolid continued /  by Philip Tarlow

argolid, 38x36” as it looked ar rge end of my painting day today

2:09 PM: just wrapping up for the day after doing additional work on argolid, which is currently a creek-scape.

i kinda like the big tree trunk on the right of the composiotion, which has the markings of the bark without the color of the tree trunk itself. as i often mention, this is something that subtly takes it a step away from description and closer to meaningful patterning. i shoul say playful patterning.

that orange tinted rock has an even more pronounced color in reality, and the white-ish one is even whiter

this detail shows a few of the blues i put in on my second round of work this afternoon.

12:37 PM: after whiting over argolid 2 days ago and enjoying the sublties of what remained on the surface, i felt the urge to use a couple of my hundreds of creek photos and see what i do.

thus far, i’m having a very good time. although we haven’t been on the trail we walked when i shot these for maybe 3-4 years, i remember every detail. you might say i have a photographic memory for rocks, branches & water. but defintely not numbers!

recent paintings hanging in the studio / "the drummer" from pink to grey /  by Philip Tarlow

2 recent paintings currently hanging on the east wall of the studio

the drummer, 35x37” after painting over the pink ground with warm grey.

BELOW: the drummer before and after the shift from pink to grey this morning

1:50 PM: the drummer, 35x37”, had been hanging on my studio wall since i introduced the pink ground, on november 22. today, i glanced at it just as i was starting to work on the next stage of argolid (see yesterday’s post) and suddenly, that pink bugged me!

so i set argolid aside and went into the drummer with the dark warm grey i’ve been favoring lately. the two vertical pinks on the upper left are deliberate, and are in my opinion critical to the entire composition.

there are two dominant figures in this painting: the drummer on the lower left and the jumping skateboarder on the upper right. the familiar figure of the woman with the red shoulder bag has appeared often in recent paintings and, although smaller than the others, is an important compositional element.

my signature and the date have remained on the pink ground, surrounded by grey and now acting as a subtle balance in the overall composition.

my signature and the date remain on the pink ground

"argolid" whiteover / “acropolis museum LL adjustments /whiteover of “rhyton” /  by Philip Tarlow

rhyton, 28x24” oil & collage on linen following this afternoon’s whiteover

2:26 PM: iwas in a whitover mood today, so after whiting over argolid (see below) , next on my list was rhyton, which was way too blue.

acropolis museum II following the work i just did, introducing blues and yellows.

1:24 PM: i’ve been gazing at acropolis museum II, hanging on my south studio wall, since the last time i worked on it, november 30. something was bothering me, and when mikela came over to look at my latest work yesterday aftewrnoon, i suddenly saw there was too much white. so just now i worked back into it with blues and yellows. i think it has improved.

BELOW: THE NOVEMBER 30 VERSION IS ON THE LEFT

12:10 PM: argolid had become too congested and was too much me attempting to repeat the successes of yang. so away it went, under a flurry of white brush strokes. the few spots that peek through are, unexpectedly, turning this into a painting i could gaze at for extended periods! and gaze i will, as i leave it hanging on my east painting wall and move on to other things.

"argolid" continued /  by Philip Tarlow

2:49 PM: ……and one more tweak down at the bottom before leaving to take our trail walk.

argolid, 38x36”. as it looked at the end of my painting day and after rubbing out the foliqage at the bottom

2:22 PM: after more gazing at argolid and while the paint was still wet, i rubbed out the foliage on the bottom, which was coming more from my head than my gut. glad i caught that; it would hve been harder to rub out tomorrow! but now it may need something down there….blue perhaps…we’ll see…

argolid, 38x36” following this morning’s work

1:27 PM: this morning, after gazing at argolid while having breakfast, while i loved how it came across, i felt more was needed.

i may have done a bit too much, but for now i’m going to leave it. i think the foliage and the flying insect enrich the composition without crowding it; time will tell. below are two details.