Superimposed poser.

[john]

Well I think I finally made an abstract that doesn't look too much like a landscape. The purest abstract I've done yet. But I still see landscape elements. Maybe I just have landscape on the brain.

A learning experience. It took a surprising amount of time for such a small painting. My goal was to make a colorful abstract that looks nice and for a while I've had this idea of layering transparent paint swatches over each other. I guess it looks OK but there's room for improvement, as usual.

6x6 feet....I mean inches. acrylic on gessoboard.

 

[Hawkmoth]

I like it. I like the translucency - it makes me think of stained glass windows, even though these colours overlap instead of being separated by lead.

 

[snoball]

Yes, I like the translucency too. Makes it very interesting.

 

[Artyczar]

Fricken excellent John! If this is your first real nonrepresentational abstract, you full succeeded. Even if this might be based on some kind of landscape (or not), it looks like a beautiful abstract to me, and it's very good. A stellar composition and great placement of color. Very well done!!!

 

[john]

Thanks guys. Oh yeah, translucent, but the paint tubes say transparent. They're lying!

Yeah it's a cool effect that I think I want to play with it a little more.

I found it difficult even with a soft brush to lay down an even layer of paint. But I was using glazing medium and purposely didn't mix it much. I don't know why. For some effect or something. Also the gessoboard is very smooth with little tooth. Next one I'll do on paper and see how that goes. And maybe a little larger.

It's interesting doing an abstract. The difference between painting something that's real and present vs having to totally make something up is large. I went for a long walk yesterday and the whole time I was thinking about shapes and colors and what I might paint. It uses the dreaming creative visualization part of the brain which unless one paints abstracts, probably doesn't use very much. I know I don't.

I don't know how many more pure abstracts I can handle though. Just not a big fan of them truth be told. It's too bad because they are so fun to do.

Again thanks for your comments and encouragement.

 

[Donna T]

I hope you'll be doing more abstracts, John, because this one is terrific! I only wish it really was 6x6 feet! The colors themselves would have been nice but you added more interest with the overlapping transparencies. It really does feel like we have to use a different part of our brain to paint abstractly, doesn't it? I find it a real challenge!

 

[ZenDruid]

It's interesting doing an abstract. The difference between painting something that's real and present vs having to totally make something up is large. I went for a long walk yesterday and the whole time I was thinking about shapes and colors and what I might paint. It uses the dreaming creative visualization part of the brain which unless one paints abstracts, probably doesn't use very much. I know I don't.
I would call it imagination, but potato/tomato. I think imagination is at the heart of everything we do and make, including hyper-realism. Enough philosophy.
This is a great little abstract. 6x6 inches? Very clean execution. I like the designs and, like everybody else said, the translucency. Well done John !

 

[john]

It's interesting doing an abstract. The difference between painting something that's real and present vs having to totally make something up is large. I went for a long walk yesterday and the whole time I was thinking about shapes and colors and what I might paint. It uses the dreaming creative visualization part of the brain which unless one paints abstracts, probably doesn't use very much. I know I don't.
I would call it imagination, but potato/tomato. I think imagination is at the heart of everything we do and make, including hyper-realism. Enough philosophy.
This is a great little abstract. 6x6 inches? Very clean execution. I like the designs and, like everybody else said, the translucency. Well done John !

Thanks Zen. Yeah "imagination" is more concise. But I still like at least the term "creative visualization" . Because you are visualizing in your head - or trying to - a painting that has no basis in reality. From our heads alone, and who knows where that's been.

 

[ZenDruid]

Thanks Zen. Yeah "imagination" is more concise. But I still like at least the term "creative visualization" . Because you are visualizing in your head - or trying to - a painting that has no basis in reality. From our heads alone, and who knows where that's been.

You're right of course. I'm still sorting it out.

 

[laika]

From our heads alone, and who knows where that's been.

The difference between painting something that's real and present vs having to totally make something up is large.

Yeah, I think I'd have to look at something and then abstract it.
Anyway, this is a very pleasing painting. I like the way you used the transparent colors thinly. Well done and I hope you'll share more of your abstracts

 

[trufflecat]

I like the way your red rectangle is the focus, and two other red triangular objects "point" to it. The layering and colors are good, too. Keep it up!

 

[Bongo]

I like the purity of the colors - no mud here and brushstrokes add another layer of interest.

 

[stlukesguild]

The faculty of my art school leaned toward abstraction... Art Art and MInimalism to be specific. I got quite good at abstraction... even returning to it for a period more recently in my collage work. I know I left a number of my teachers disappointed... some even told me as much... when I abandoned abstraction for figurative art. I will say I learned a lot working abstractly about composition, color harmonies, and paint handling. Working abstractly allows the painter to focus on these and other elements without the added challenges of anatomy, perspective, space, etc...

 

[Bongo]

I've made very few abstract paintings. I just didn't get the same satisfaction I get when I succeed at a figurative piece. But it's been a while since I've made one, I should give it another shot.

Oddly - I prefer abstracts over figurative works to hang in the home. I find them more pleasing to live with on a daily basis. BUT I'm very picky, exceedingly picky about what I like.