Reworking Love and Sex

One of the pieces I am reworking/finishing for Text Is A Four-Letter Word is Flowchart: Love and Sex.  Here are a couple of images of it at some earlier stages of development.

Back in 2010.

Sometime in 2011.

...and now in 2014, let the reworking begin......

I want to add a few more face/head/bust figures to the canvas along with some stars and another relief element.

The new additions are attached and ready to be primed with a couple of layers of paint.

Once everything is primed and dried, it is time to start adding the linework for the top layer of imagery.

Some of the new relief additions after their base coat of color.

These next three images show the transition for base color on the relief figure to adding another layer on top (primarily a reddish brown to a yellow by the third image).

A similar transformation with the 'dialog/talk bubble'.

Here is what everything looks like before I add color to my new linework.

Now it's time to start painting.

A short time later....

A little bit around the edges to crisp thing up a little bit....

....and final coats on a couple of the 'relief elements' so they play nicely with others.

We'll call that 'done' for 2014.  Who knows what 2015 will bring?

Next time Constellation will get a carved frame.

Flowchart: Me and You -The Arc of A Love Affair

I started Flowchart: Me and You -The Arc Of A Love Affair back in 2010.  It has been chopped up, unstretched, and for at least two years, lying in a heap in one of my backrooms of the studio.  Text Is A Four-Letter Word seems like a good excuse to re-engage the piece.

Since I reused its stretcher bars for a different piece, the first thing to do was make a new set of stretcher bars, stretch a canvas and then attach the fragments of the old piece to the new piece.

Now it's time to lay down some base color to reintegrate the old canvas (which had some visual activity on it) to its new surroundings.

Once that base layer of color dried, it was time to mine the sketch books for some imagery.

Roughly a week later, I was able to start adding color to the piece.

Two things need to happen.  The imagery needs to be subdued and the letters need to be accentuated.

It goes something like this.

A few close ups.  I didn't want the letters to be glaring, merely more prominent.  The obnoxious blue seemed to be the answer.

This is what it will look like for the show.  I may or may not add more layers of imagery in the future.  I usually don't know that's going to happen until about 5 minutes before it starts happening.

Next time I rework another 'Flowchart' piece....

Flowchart: Black and White (The First Phase)

For Flowchart: Black and White I needed to carve out a few letters with my trusty Dremel Tool.

Mmmmm.....carving.

Then adhere the letters to the canvas.

Mmmmmmm........Liquid Nails.

Then prime the whole mess.

Mmmmmmmm...........drippy application of oil paint.

About a week later, it was time to start adding the line work.

Mmmmmmmmm..................soul-crushing tedium of line work.

Partial repetition of some previously utilized motifs (namely the Bec de Corbin wielding knight and the 'fort' and circle motif).

It was kind of fun and rewarding to conduct the research needed to 'document' the design on top of an Oreo Double Stuf Cookie.  I do my own stunts.

Once the line work is dry, it's time to dive into some color -albeit muted colors.

As I begin to start painting the words 'close cover before striking', I look up at my 24-year old alarm clock.  Just out of curiosity, can I paint all of those letters in 30?

The answer: Nope.

Crushed by the reality of my slow painting skills, I press forward.

A few more detail shots.

Some partial product placement.....

Here is what it looks like after several hours/days of painting.

The first coat is down.  Once it dries, it will be time to haze.....

S.O.P.