charcoal on paper
20 x 26
I am reading "In Praise of Shadows" by Tanizaki again. It is a little slip of a book full of beautiful insights on culture and the psyche. I was thinking after my last post about light, that shadow is equally important and powerful, and I decided to post this interior-woods-shadowy piece.
"So benumbed are we nowadays by electric lights that we have become utterly insensitive to the evils of excessive illumination."
Tanizaki
Thinking of this as I am getting ready for my annual southwest sojourn to Portal, AZ, which has arguably the darkest night sky in the lower 48.
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4 comments:
Another great charcoal drawing, I like the x's. Enjoy the stars in AZ!
I am a HUge fan of this drawing.*** --EMily
Dear Ms. Logue~
We are art students of Jeanne Stortz from Scenic Heights Elementary school in Minnetonka. We have been inspired by your great charcoal pieces of art and we have been making our own pieces using charcoal as well. Our students have a few questions for you..
"How long did it take you to finish Deep Woods?" Nick grade 5
"I am wondering how you make your artwork look so real?" Ansel grade 2
"Did you sit outside to do this piece or did you do this in your studio?" Miss Jeanne
"What is your favorite medium?" Mrs. Pascoal
Thanks for inspiring our young artists!
~Ms. Bowman, Miss Jeanne, Mrs. Pascoal, Mrs. Melby, Ansel, Nick, and DJ
Hey Scenic Heights Class, thanks for your comments and questions! I will try to answer them the best I can.
Nick - Deep Woods was one of the most difficult of my charcoal pieces. I didn't keep track of the time spent to make it, but I would guess around 12 - 15 hrs. When I was nearly done with it I had to put it away for a week so I could look at it with fresh eyes again, to allow me to finish it.
Ansel - If you see these pieces close up in real life you will see that the charcoal is actually applied loosely with not a lot of detail. I think the realism comes from getting the values and the drawing (proportions) correct; value is the balance of light and dark.
Jeanne - Most of my charcoals were done in the studio using reference and memory. This piece was done in my studio.
Mrs. Pascoal - I began using charcoal this past summer, and I love it! I started my art career as a sculptor, and something about using charcoal really reminds me of sculpting; I start with the whole sheet of paper covered in a middle grey and then add darks and carve out the light areas with an eraser. I have to say that after working only in charcoal for six months I am itching to get back to the paint and color. I think they balance and compliment each other, satisfying different aspects of myself.
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