Robert Reeves: Oil & Dust

I know I posted my painting, “That First Step” last week, but truth be told… it wasn’t truly finished. After letting the paint dry I noticed some spots that looked off and some where the paint was a bit thin. Plus there were scale issues with the car immediately behind the primary figure. Needless to say my fine sensibilities (read as “potentially OCD behavior”) couldn’t let this pass.

I did get them fixed to my satisfaction and as my final step, signed the piece last night. I guess it has something to say about “going back to the table” which is (you gamblers out there already know this) a big No No. Normally I hold to a policy sticking with my decision as to whether or not a particular piece is finished. I think most of us have spent a fair amount of time second-guessing ourselves. It starts when we’re young. I have a number of more or less unpleasant childhood memories that involve taking tests in school. I remember looking at my answer, rethinking my answer, changing my answer, then finding out I was right the first time (insert picture of me slapping my forehead). It’s a common enough occurrence especially with those damnable standardized fill-in-the-dot tests.

So I went back to the table, but I managed to fix the parts that were bugging me and left a few others that I decided were far to minor to bother anyone else. I managed to do it without putting myself in the position of having to fix something else. I’m always wary of overworking a piece. Normally I wouldn’t recommend it, but sometimes you’ve got to give in to your impulses.

Lots more work coming up. Can’t wait to start posting.

Cheers,

R

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He blogs two days in a row?? A rarity for me these days, I know. The reason for this special event?? It’s because I’m very proud to make the official announcement that I’ve been added on at The Mark Fine Art Gallery & Studio in Stuart, Florida as a gallery Artist! Check out their site and see some of the amazing artists with whom I’ll have the distinct pleasure of exhibiting. I can’t wait to get things going with them. I’m hoping one day soon I’ll be able to buzz down there for an in-person visit.

The really amazing thing about this for me is that the initial contact was done entirely via Twitter. When I first created my @RobReevesStudio Twitter identity I immediately started searching to see artists and galleries. I was surprised by the number of Art galleries around the world that had already adopted “tweeting” as part of their daily commerce and I was determined to make the most of it. Within 15 minutes of signing up and posting some links to my work I was contacted by @flysupes, co-owner of @eastvillagebooks (sadly no longer with us). Within a day I’d managed to get a show with them. Since that time I’ve gotten in touch with a number of artists and galleries, and made a few sales. The most recent of which was the sale of a t-shirt I created for @LVGreenfield on the Artist-community site, Redbubble. I don’t know if this is common, but I’d say the few minutes it took me to sign up was well worth it.

I know I’ve posted about Twitter before, and for those of you who would say Twitter is silly and full of random blab… well, you’re right. But then again so’s TV and you don’t see any shortage of people lining up to advertise themselves and their products on it. I choose to use it as a tool for marketing my work and for spouting random brain droppings… which I like to call “wisdom”. As with anything, your mileage may vary.

Until next time

Cheers,

R

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This week I’ve got some thoughts on the Law of Gravity and the nature of Failure. Long story short: My youngest son fell off his bike, knocked out a couple of his front teeth and chipped a couple others. Thankfully they were baby-teeth and he was otherwise uninjured. The reason I bring this up is that his reaction to it once he’d recovered from the initial shock both surprised and impressed me. The very next day he was wearing his injury like a merit badge proudly showing his dental trainwreck to anyone brave enough to look. He’s impatient to get back on the bike and ride again. Perhaps this time he’ll keep both hands on the handlebars.

I’ve always told my kids that you learn and grow through your failures. Success is nice and it keeps you going, but you never learn so much as when you crash and burn. I beamed with pride at his willingness to put his fear aside, pick himself up and jump back in the saddle. It’s a lesson many people forget as they get older and their failures become, in some instances, less traumatic. The great success stories of our world are typically this: a series of failures experienced by a person with dogged determination and a clear vision of what they want out of Life. I know this sounds like so much motivational claptrap and I suppose it is, but that doesn’t make it any less true. I’ve failed many times. Sometimes it gets me down, but the difference is that it never keeps me down. I’ve been called bull-headed, stubborn, and downright dumb, but I don’t let it stop me. Sometimes you just have to be dumb enough to keep going down your own road despite all the evidence telling you to stop… to turn back… take an easier route. I don’t think that means that you should be unwilling to change. You never know where your path will lead you and I think you have to be open to that.

That’s why I’m calling this latest piece, “That First Step” (not quite finished). The image shows a figure carrying a parcel of some sort poised to take a step off a curb and into the street while a car approaches and a background figure (presumably) looks on. You can’t tell if the figure has the crossing light or if they’re stepping into oncoming traffic while looking the wrong way. I’ll let you draw your own conclusions. For me the painting is symbolic of a change in my work that embodies some of my inner fear of failure and my fear of people being witness to them. Although these days when I make a major blunder in public I tend to take a bow instead of get flustered. It’s more fun that way and it keeps people guessing. I’ve put my fear aside and have taken steps to get back on the saddle I fell off of some years ago…

Take a moment today to reflect on the things you’ve really screwed up. Take another moment to celebrate them, take the lessons you need to learn from them, and let them go. Then… take that first step.

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Dissatisfaction comes in waves. That’s been my experience at least. You’ll wake up one day and find it everywhere: in your car, your government, your wardrobe, your breakfast cereal, your job, etc, etc, ad nauseum. We all feel this way from time to time. When the wave comes it dominates your field of vision. I think it’s the subconscious’ way telling you that you need to make a change in your life or that you’ve lost track of your desired direction. Dissatisfied people are the ones the effect change on themselves and the world around them… if they’re inclined to answer the call. The rest let it pass… push it down… look in the mirror and shrug… cling to the safety of a comfortable, quiet existance. “Oh well…” is the battle cry of successive generations of our species.

If you can’t tell I’ve been ruminating. It’s good tho. To avoid going on a rant I’ll say that while I don’t currently feel the wave upon me I have recently and have been working on making the kind of changes that will effect the course of my existence. I’ve started spending my mornings saying “Thank You” for everything I can think of. While this may sound a little like “The Secret” it isn’t. I’m merely trying to start my day with a reminder of why I do what I do. It helps put things in perspective and helps keep me thinking about ways to move forward. It’s the dissatisfaction that keeps me acting upon those thoughts.

That being said I’ve started submitting my work to some galleries and have already received one favorable response. I’m finally acting on my desire to teach. Teaching was one of the things I had in mind when I started on at UNI. Sadly I don’t have the credentials to teach at a university or in a public school (totally my own fault), but I have the experience which is, to me, far more important than a piece of paper I paid to get. I’m putting together a couple of class proposals for the Des Moines Social Club. I’d love to teach oil painting, but drawing may be a better way to start. It’s less messy, less expensive, and requires less hardware (ie: easels, solvents, cleaning facilities). Plus I think people should be well-grounded in drawing basics before they get involved in painting. I’m a little traditional in that sense, but I think a good artist needs a good foundation. Perhaps in the process of working my way though this I can think of a way to make a course in painting work.

Lastly I’ve been rethinking the direction of my work. I’ve posted my thoughts on this subject before. I feel like I’m turning a corner in what I want to say with my paintings. I’ve touched on some of these ideas in other ways in other works, but I’m taking new directions in terms of composition, use of color, and overall tone. I’ve been getting back to my roots looking to artists I haven’t thought about in a while like Donald Sultan, Alberto Giacometti and Wolf Kahn.

Have you been feeling the pang of dissatisfaction in your own life? If so what are you doing about it?

Until next time

Cheers,

R

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The reasoning behind the title is this: I keep pushing to stay ahead of the curve. Not THEE Curve, but one of my own design. I try to paint five nights per week. I try to keep up with my blog. I try to keep up with my housework, kids, etc, etc, etc. Some nights (like last night) you try to play Catch-Up and just wind up falling asleep on the couch with your laptop open, half a blog written in gibberish, and the DVD you were watching spinning quietly away having returned to its main menu. In the interest of giving myself a break… it was a busy day. There’s a point in a every very busy day where your efforts to keep up begin delivering ever-diminishing returns. At that point it’s best to listen to your body and get some rest. Frankly I don’t like it. I always feel like there’s so much more I could be doing if only I didn’t need to sleep…

Perhaps it’s because of the little pangs of guilt I get from not staying abreast of all the things I think I should be doing. So in the continued interest of giving myself a break I’ll celebrate a little success. I managed to finish my latest commissioned piece. I’m calling it “Capital in Crimson”. It was commissioned to be a mate to “Untitled in Red and Gold”. Not as snazzy as it’s sibling’s title, but then again I never was much for names. I have managed to keep up with my mini-paintings and charcoal. I’ve also started a new piece (not pictured). Keeping with my goal of bringing the characters in my work more into the forefront a large figure dominates the space. I’ve got an idea in my head of where I want to go and this new one isn’t quite there. It feels kind of like I’m taking baby steps. That’s OK though. I’m in no hurry and my goal isn’t and end… just a mile-marker.

To wrap up I’d like to say a quick Thank You to the Ankeny Art Center, Brent Houzenga, and all of the other artists in the group show I had the honor of being included with called, Diversify Your Bonds last Friday. The reception was very well attended and the wide variety of Art on display was very refreshing. As always the photography of my friend, Jason Scott Hoffman, and the painting by Jeff Bonker were among the stand-outs. If you haven’t seen their work… You should.

Until next time…

Cheers,

R

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As the title may suggest I’ve been doing some thinking lately. I think about my work and how it relates to me. About how it relates to other Art and Artists. About how, if at all, it’s relevant.

I think it’s healthy for a person to question themselves. If I do it every now and then it means I’m still sane more or less. It also means I still care about what I’m doing. I spend a fair amount of time looking at other Artists’ work and reading about their processes and personal struggles, etc. It grounds me and presents me with other ways of looking at things. Lately that’s translated into looking at my own work differently. This Summer has been key I think in helping to direct me towards where I want to go. I think there needs to be a bit of a change in the way I do things. Not just in respect to my work. I’m needing to take a more proactive approach to my career and prepare to let go of some of the safe life I’ve been leading. I’m sure there are a lot of people who would say the same. And many more who would say that it’s a bad idea because of… whatever. There are always heaping piles of reason you shouldn’t do something, but there only needs to be one reason why you should. Of course now that I’ve gone and said that in a pseudo-public forum it means I have to own up to it.

For me I think that means two things: 1) I need to start expanding and diversifying my studio time. Working towards that I’ve started including some time each night to work on something small like a charcoal (see the last posting) or, like last night, a small one-session painting. I’m thinking the figures are going to become more prominent. I’ll go on about why more at some time in the future. 2) I need to start submitting my work. I’ve been very fortunate in the realm of exposure this year, but to be honest I haven’t submitted work to a gallery in at least a year. I could say a hundred things about being busy, blah blah blah, but excuses are really just that in the end and you gain nothing by them.
I’ll hang it up for now and leave you with a pic of my little single-serving painting. I wouldn’t say it’s good, but it’s a start. Plus I only worked on it for 15 minutes… give me a break.

Cheers,

R

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So I busted out the charcoals again. I love my charcoals almost as much as I love my Sharpies and I need to bring them out more often. I feel like they help me to get back to basics. Their simple nature belies their versatility. You can create all sorts of values and textures.. lighting effects. There’s really no end to what you can accomplish with them. Plus their simple, monochromatic nature forces you to think in the most basic terms of light vs dark. The eternal push and pull.

So.. i busted them out to give myself a little mental refresher. I’ve been painting a lot lately. Working on the same projects. I’ve got three in the works and they’re all of Des Moines. I needed to start incorporating some variation to my studio sessions for fear I was going to get burnt out on painting. I started with some quick studies to loosen up. We used to do that sort of thing at the beginning of every drawing class I took at UNI. We’d begin every studio class with 10-15 minutes of “gesture drawings”. That means we’d get volunteers from the class to pose and we’d do several 1-2 minute drawings to loosen up. Like stretching your muscles before a workout. I haven’t quite gone back into doing that, but I did grab some photos I’ve been considering and drew up some 15minute sketches. Not only is this a good exercise to get you relaxed and in the right frame of mind, but it’s a good way to play with variations of composition, texture, and line in a non-committal sort of way.

I made the decision to start working with my charcoals again for another reason. While working on GuideOne Interactive Mural project I’d been doing a lot of sketches and studies. I also produced a number of very nice-looking charcoal pieces. Also I’ve been talking with my friend, Brent Houzenga who’s been making a foray into working in ballpoint pen (another personal favorite drawing tool). It inspired me to start creating more and adding them to my inventory of sale-able works. I love the way a good charcoal piece looks when it’s framed up nicely They’re so simple and direct. Plus I can create a finished piece in hours instead of weeks. The immediacy is cathartic. Not to mention it gives me more work to offer in the long run.

Until next time

Cheers,

R

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Because I can be a little slow on the uptake it dawned on me that it’d been over a week since I posted last. I’m relatively sure that life as we know it will continue on should I be a little remiss in my writing, but from the standpoint of someone who’s trying to maintain some semblance of personal discipline it means I’m slackin’.

I have been keeping up on my painting at least. I’m working on this commissioned portrait of Des Moines with a primary focus on the state capital building. It’s coming along nicely. I’m working on making it go with another piece of mine they purchased without making it look like they’re necessarily a matched pair. In short both pieces should stand equally well on their own. I’ve been spending time trying to match hues to a certain extent. The balance of the composition had to be complimentary without being a mirror image. The perspectives and scales similar, but not identical. It’s involved a lot of shifting things around. There will be more. I need to keep it loose to match the other stylistically so I’m setting a due date. I think two weeks from today is more than fair. I’m hoping to have it finished before then.

Now for something completely different:

1) Got a great phonecall last week. A gentleman called me asking about purchasing two of the paintings hanging at B&N. Got the pieces back from the scanner today and will deliver them this weekend. Yay!

2) Aforementioned “scanner” informed me today that not only can they do giclee prints (that’s ok because Chrissy over at ArtDive does those for me), but they do canvas prints as well. I’ve had some inquiries about those recently and it’s tres cool to find someone here in town that can do them. I’ve seen some sample prints and they look fantastic. That simplifies things quite a bit and reduces my costs which allows me to take the price down. Christmas IS just around the corner ya know.
Just aaaaah-throwin’ that out there.

Until next time (less than a week from now)

Cheers,

R

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Although I do have some updated shots of my current works in progress I thought I’d take a break from blathering on about myself and put someone else in the spotlight for a change.
When I first started creating an on-line presence for myself and my work I was amazed by the wondrous variety of Art out there… much of which is never seen by a larger audience. I made contacts with a number of amazingly talented artists who were also trying to carve out a niche for themselves. One of those artists was David Vanderpool.

David’s pencil drawings are, put simply, astounding. His sensitivity and attention to detail were in such contrast to my own work that I was immediately drawn to them. When we first started corresponding he was working as a graphic designer/illustrator for a publication. His aspirations were much higher however. Over the last few years he’s put in a lot of time and effort towards making his Art a career outside the magazine/newspaper industry. His efforts paid off to some degree this year in the form of a beautiful book featuring his drawings and methods. You can check out and purchase his book here (http://www.lulu.com/content/4394828). His love of paper and pencil help to keep an old and largely ignored Art form alive.

I’ll leave you with a few pics of some of my favorites from David’s portfolio…

Until next time…

Cheers,

R

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Last night was one of those nights where everything seemed OK, but I just couldn’t get into the proper frame of mind. I have a number of projects on my plate at the moment. I’ve got a new commissioned piece, some varnishing for a customer, and three new paintings in-progress. Maybe I’m thinking about all of them too much. Letting myself feel overwhelmed. A little can go a long way when you’re juggling a day-job, two kids, and a nocturnal career. Not to mention my housing situation. Long story there… I’ll spare you.

Some nights though you have to put it all down and direct your energies to the more mundane tasks that studio work can provide like cleaning brushes, re-setting the palette, sweeping. AND in my case spider relocation. I don’t mind them in my studio (they, along with my cat, eat some of the more irritating basement-dwelling pests), but they’ve got to stay off my work areas.
I caught up on the varnishing and then got to work on the rest. There’s a very sick part of me that actually enjoys the act of cleaning. I like the feeling of clearing the dust and cobwebs… of cleaning the gunk out of my brushes. I especially enjoy sweeping. I find it very therapeutic. Granted if you were to visit my studio on your first glance you’d have no idea that I ever cleaned it at all the way things get piled up.

I have a system… it works for me.

In a rare display of restraint I’ll refrain from babbling on too much longer and get to the pics. These are shots of one of the new pieces I’ve been working on plus a couple from the commissioned painting I’ve recently started (in pencil).

Until next time…

Cheers,

R

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