The process, for me, is as rewarding as seeing the finished artwork. Working on the design of a piece, keeping the harmony of colors all the while enjoying the act of creation. Some subjects demand more of me. Figurative pieces require a harmony between the figure and the environment it's in, whether a cow in a field or a man working as a bartender. It's that challenge that keep my interest high.
Working from live models is an advantage. Being able to take a closer look at a hand, or seeing the light on a hip change as the model readjusts for comfort. I've worked from live models for years, both human and non-human. Drawing horses of different breeds and cattle, all the while learning the differences from the farmers and ranchers as I drew them.
Girls reading have graced many of my canvases. Their relaxing or studying has interested me for years. They share the knowledge they gain from textbooks or relate the interesting stories. Where they choose to do their reading completes the artwork. Most times the scenes are from memories I have of family and neighbors reading. Books are a big thing with my family. Library cards were used so much they were oval. My brother took me every Saturday with him to the library. I sat on the floor in the art book section going through every book I could reach before the librarian caught me. Nudes in the books were not for young ones she said. Every nude was stamped " Aurora Library " in big red letters. Every Christmas books are given as gifts, not one or two, but dozens. My sister, Pat, kept the local bookstores in the black for years.
I'm a magazine man myself, Newsweek, Time Magazine, US News, all the art magazines out there. So it's natural for me to pose the models with book or magazines. Remembering a cousin reading in a hammock drives me to take a model out to my friend Ann's house to place them in that hammock in the middle of Ann's wonderful garden. Memories from these trips to Ann's garden allows me to do summer garden scenes in my tiny studio during these cold, icy winter days.
