William Dyce Pegwell Bay, Kent - a Recollection of October 5th 1858

detail

  William Dyce

Pegwell Bay, Kent - a Recollection of October 5th 1858

25" x 35" 63 × 89 cm

oil on canvas - Tate Britain 

The interpretation in this video really hits home for me. I have always thought that there was something lovely about making art that depicts your family and the passage of time. I love the sense of quietude and contemplation as these people take time out of there daily life to be in relationship with nature and each other. This piece is like a time capsule that will continue to speak to us about the universal experience of humanity for centuries to come.

Figurative images using props or settings to deepen the narrative.

I've been thinking a lot about figurative portraiture for years now. The biggest issue seems to be, how does the artist make the portrait of a stranger relevant to the audience.

One approach I have seen that seems effective is to make the painting about something more then the rendering of the individual, if the artist can tell a story through the use of setting and props, then the experience for the viewer immediately deepens.

I've compiled a list here of paintings in which the artist did just that in a manner that inspires me. My next step is to try to put that inspiration into action. This is really an issue of having forethought and coordination.

It is hard to schedule a model and just throw random objects and clothing at them and have it turn out interesting, especially if in my case, one shares the cost of the model with other artists, and therefore there is an extra level of coordination needed to create a sense of vision.  

Working with others however can also be a strength, because if an idea is come up with ahead of time, then everyone can do their part to contribute props and coordinate with models.

It would be fun to pick a photo or painting ahead of time and decide as a group to gather the necessary materials to create an updated version of it.

William Merritt Chase

George Hendrik Breitner

Peder Severin

Robert Riggs

Joachim Beukelaer

Akseli Gallen Kallela

Alexei Petrovich

Arkady Aleksandrovich Plastov

Bo Bartlett

Grigory Chainikov

Charles Webster Hawthorne

 Charles Webster Hawthorne

Johannes Vermeer

Evgenia Petrovna Antipova

Frederic Lord Leighton

Sergei Grigoriev

Charles Webster Hawthorne

Laurits Andersen Ring

Laurits Andersen Ring

Laurits Andersen Ring

Laurits Andersen Ring

Richard Edward Miller

Eduard Manet

Eduard Manet

Eduard Manet

Eduard Manet

Eduard Manet

Eduard Manet

Eduard Manet

Marie Bashkirtseff

Artist Unknown

Richard Maury

Rick Beerhorst

Robert Riggs

Sturtevant J Hamblin

Alexandra Tokareva

Albin Veselka

William Stott of Oldham

Akseli Gallen Kallela

 

Albert Edelfelt

 

Charles Courtney Curran

Alfred Stevens

 Akseli Gallen Kallela

Gari Melcher

Jules Bastien Lepage

dennisgeden

 David Bates

David Bates

I'm really curious to hear what you all do to give your model a sense of place and time. It feels like a lot of extra work to make it happen, and I am only just getting going with this. Feels like discussing it with others can help me to feel more willing to take this approach on. So what are your thoughts?