The Day's Work - Paintings of C. Litka: June 2011

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Summer Street Study 2

I tried making this scene into a river painting, but it seemed pretty boring. Pure wilderness doesn't thrill me: I like the well worn interface between people and nature (or rather the rest of nature), like these street scenes with front yards overgrown with trees.

12x16" 30x40cm acrylic on hardboard

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Creekline Study Revised

Yesterday's painting was lame, but I did like the colors so I went back and repainted most, but not all of it. Hopefully this one won't turn lame overnight.

12x16" 30x40cm acrylic on hardboard

Monday, June 20, 2011

Creekline Study

A return to an old standby, the willow tree. Now that I'm riding my bike again, I ride past a line of willows early in the morning and in the evening, if not a noon as well and for some reason I find them very paintable. I don't actually paint from life, the mosquitoes would eat me alive if I tried, but I do try to remember the impressions they make on me each day.

12x16" 30x40cm acrylic on hardboard

Thursday, June 16, 2011

Day's End Along Berry Creek

Another improvised piece - I don't really know what I want to paint, and I'm using the good days to put off trying to find something. But yesterday was a rainy day so I had no excuses. This piece's claim to fame is that I used a much smaller brush than I normally would, and it was a round one! Living close to the edge.

18x24" 45x60cm acrylic on hardboard

Friday, June 10, 2011

Summer Street Study

I haven't been neglecting this blog, I've been neglecting painting. Actually I was on vacation for several weeks, and I've taken a week or more to recover. I'd really like to figure out some new place to paint, but as you see, I haven't yet. Oh well.

12x16" 30x40cm acrylic on hardboard

What I'm Up To

I think artist’s statements are largely needless. Paintings speak for themselves. And yet, here I am set to rattle on about my approach to painting. Now, if you're of the same opinion as I claim to be, skip this and enjoy the paintings, but if you want a hint as to what I’m trying to do, here’s the words.

I approach painting via two different roads that arrive at the same place. The first is that I paint only “studies” or sketches. Back in the day artists painted quick studies to get the colors and features down to use as a guide to paint a finished studio painting. Funny thing is of the paintings I’ve seen together with their studies, I’ve always preferred the loose and spontaneous studies over the stiff and polished finished painting. For that reason I’ve chosen to paint only studies.

My second approach to painting is inspired by a quote from the writer, Raymond Chandler: “I guess maybe there are two types of writers, writers who write stories and writers who write writing.” He considered himself of one of the latter, as do I which is to say; writers who’s words are entertaining in and of themselves, independent of the story. Perhaps painters could be divided the same way: Painters who paint pictures and painters who paint paintings. While I don’t consider one type superior to the other, I aim to be a painter of paintings. I want to paint paintings that capture a moment, inspire or recall a memory or mood, but which, viewed longer or closer, or with one's glasses on, prove to be clearly paintings: paint brushed into shapes on a surface. That these mere shapes can create an impression they’re something else, for a moment, or at a distance is the independent interest I would like my paintings to possess, not because they realistically reproduce branches, or water or what ever, but because they don’t. What I don't want to paint is places or post card scenes, even though landscape are the medium which I use for my painting.

The Day's Work - Paintings of C. Litka