Smoked Chub..snack Incidental

[LarrySeiler]

Continuing on with my smoked chubs theme, I pulled some of the flaky meat off, one morsel sitting by itself...my advanced art students voicing some lack of appreciation for the smell... :evil: :D

5" x 7" oil...Hansen pumice recipe for gesso...

http://www.wetcanvas.com/Community/images/23-Feb-2006/532-eatenchubwc.jpg

okay...this may shew itself quit different from my work, as I wanted to experiment with a bit more contemporary feel...allowing the tail to disappear into obscurity, hopefully working. The color also came as I squinted at the chub for quite awhile and sensed some varieties of blues in the shadows...

my reference-

http://www.wetcanvas.com/Community/images/23-Feb-2006/532-eatenchub_ref.jpg

as I said...I sensed blues, then toned my panel accordingly...

http://www.wetcanvas.com/Community/images/23-Feb-2006/532-eatenchub_tone.jpg

I then used a bit of brown darker value to lightly sketch with a bristle round the placement of the chub...then tried to be bold in laying down my first colors seen in the reflection of the chub's head...

http://www.wetcanvas.com/Community/images/23-Feb-2006/532-eatenchub_step1.jpg

next...I began to weave color into the background to develop a rhythm of color in the flesh of the chub, and cool colors into the chub to have some continuity with the shadowy blues...

http://www.wetcanvas.com/Community/images/23-Feb-2006/532-eatenchub_step2.jpg

this brings us to the last image...a closeup of the head in the finished study...
http://www.wetcanvas.com/Community/images/23-Feb-2006/532-eatenchub_closeup2.jpg

I almost sound apologetic, listening to myself...but I was having fun with the color stepping across the optical color line itself for more aesthetic punch. With that in mind...I'd appreciate your comments & thoughts...

[Rose Queen]

It certainly looks better than it probably smelled! :lol: As usual, you've taken the mundane subject and elevated it to something special, which is the essence of art, is it not?

[LarrySeiler]

thanks Rose...I'm tryin'...certainly trying... :D

[mnpainter]

Reminds me of delicious Smoked Slamon right from Lake Superior!!!!!!!!

Ben

[JamieWG]

Aaaah, I see we've moved from warms to cools. :) I like the disappearing tail trick, Larry. I think these incidentals lend themselves to experimentation and a degree of playfulness.

Jamie

[brianc]

Once again your background and the colors you've found in the chub are so rich and fun to look at. Much nicer than I think I'd have seen in the dried brown colors in the reference photo. I think the disappearing tail works. This will be a nice companion to a set of other incidentals.

[LarrySeiler]

thanks Ben, Jamie and Brian...appreciate the look/see and comments...
Hhmm...interesting Jamie warm to cools...

I think if I'm sensing a pattern with what I'm doing at this point it is that my shadows are setting the key for the background color or undertoning I'll do. Squinting my eyes, not looking directly at the shadows but peripherally and sensing what dominant colors and temperatures I feel there, more or less gives me my game plan.

In a small painting format as these, the shadows of the object work so well to tie it in with background and allow some of that color to come thru in various places in the subject itself.

[Wayne Gaudon]

Nice work .. Your talk of smell reminds me of the expression on my wife's face yesterday. I've been off all week and fishing every day. I was cleaning the fish and had a pile of fish eyes in the corner of my cutting board. I gouge them out and save them to use as chum and or bait but I must admit it looks rather crude to see a pile of fish eyes. I can't image them selling as a painting. LOL

[LarrySeiler]

I'll warn you...this is for Wayne, if you have a weak stomach, don't read...
:D
- - -

egads Wayne...hahhaa

that reminds me of a time I and my wife lived for a number of months with some hobby farmers while in transition...
I was invited to help the farmer engage in what he called a "meeting of the minds"

It was a galvanized cone shape nailed to a post, the large end up, and a smaller opening at the bottom. The "meeting of the minds" was catching chickens, holding their feet and slowly lowering them into the cone.

You'd hear this peck pecking of their beaks, scratching of their feet as you let go, but eventually curosity would get the best of them and they'd poke their heads out of the bottom to take a look around. When they did, my friend was at the ready with a hatchet, and "WHOP!" their head with blinking eyes would meet a pile of other blinking eyes!!! :eek:

it was the craziest thing...but, a reality of life and daily subsistence.

also probably not an ideal painting...

[Wayne Gaudon]

LOL ..
Life has some strange but memorable moments, doesn't it? If we keep sharing these moments we're going to be given mittens to type with.

Later

[Katherine T]

Thanks for the warning Larry - but I think maybe you and Wayne need a forum all of your own for the blood and gore stories! (Oh - the new smilies don't have one for "throwing up"! :p)

Back to the painting!

I really like the colours in this one Larry - maybe you should do some more fish and their lovely shiny luminescent scales.

[JamieWG]

LOL ..
Life has some strange but memorable moments, doesn't it? If we keep sharing these moments we're going to be given mittens to type with.

Later

Perhaps you two need Kerri to design a new icon. You could display it as a warning on your threads, like the beloved butt icon.... A dead fish, perhaps? Skull and crossbones? :D

Jamie

[Katherine T]

I think we need a new STINKY icon as well!

[LarrySeiler]

I think we need a new STINKY icon as well!

I like that...perhaps a tiny cartoon skunk! :D

[pameladallaire]

smoked chubs theme, hmmm. I believe you are the first artist I know of to admit having that theme. :lol: It's in my favourite colours so you won't find any critisism from me. The brushwork gives it away as yours though Larry. :D I like it.

[LarrySeiler]

thanks Pamela...it was fun to put jovial colors to a stinky subject. That in and of itself should present some visual tension!!! :D