A New Painting and Style

Documenting a Mistake...

This painting came about from what I would consider something of a mistake. I was working on a new piece in a new style with new materials. There is always a learning process that goes on when you try something new. I am in the process of trying some new things in my art and I had some left over paint, acrylic paint specifically. What you are looking at is based on an effort the create something from paint that I did not want to waste. You can see it is a warm palette and it is very different from what I usually do. 

Personally, I love abstract art and it really fascinates me and captures my attention. When I was an undergraduate I had the chance to study some of the color field painters and how they approached their work. It reminded me of landscapes, but abstract ones. I had the opportunity to visit the SFMOMA a couple of years ago and had the full effect of some of the color field work. While this particular work is not very big, it could be more powerful if I did make it bigger. 

One of the deliberate departures from a true color field style is the fact that there are some definite references to landscape shapes. I titled this piece "Diagonal Sunrise." Strong diagonals indicate motion, and I really wanted to have the feel of some movement in this painting, so I created some shapes and lines that would give the viewer a feel of a dynamic landscape. 

Abstraction and Landscape

It is exciting to move in new directions, and this represents part of a few new directions. I guess you could say it is like being an explorer. I am discovering new things and seeing different things that I like. One of my challenges is to make enough time in my schedule to try new things and complete new projects, but this is a good challenge and the results are going well. 

As I move forward I will be sharing my progress and exciting products. I feel like August is going to be one of those really big art months for me and my family. We have two shows in September and many other possibilities from here to the end of the calendar year. Abstract landscapes in this style feels like a good move, among others, to take. A lot of art is based on feelings and intuition. It is hard to explain, but I am going to continue to push the possibilities of this new direction. The great thing is that it was totally unexpected. It is amazing how mistakes can work in someone's favor!

Thanks for reading and stay tuned!

-Jesse

#brownartworks

#artforeveryone

Another Image for "Water an Stone"

Here is another image for my Water and Stone series. I took this at the same time as the last one I posted. I was asked how do I find images like this. I thought it was a good question. What I would say is that I look for the little things that catch my eye. I really like the way the light reflects off the water here. Water has that amazing ability to reflect light in the most beautiful ways. It does not take anything fancy to capture that image. It just takes being observant and being the right place at the right time. Of course, having some sort of a camera is useful as well!!

Please keep an lookout for this developing series. While I have worked on it for awhile, I have to process it and put it into a cohesive presentation. It will be mostly completely new to most people when I display it. I am excited about it and I hope other people will enjoy it as well. Details about it and other things will be posted in a newsletter that should be published by the end of this week. If you have signed up for it and have been waiting, well it is almost here! If you have not, maybe you would like to! Email me at brownartworks@gmail.com or leave a comment here and I will be sure to add you to the list. The newsletter will come out 1-2 times per month. It would not be sent more than once every two weeks. 

Thanks for following and reading and enjoy the image. New galleries will be posted and other galleries will have work added to them very soon!!

-Jesse :-)

#brownartworks

#artforeveryone

Water and Stone: A Continuing Series

One of the things that I have to constantly do is make art when I can, where I can. This summer has seen an extraordinary amount of tasks for me to do. We have had visitors, chores to do, life decisions to make, and a number of other things that have been going on. So, the question comes up, how do I make art when there is so much to do? Well, one thing I can do is just make art when I can. I was out with my family this morning at the beach I had my camera phone. The great thing about the advent of camera phones and digital photography is that everybody has the potential to be a photographer on some level. While I would say I do photography, I am not one who emphasizes photography in my work as much as the other mediums, but the potential is always there to use it. 

A couple of years ago I started a series called "Water and Stone." I continue to be fascinated with these two concepts and how they can interrelate to each other. You could say this is a continuation in that series. Water is everywhere around us, but with this drought and global warming, we are forced to look at it in different ways. It is beautiful in so many forms, but it can cause untold damage as was seen with Hurricane Katrina. Water can flow over and around objects, as we know, while at the same time it can wear away the greatest stone formations and breakdown so many other elements. 

What caught my attention about the water this particular morning was the way it moved and flowed through the shapes left in the sand by the receding tide from earlier in the day. You can see the flow of the water as it carved out its path in the sand as it divided the unique, undulating ridges left by the receding waters from before. On top of that, the play of light and shadow from the early morning sun on the sand created this repeating pattern that contrasted starkly with the water. 

It comes back to the simultaneous coexistence of opposites. This theme of water and stone really is about the presence of polar opposites at the same time. You have the sand, which is nothing but rock pulverized to the point of becoming sand. There is the water which flows over and through the sand. If you stop and think about it, water is soft and flowing while rock is hard and immovable, but here the water continues to break it down, without regard to the strength of its molecular nature. 

Moving forward, I will need to process the work I have completed with respect to this series so it can flow in a cohesive order. Please stay tuned to my gallery for updates on this series and more. There is going to be a lot of work coming up, so keep looking and thanks for reading!

-Jesse

#brownartworks

#artforeveryone

Work in Progress

So, as you may have been noticing, this summer has seen a definite increase in blog activity, as well as art production, but it is rarely at a pace that is fast enough for me. One of the challenges in being a working artist, a productive artist, is finding enough time and energy to do all that you need to in order to keep up with everything you want to achieve. 

This particular piece is in progress, that would explain the different look of the photo posted. However, I feel that it is important to include people in the process with I create my work. Kiyomi, of http://kiyomimusic.com/ - she keeps a very well developed blog and talks about a lot of different aspects of her creative process. I thought about this and felt that I should be keeping a better record of my processes and thinking patterns as I make art. 

This particular piece represents the beginning of a shift in my work. I have been doing a lot of work in color pens and ball point pen, with the occasional accent of watercolor. I am going to start moving towards different materials and media, as well as a shift in content as well. Although, the content here is in line with what I have been doing lately. See the image below for a comparison to a recent image. 

The shift here starts with the use of Prismacolor color pencils. There are a lot of products made by Prismacolor, but these pencils have a type of oil base for them and give them the unique look at that you see in the picture. If you want to find out more about the pencils, look here. Prismacolor pencils are incredibly useful and are used a great deal by myself and my family in the creation of our art. Anytime you make a shift in media and materials, there is an adjustment period. The adjustments may be small or big, but there are adjustments all the same. I have continued with the subconscious imagery that has been present in much of my work lately, but ideas have come that move me back to a direction that is more architectural. I explored this type of subject years ago, and here and there in the recent past. However, I feel that this current shift will become more prevalent as I have the chance to work with it. 

Please keep in touch and look for this current completed work and for the new work in the new direction. There is no news about about upcoming shows, other than that September will be big and the date of September 27 is still in effect for us. We will be posting online galleries for both shows in September. Thanks for reading and keep up with us!

-Jesse Brown

A New Drawing on my way to 50!

As you can see, I am continuing forward with my quest to finish 50 new pieces by September 1. Sometimes these pieces really flow and are easy, and other times it does not flow so well. What I have discovered over the course of time in my art career is that art is very peculiar. You can try to break it down so it is more logical, more methodical, and makes sense. However, sometimes it is just so much easier to just go with your feelings and your instincts. This particular drawing felt right. It was inspired by one that I sold in October of last year. However, with this one, I created a stronger diagonal flow that goes from the top left corner to the bottom right corner. But the other thing that flows too is the color. My color is not logical, it is emotional. Sometimes the color flow, as I spoke about above. Other times, the colors are more...jumbled. In those pieces I usually don't share so much. I think part of that reason, though, is because my feelings are inconsistent and my flow is consistent. Chaotic feelings can lead to inconsistent coloring for me. However, for this one, I am quite happy with the result and they way it flows all the way around. I was not sure if it was done at first, but then I finally decided it was. 

I imagine that some of you may be wondering about the random number of 50. What is 50 about? I may have mentioned it before, but let me get a bit more into it. First, we have a few big shows coming up in the fall, so I want to have at least 50 put together by the time September 1st rolls around because the fall can get very busy and, like it or not, it takes time for me to organize shows and events. It takes time away from making art. Even this summer I am somewhat distracted since I am doing a lot of research for the potential opening of our own gallery. However, a lot has to happen before that can be done, and the first ting that is going to happen is a show in September and some art festivals later in the fall. So, there are going to be a lot of opportunities to see our family's art. Please stay tuned for the announcement of the time and place of our one day September show. 

This current series, the surreal/cubist series that I have been focusing on, will start slowing down soon. I have an idea for a new series and new direction. That is not to say I will stop this current series/style entirely, but sometimes it is good to change and make a shift, at least for a little while. Even so, it is not a completely new shift. If all goes as I am planning, (in art, we can change our minds so quickly about what we feel like focusing on), I am going to move more in an architectural/landscape direction. Beyond that, it is hard to say for sure what it will look like. 

I am going to  be creating a gallery specific to my work, so a retrospective view can be taken in. You will see it in the menu bar at the top of the blog. 

Thanks for reading and following and there will be more to come soon from me. Stay tuned! Thanks for reading!

-Jesse

#artforeveryone

#brownartworks