Art, Nature & Soul #72

Impasto is a technique used in painting, where paint is laid on an area of the surface thickly, usually thick enough that the brush or painting-knife strokes are visible. Paint can also be mixed right on the canvas. When dry, impasto provides texture; the paint appears to be coming out of the canvas...2 favorites of mine. Both van Gogh & Pollock, as well as Rembrandt are known for this technique...with only the highest quality materials I utilize this almost sculpting technique, impasto, in my paintings, as well. This, plus my palette knife & sgraffito help to create an added sense of depth & motion.

While its difficult to photograph and show the texture, both of these figurative pieces utilize impasto as I paint the painting. The layers & texture adds to the complexity & dynamics of the completed piece. The edges are shifting, allowing the viewer to complete the forms insisting they use their imagination. Instead of telling you what to see I’m asking , how do you see and fit into this scene. I love color and typically my palette shifts from a muted or tonal to colorist or sometimes pastel glow, according to the actual types of light within the space. These shifting qualities amplify the settings of my more representational artworks, certainly, and still get tweaked & adjusted in my abstracts too, according to the story being told.

These 3 have a very special place in my heart & psyche. The boy, is Henry my great nephew. He developed Diabetes when he was 4-5 years old. The older dog is Sunshine, my fathers dog who he recently sent to live with them, as he is no longer able to physically & mentally care for her, for health reasons. He then sent the pup to them to be trained as a therapy dog, Betty, named after the late Betty White , is a quick learner and the trainers are impressed by her intelligence at the task at hand. Which is to sense & alert us when Henry’s blood sugars are too high or has fallen to low. Together they are Real American Hero’s.

Every face & each piece tells a story & are oil on canvas. If you have a story that needs to be told and commemorated, like how I tell it, contact me, I love to do commissioned art works. These 2 received lots of praise on the social media circuits and were likened to van Gogh & Wyeth’s work, to which I humbly accepted, with a blush.

As always your questions & comments are welcome,

Richard

‘Real American Hero’s’ 20”x24” oil

'Breakfast's Ready' 24"x20" oil

Detail

Art, Nature & Soul #25

En plein air is the act of painting outdoors, it literally translates, as such. But not only, it's also an approach, a matter-of-factness of impression & an expression of directness. Here's a study, I just completed from a photo.

It’s a rarity that I have time to paint outdoors with the busy life and commitments I have. But, I do spend a fair amount of time walking with the pups, twice a day, most everyday. It’s meditative, an opportunity to take all of natures beauty in, and observe it’s ever changing cycles in their abundance. Walking that much, usually around sunrise and sunset, is an opportunity to observe and I remember when I first discovered when the leaves on trees in the fall first begin to change colors. Simply, it’s where first light falls on them and day after day you can see it as the light angle changes over weeks, a month as we move closer to winter.

My eye captures the first idea of the scene. Most often I have my camera with me to capture another interpretation. Then I begin to interpret yet another at the easel, choosing a color palette & painting the painting. Most often I’m not trying to copy nature but rather express my interpretation of it. The colors are choosen to give the atmosphere I’m trying to convey. The shapes and form are often exagerated to give emphasis to the more emotive aspects of nature. Most of the time they are completed ‘Alla Prima’ (in one sitting) and sometimes going back, a day or two latter to tweek the details, thus the medium is in part the message.

Anyone who knows me, knows I love a walk on the beach with the pups and so it was I captured a fleeting moment of joy & bliss, in this oil painting on board.

As always, feel free to comment or ask questions

~Richard

A Walk On The Beach 12”x12” oil on board

Art, Nature & Soul #21

The Sandhill Crane~ Theses incredible birds, began visiting us early spring 2013 and have come every season thereafter. As it turns out, the pond behind our home is perfect for raising a couple of fledglings. Every spring they come, nest and we wait to see if they have one or two chicks. The parents begin to raise them, take them out of the pond, training and showing them , how to survive. The adults are so familar with us, they allow us and our current pups to walk within feet of them. Throughout the season, we watch and photograph these wonderful birds as they go through their annual cycle. Interestingly, their plumage changes with the seasons to give them cover from predators. The dusty blue/gray feathers, against the burnt orange coloring is my favorte. As fall arrives the colors turn more mud gray to blend in , they begin the lift off dance and flight training for the long migration south begins. A favorite of my observation times to behold them. They stay longer than I think they will and sometimes I’ve captured some great photos of them on the pond in a snow fall. They stick around, until almost Christmas every year and are gone about three months before returning for another season. I always wish them happy trails and with a little hope, anticipate their return in spring.

On a somewhat mystical note, if not only a, there are no concidences type thinking. I had raised a family of 4 Shiba Inus, a father, mother, daughter and son. The first, the father was Kai-Guy, the ambassador. The male pup, Kodi, was adopted by a family, we dog sit him, about twice a year throughout his life and he returned to us toward the end of his life. They lived nice long lives and in 2012 the last two passed on, Snowy, the daughter at 15.5 years and then the mom, Sunny just before her 17th year, that November. People who know me, know my feelings on life, the universe and how everything is connected in ways and for reasons we do not always see, know or understand. With that said, the Sandhill Cranes arrived early the next spring. I’ve come to see them as incarnations of our family of pups. It may seem odd to many, but it has been a beautiful way for me to cope with their losses. Life is for the greater %, how we choose to see it & what we make of it.

The painting style and techniques in this painting are a fusion of decades of experimenting and learning, come together on canvas. I usually begin with a three color splash and drip, tonal wash, to find the rhythm of the piece. Then a liberal amount of Titanium White is swirled upon the canvas before I begin adding design elements of color, shape, texture, line, balance & harmony. Typically, I think about the fractal nature of the physical world, patterns within patterns, within patterns, broke up by random chaos. My color palette has been fairly consistant and refined over more than a quarter century. I use brushes, palette knives, scratching tools and kleenex to move the paint around until I’m satisfied with the results, it’s then completed with a scratched in, signature.

'At the Pond', 24"x20" oil on canvas (2017) private collection

Art, Nature & Soul #4

What began simply, as a series of more cathartic writing, drawing and painting exercises, took on a life of its own, evolving into a project that lasted about seven years. The result is this novel,  'Libertalia: Seize the Day For Remember We All Must Die'. Those who know me will see all my passions gathered together to tell the story and others will learn a bit about me in this tale.

DrahCir is the pen name for Richard R. Sperry born in 1964 in the western suburbs of Chicago, an artist and writer, with this being his first novel. As a child of 11 he went on a family trip out east to Boston where he found his passion for history and pirates. Some highlights were the Freedom Trail, U.S.S. Constitution, Salem Witch Village and the Pirate Trek and Trail in Lynn Massachusetts. He has spent the last decade exploring colonial history along the east coast, has read over 250 non-fiction/fiction books on the subject of piracy and drawn inspiration from his own life to spin this yarn of piracy on the high seas and beyond.

The novel ‘Libertalia: Seize the Day for Remember We All Must Die’ is a steampunk pirate fantasy fiction with historical elements. An extensive, in-depth study of PYRACY shows the quintessential nature of being human and reveals at its core a well faceted, most fluent, all encompassing, un-compromised view of world history, as untainted by any one cultural belief, value, dogma, and design as none other. All pirate myths, legends and folklore, romantic or realistic lead but one direction, in a search for freedom and equality. The pirate’s code of a democratic-socialist utopia based on egalitarian, collectivist, agrarian ideals are more than a place, but a mind set on a quest for Libertalia.

Steampunk Pirates & a Tall Ship~ The 'Leviathan' is a modified Dutch Fluyt galley. Which is to say, beyond having oars, it's suspended by a derigible. At some point, during a severe storm it passes by way an anomaly that renders its ability to travel in time and space. Here you will meet Captain Kidd, Captain Morgan, Black Bart, Blackbeard, William Dampier, Woodes Rogers, Anne Bonny, Calico Jack, Mary Reed, Dr. Dee and a cast of others, along with Black Captain Randy and the rest of the crew. Join Black Captain Randy and crew on ship Leviathan as they set out in search of El Dorado, find Atlantis, drink from the Fountain of Youth and create their own pirate utopia, Libertalia.

There are two editions available, one is 8.5”x11”, 282 pages and includes 24 color plate images and another in epub form at Lulu.com, Apple Ibook, Barnes & Noble Nook, Amazon Kindle, Kubo & everything else digital now or shortly. . For further information www.sperryfineart.com and www.Lulu.com 

Go to www.Lulu.com, enter 'Libertalia: Seize the Day For Remember We All Must Die' in the search engine to order your copy and thank you in advance for your support.

'Upon Her Arrival, The Whale and The Squid' 48"x36" oil on canvas is one of twenty-four of the images you will find included in the pages of this novel.