David Vaughn's American Well Commercial

Our very own David Vaughn became the spokesman for American Well's latest online doctor commercial campaign! Congrats to David! Check it out below:



www.americanwell.com
www.davidrvaughn.com

- Lena

A Progression of Beauty

Artist, Greg Spalenka, recently shared installment of #6 of an ongoing series he is working on, called 'Progressions'.



'Progressions' are pieces of art which Greg continually works on, sharing the progress of each step, until someone stops the process by purchasing it. In essence, the art keeps evolving until a patron steps in, declaring the piece completed, and thereby becoming part of the creative process.



It's a pretty neat idea, which is made better by the fact that the current piece in question is absolutely stunning.



Above is his latest piece, called "Beauty". It is 18″x20″ made with charcoal, graphite, acrylic/house/oil paint, transparencies, gold leaf, tape, newsprint, adhesive, on board.



Greg has shared his process for this piece all along the way, and each time I see it, I think it looks great. Then a few weeks later, I see a completely different, and somehow more beautiful version of it. Below are some of the previous incarnations of the piece.

If you are interested in learning more about Greg's work, or even purchasing this piece (which I believe is still available), visit Greg's blog HERE.

Artist of the Month: Rauschenberg

by William O’Connor

This month I had the great experience of spending time with Dan Dos Santos at Illuxcon.  We had a fun conversation in the bar one night talking about Muddy Colors and I admitted that the Artist of the Month blogs that I’ve filed on modern painters had created a bit of an outcry amoungst the more ardent traditionalists.  We got to talking and I joked that I had been wanting to do a blog on Robert Rauschenberg, but was afraid that I would get lynched by the fans.  Much to my pleasure and delight, Dan lit up, and admitted that he was a huge Rauschenberg fan, and he encouraged me to write this blog!



When I was an art student, I was not an illustrator.  In fact, my school didn't even offer illustration. I was a full-on, post modern artist, focusing on assemblage works in the vein of Motherwell, Keifer, Schnabel and one of my favorites, Robert Rauschenberg (1925 - 2008).

"Bed"

1955

Mixed Media

Museum of Modern Art, New York

Rauschenberg was an archivist of New York.  His assemblage and collages of his period are relics of the time.  Living in lower Manhattan in the 1960’s he would often wander the streets and pick up found objects from his neighborhood and work them into his “paintings” calling them Combines, because he was combining found objects into a single work.  They became time capsules of the world around him.  His Combines are considered modern master pieces, and if you ever have the opportunity to see them in person, its a unique experience. 



I became enamored of Raushenberg as a student, and loved his use of texture and found objects to create depth and volume to his paintings, with breath taking compositions.  Dumspter diving and skulking through junk shops became a favorite pastime to find some unique object to add to my work.

"Canyon"

1959

Mixed Media

Museum of Modern Art, New York

Later, as a novice illustrator, I would often utilize what I had learned from Rauschenberg in my illustrations by incorporating collage and objects into my paintings.  (Why render a facsimile of leaves when you could just attach actual leaves into the image?) Quickly, I began to realize that art directors did not appreciate paintings arriving in their office with sticks, dirt and broken glass collaged into the illustrations, so I eventually removed all of those elements for a purely painted smooth surface that could be reproduced easily on a drum or flatbed scanner.



More than a decade later  I had begun to adopt the digital medium and immediately became re-inspired by Rauschenberg.  Digital painting aloud me to scan found objects and photos and layer them into my work in a way that was almost identical to my student assemblage work.  Broken glass, crumpled newspapers, concrete, metal, text, wood, leaves, everything was now available as a medium and perfectly reproducible to a commercial client. Many people who look at my digital work are often surprised by the texture and depth I'm able to achieve, and I explain to them that its because there are often dozens of layers of texture and elements combined into the image that produce that effect.  Every time you find a cool texture file or photo online and combine it onto your painting, you're channeling Rauschenberg. 



Rauschenberg is one of the most inspirational and influential artists in my career.  If you look closely at some on my digital work you can see pieces of assemblage and collage peeking through, thanks to Mr. Rauschenberg.  Today, as I evolve back into oil painting, I am deeply inspired to re-connect with my roots and begin to incorporate assemblage into my traditional fantasy work.



Go Forth and Learn!



WOC

For an interesting intro lecture on Rauschenberg and his contemporaries view:

Sneak Peeks

by Donato

With far too many of my current projects under NDA's ( Non-Disclosure Agreements), I haven't much to share with you except a few glimpses of what is to come. Between multiple conventions, a museum exhibit of my work later this Fall and teaching weekly courses with the SmArt School and the School of Visual Arts I am at a loss for words and the time to clarify my thoughts.  Apologies to you long time readers, but I will move into substantial content by the end of the year.  As I always say, I would rather be painting than typing...



So, to let art speak for me:

Eragon: 10th Anniversary Edition  novel by Christopher Paolini   18" x 24"  pencil and chalk on paper

Hephaestus   16" x 20 " Pencil and chalk on paper

The Hidden Kingdom     46" x 33"   Oil on Panel

Huor and Hurin Approaching Gondolin     detail of a painting 112" x 73"  oil on linen

"The 10 Commandments of Chloe" (FULL FILM)

Coming off the successful World Premiere at the Calgary International Film Festival, One Way or Another Productions releases THE 10 COMMANDMENTS OF CHLOE free of charge to the public!

*100% of the film was shot on location in Nashville, TN.*

WATCH NOW FREE in WideScreen on your TV, Computer, or Mobile Device!


"The 10 Commandments of Chloe" (FULL FILM) from OneWayTV on Vimeo.


For more information on the film and its making, visit the official website.

- Lena

It´s All For Nothing

By Jesper Ejsing

I have a very good friend and fellow artist. His name is Emil Landgreen. He has unfortunately left our studio a while back to work in the gaming industry. I have been sniffing up that tree for the better part of a year now too. We got together a month ago and, as so many times before, the talk landed on what is it all for and where is this going to lead us. I am not talking money, more artistically.



"Are you still gonna do charging monsters when you are 70, Jesper"? Emil asked me with obvious doubt in his voice.



"Hmm, yeah I could", I answered knowing it might be untrue.



Pushing the subject further Emil asked, "This day in 20 years from now. What is the illustration you are doing. Where do you envision yourself?



"Easy. I am sitting in the forest painting an old Oak tree in oil, perhaps sipping a red wine"



"Me too",  Emil said. After a long pause. "Why is it exactly, that we are waiting 20 years"?



This was the beginning of something fantastic. We started arranging small pools of painting time during Sundays, were we drag the paint out and start dotting down strokes. What is really beautiful about this is that as soon as we begin, I realised I haven't been painting for no one in many many years.



Everything I do is for a product, a game a book or something. When I paint an old tree out there in the forest for a couple of hours there is no one I have to impress or satisfy. It is only a matter of spending time together having fun while painting. And it has made me realise how much I miss that part, the pure undiluted joy of painting. I am not even gonna post pictures of the actual paintings since what matters is the act of it and certainly not the outcome.



We paint for ourself and thus are not getting paid, so you might say it is for nothing. But the reward is so much more. It is for the passion and pleasure of creating for the craftsmanship and the feeling of being at one with a piece of art. Being present in the moment and living the brushstroke...



It is not for nothing; it is for everything. It makes me remember why I love doing art.

Box

'Box' explores the synthesis of real and digital space through projection-mapping onto moving surfaces. The short film documents a live performance, captured entirely in camera.