On
the Easel
There are two
oil paintings currently in the process.
Contact me if you are interested in purchasing either of
these paintings.
It would be interesting and fun get get
some feedback from my viewers.
In preparation for Knights of the Road my biker model
Michael Harlan and I sat two different days out on this
lonely road waiting for the large trucks to come up and
over the hill. Several reference photos would be used to
create this painting. The first day we brought along a
picnic lunch and sat under the shade of his truck. By
sitting a ways back from the road we were able to capture
each of these trucks in full scale with my digital camera.
The second day I came in my car because of the photo
equipment and Harlan rode his motorcycle. This was really
scary not only because there were eight crosses in the
immediate area from car crashes but Harlan could not see
ahead of him as he was coming up over the hill. This was
the only way I could catch him at this angle on my camera.
He could, however, see me on a rock where I was standing.
It was then up to me to get his attention if another truck
was heading for him so he could get out of the way.
This is the work in progress. I sketched in the truck and
then inserted another drawing of Harlan on his motorcycle
from the second photo shoot in the same area placing the
biker beside the truck. I then painted the truck in my
choice of color as this enables me to? create the
surrounding colors in the painting. I know you will ask...
why is he on the right side of the truck? This idea
actually came from an experience I had riding with Harlan
out on an old road here in Nevada. A truck decided to play
a dangerous game and pass us at high speed. Harlan paced
the truck, not in an attempt to race with him, but to make
sure that we did not fall behind the truck so that the rock
and sand from the poorly maintained road would not pelt us.
This was his main concern. The truck, hauling tandem gravel
trailers increased his speed and was now going well over
100 miles per hour. The diesel engine's governor had
obviously been disabled. Harlan could have out run the
truck if he had been alone but he was afraid for my safety
and dropped back. As expected, the rocks and gravel pelted
us and as I buried my face in his back, Harlan was hit
directly in the face and rocks pock marked his wraparound
glasses as he shielded the rest of his face with one gloved
hand. In Harlan's 30 years of riding he has found most
truck drivers and other bikers on the road to be very
considerate and helpful. This is the reason for naming the
painting, Knights of the Road.
The road in my photo has been changed to take the viewer
into and around the painting which cannot be seen in the
top photo as yet. The eye will now be drawn down the road
and into and around the painting while the cloud formation
will also pick p the movement. The movement in the painting
can be established in the beginning, usually through the
initial drawing or sometimes by keeping my mental, visual
conception of the finished piece as i progress through the
painting.
This is the completed Knights of the Road . I have added
the final details to the painting. They include turning on
the headlight of the truck; painting in the smoke coming
from the smoke stacks; adding more gravel on the side of
the road; painting the American flag on the front bumper of
the truck; finishing the desert and desert foliage and
adding my signature.
Knights of the
Road
Motorcycle
Art
Untitled
Navaho Art
Native American Indian
Art
