Woody's Watercolor Blog

Unequal measures of Transcription, Translation, & Transgression

Archive for category Non-Objective

Little Bitty

May 2

Posted by Woody in Non-Objective, Woody's Watercolors | No Comments

Detail of Little Bitty, an original watercolor by Woody Hansen
Little Bitty. DETAIL. Original watercolor by woody Hansen
(Click image to view entire painting)

This watercolor was developed by viewing bits and pieces of objects seen or imagined in the vicinity of Sacramento’s Sara Park during a recent Free Friday mini-workshop. A tree stump here, a shadow there, maybe a clump of grass, or the shape of a mud bank, etc. The idea was not to replicate, but to discover shapes that might eventually lead to an abstract, or better yet a non-objective painting.

To begin, I took an 8.5 x 11 sheet of plain paper, drew in a smaller rectangle, clipped the sheet to a board, and took a walk along the river. I loosely drew bits and pieces with a permanent marker as I came upon them. I tried to group things into an interesting abstract or non-objective pattern as best I could. No pencil, no eraser, no tracing, no projection. High risk, high gain. Once I had a design I liked I began applying paint and allowed the painting to evolve. Ah, yes, one is reminded not to paint what is, but what might, or ought to be.

Upon completing a painting,I often enjoy giving it an appropriate song title. In this case the title comes from the rock and roll tune, Little Bitty Pretty One by Thurston Harris. The relevancy? Little bits and pieces make up a pretty one. However, the country song Little Bitty by Alan Jackson also comes to mind. And so it goes, Where it stops no one knows; stacks of wax; … and the hits just keep on comin; Donny Babe, Yeth Their!, Purple Grotto, KEWB, Channel 91, Channel 91, KYA, Voice of the Bay (sorry,I couldn’t resist a bit of radio nostalgia stuff)!

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Tootsie Fruitsy

Nov 8

Posted by Woody in Contradictions, Forum, Miscellaneous, Non-Objective, Woody's Watercolors | No Comments

Tootsie Fruitsy DETAIL - Woody Hansen Watercolor
Tootsie Fruitsy – DETAIL – Original Watercolor Painting by Woody Hansen
(Click image to view entire painting)

Well, here we go … another opening of another show (so to speak, er, write). This painting is a studio piece. By that I mean it was painted entirely in the studio environment. I did it as a demonstration piece for the folks who are participating in my current watercolor classes.

In its finished state,Tootsie Fruitsy, gets its title from two sources. First, this work reminds me of Juicyfruit gum. I can smell the delicious aroma as I type this overly wordy entry. Second, another tip of the old hat to that creative, artistically inclined, youngster, Craig Ferguson (host of The Late, Late, Show on CBS (or as the Smother’s Brothers used to call it, the Cow Boy Station). As many of you know, Craig often does a humorous bit about the “Tootsie Fruitsy Ice-ah Creama” man (no offense intended to my friends of Italian ancestry). Or, as Craig might say,“Come on, lighten up, it’s a JOKE!”

I’m not sure how I feel about this particular watercolor. Part of me likes it and another part isn’t so sure. The two sides battled it out in my brain and the “likes it” won out. Of course it’s not about like it or not, it is about learning, about the journey, about the luxury of being able to do it at all. Besides, in art, failure is success.

In retrospect, I might have stopped several layers earlier* . There are times when a painting seems to come too early, too easily ,and one mistakenly feels a need to push on, to develop it further. I try to avoid this kind of silliness, but every once in a while “trying to please” takes over. Who the devil am I trying to please? Who ever it might be, an imagined audience composed of peers, students, jurors, societies, galleries, critics, the buying public, etc., is caused by self doubt, insecurity, and ignorance. Truth be told, what really matters is the opportunity to create another watercolor painting.

Colors: Juicyfruit Yellow, Censorship Red, Puritan Blue, Threatening Purple, Protestant Orange, Catholic Green, and Profitable Black.

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* The (I could have stopped here) third of seven layers …
Tootsie - Woody Hansen Watercolor

BTB&TR

Nov 1

Posted by Woody in Forum, Freedom of Speech, Guest Artists, Non-Objective, The Past, Woody's Watercolors | No Comments

Between The Bridge and The River DETAIL - Woody Hansen Watercolor
BTB&TR – DETAIL – Original Watercolor Painting by Woody Hansen
(Click image to view entire painting)

This painting is a non-objective, demonstration piece from my current, weekly watercolor classes. It consists of of three or four layers, one over the other with drying time between each layer. The dominate shape is derived from a newspaper photograph of four men in suits, possibly businessmen or politicians. The subject matters not, only the basic, dark and light shapes are of concern here.

The first layer is the “light” layer. I use three, high key values (light light, medium light, dark light) of transparent primary colors to lay in a wet-on-wet, non-objective pattern. The layer is allowed to dry.

Next comes the second, or medium value layer. This is done, wet-on-dry, and where the initial shapes are described within the rectangle. I create a mid-value intermediate tertiary color with which to develop the initial pattern. Before continuing, this layer is also allowed to dry.

The third and final layers, all wet-on-dry, are used to further develop. adjust. and define the over-all design.

BTB&TR is an abbreviation of Between The Bridge and The River. The name really has little to do with the

    originalintent of the painting. The title is arrived at, not before, but after the painting is completed.

    Upon finishing this non-objective watercolor I sense a feeling of the fury of a raging fire. I thought about naming the painting, Fire and Fury. Maybe I should have stuck with that original title. It is certainly much shorter in length. However, a book and an interesting religious concept came between the painting and the original title.

    I recently completed the audio book version of Craig Ferguson’s American On Purpose (The Improbable Adventures of An Unlikely Patriot). It’s a great read. I haven’t had so much fun since the days of creative radio and television personalities Don Sherwood, Al Jazzbo Collins, Steve Allen, and Johnny Carson)!

    Chapter 40 (Between The Bridge and The River), of Craig’s book seems fitting to the feeling of the painting. Also, in some small way, it is my recognition, respect, and appreciation of Craig Ferguson’s artistically creative approach to late night television.

    In the late 50’s I was fortunate to spend many Sundays as a disc jockey (“And now, here is your local announcer …’) spinning very large discs or platters (vinyl records) of a religious program. The name of the program escapes my memory, but the featured speaker was Father Keller who always ended his transcribe program with, “It is better to light one little candle than to curse the darkness.”

    What, you inquire, do the above five paragraphs have to do with my watercolor painting, Craig Ferguson, fire and fury, and religion? Read or , better yet, listen to the book.

    Colors: Religious Red, Devilish Scarlet, Blistering Yellow, Purgatory Blue, and Grim Reaper Black.

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Blue Ice

Oct 19

Posted by Woody in Forum, Non-Objective, Woody's Watercolors | No Comments

Blue Ice DETAIL - Woody Hansen Watercolor
Blue Ice – DETAIL – Original Watercolor Painting by Woody Hansen
(Click image to view entire painting)

Blue Ice begins as a non-objective painting, wet-on-wet (wet-into-wet), on 140 pound watercolor paper.

After the paper absorbs a significant amount of water, its surface is randomly scarred with a metal putty knife. Blue paint is then applied with an eye toward creating interesting shapes of varying sizes. At this stage paint value is a range of light and mid values. The work is then allowed to dry completely.

The next layer is comprised mostly of mid and dark values of blue, Attention is devoted toward creating interesting positive/negative shapes in an attempt to bring harmony and unity to the work while developing an over all checkerboard pattern. During the time this layer is still wet and soft, the shapes are scraped with the putty knife. This layer is allowed to become totally dry before continuing..

The painting is completed in one to three more layers by making final adjustments to shapes, value, and color. The end result is a non-objective painting which has a cool temperature emphasis and a blue color dominance.

Colors: Brilliant Ice Blue Blue, Cool Earth Red, Yahoo Yellow Hue, Midnight Oasis Black.

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