Both Henri Matisse and Pablo Picasso are said to have remarked that Paul Cezanne “is the father of us all.” Be that as it may, the post-impressionist was without a doubt the bridge between 19th and 20th century painting.
Art historians recognize him as the link between impressionism (Matisse) and cubism (Picasso.)
Cezanne’s paintings, particularly his landscapes (surprise, surprise) are a constant source of inspiration for me. And although his paint handling, color choices, and brushwork are fundamentally different from mine, we do wholeheartedly agree on one thing. Cezanne said, “If you see a tree, paint it bright red.” I concur!
As you may remember, one of the attributes I look for in my finished work is warm/cool color contrast. Well, this painting not only has red (warm) against blue (cool) but goes one step further down the warm/cool path by introducing warm red next to cool red. The tension created by this combination is positively “jangly” in my opinion – highly activated, visually stimulating. What is “cool” red you may ask? Take a look, you’ll figure it out. That’s what I like about this painting!
I’ve been painting a lot lately. And I’ve run through a great volume of oil paint and scrubbed my boar bristle brushes down to a nub. All good, that’s why I buy brushes by the gross!
It is such a simple act. But it’s kind of funny how something as ordinary as unwrapping a new paintbrush fills me with a sense of possibility. There is nothing remotely poetic about it. It’s not even a wonderful or expensive new paintbrush. Even so, it never fails to give me a little rush of excitement.
Now, I wonder “what color?” Off we go into the wild blue yonder!
It ain’t all fun and games folks! Today six paintings left the premises for points south. That’s the good news. The not so good news is I’ve spent the day doing something other than making more paintings. Honestly, I quickly get a little resentful if anything takes me away from my easel, canvas, and paints for too long. It doesn’t happen all that often. I have great help, and I’m pretty good at delegating. Right you guys? I’m pretty good at delegating, right? You guys?
Someone once told me the difference between successful people and unsuccessful people is that “Successful people do what they need to do, when they need to do it, whether they want to or not.”
Oh, by the way, if you’re curious about what is inside those decidedly uncolorful cardboard boxes, stop by Lustre Gallery in Telluride!
It’s nice to see all these paintings drying on the wall in my studio. There’s no substitute for productivity, in my opinion. Experience tells me that one painting always leads to another painting, and that inspiration is a result of a rigorous art making practice.
If I were to offer advice to a young artist intent on making their mark in the art world, I would tell them, “Go to work, and keep working.”
For me, the magic only happens when I have a paint brush in hand!
Join me for a two day pastel workshop in Helena sponsored by The Art Center and the Montana Pastel Society. I’ll be demonstrating in soft pastel. Students may work in any medium they choose, but much of the information will be specific to pastel painting. I look forward to seeing you there!
Some of the things we’ll cover in the workshop:
The materials I use and why I prefer them
My approach to the use of color
How to use color theory to create dramatic color compositions
How I use non literal colors in making value studies
How I simplify the subject to create a highly abstract interpretation of the landscape
How to use fixatives without diminishing color intensity
Mounting and framing considerations
Workshop: January 8th & 9th 9 am – 4 pm Reception: January 7th 5-7 pm
“My primay goal is to create a work of art that resonates with the spirit of the place. All other considerations are secondary to this overriding purpose.”
Marshall Noice has been creating images of landscapes for nearly a half century. He works extensively in photography, oil painting and pastel painting. Noice also works in traditional printmaking methods including etching, collagraph, and monotype.
His art has been featured in dozens of magazine articles and is included is several books. In 2013 his paintings of the Tetons were chosen for the publication voted 2013 Art Book of the year by the National Booksellers Association, Art of The National Parks, Historic Connections, Contemporary Interpretations.
In 1993 Noice was honored with the Montana Governor’s Cultural Trust Award. In 1999 he received the Flathead Valley Cultural Achievement Award. In 2012 he received grants from The Montana Arts Council, and The National Endowment for The Arts. Noice serves on the Montana State University School of Art Advisory Council.
Noice’s art has been showcased in over 150 museum and gallery exhibitions. His work is shown in galleries across the country, and is in the collections of museums worldwide.
What a vivid memory this painting has for me. My wife Jackie, daughter Sarsten, and I were on the first leg of a drive from Kalispell to Santa Fe. We had just crossed the Little Blackfoot River south of Montana Highway 200, and right in the middle of the road, sitting in the morning sun was a black bear cub!
I’m heading to Santa Fe for the annual Canyon Road Paint Out! The event features dozens of artists working outdoors at galleries on Canyon Road. I’ll be at Ventana Fine Art, 400 Canyon Road, from 10:00 til 2:00 this Saturday, the 16th.
This is the excuse you’ve been waiting for to make that fall trip to New Mexico. Join us! Santa Fe is beautiful this time of year.
Stop by and say hello. Maybe we can walk up to Johnnie’s Cash Store and grab a tamale!
Last week I posted a snapshot of the colorful ginalla flame amur maple in our front yard. Here’s the painting bearing witness to it’s extraordinary fall color.
Fall is a beautiful time of year in Northwest Montana. The days are still warm and nights dip down near freezing. We’re enjoying splendid fall colors this year. Case in point, this Flame Amur Maple we planted in front of our home nearly 20 years ago. Where did the time go?
The aspens in the foreground were planted the very same day as I recall. Sometimes a painter simply has to cultivate his very own inspiration!
