Tuesday

This morning I was nit picking on the two entry paintings for the Oil painters of America show. With small details to be worked on, one can really get hung up and spend almost too much time on it. The back on the girl in the water needed better definition, as well as a few of the figures reading books in the other painting. I'll shoot new pictures of the works later on.

This afternoon I worked on one of the Amsterdam paintings. It has a nice sense of morning light. So I put a large boat in there before it has to negotiate around the tight corner. This should give the painting a little tension.

Richard Boyer

Sunday

In preparation for the show in Scottsdale I blocked in three small 12x16 paintings today of Amsterdam.  In these starts I have figured out the composition, color and values; so now I can put them aside for a day or two and then bring them out one by one to finish them off. 

With all the decision making finished its going to be fun now just with some thick brush strokes bringing them to completion. I'll shoot for a painting a day which should be fairly easy to do. Its the last week before I leave, so as they say the pressure is on!  

Richard Boyer

Thursday

Yesterday after working on the figure painting of the girl in the water, I decided to start another vertical 24x18 painting of Bruges in Belgium. I spent about two hours on it then, blocking in the area through the archway, basically getting most of that done. So this morning I just had the outside brick and gate to finish off. I added a few large flower pots on either side and some dead leaves here and there to help balance off the composition.  

This was a fun little piece to work on for the May Gallery; and Ron told me he has already sold two small 12x16 Amsterdam paintings.

Richard Boyer

Wednesday

I decided to try another entry into the Oil Painters of America show. With two paintings I'll stand a better chance of making the cut; although I seem to remember having both tries rejected before…so who knows. Any ways I'll try a nude from the back. I started this a few days ago. This is Sofie as she is getting into a cold stream behind the family farm in Sweden, her shoulders are really shrugged up and you can sense the chill.  The water I'm thinking needs some more work, so its off to the side for now so I have some time to contemplate. 

Richard Boyer

Monday, Jan. 20

Well the May Gallery gave me a loud resonating "No!" when I asked them about adding a few prostitutes to the painting.  Ron felt that might scare away the prospective buyer!  As the artists I find it always fun to push the boundaries a little; but in this case I would have most likely gotten the painting sent back to me several months later!

Okay being the gallery owner I am sure he knows best. So I re-painted and re-designed the right side of the street; adding a flower stand with shop owner. The main figure walking in on the left side was also changed. I took an image from one of the Swedish relatives and used her; now it is much more appealing with a better lead-in to the sun drenched background.

Richard Boyer

Thursday

I spent today working on the Red Light District painting, actually have been the last couple of days.  Now that the architecture is more or less done its time to figure out what to do with the figures. The cafe I added in today and kept the woman walking towards the center of action in the shade.  The blurred figures to the right are the ladies of the evening and I'm still not sure if I want them there.

This I'll just have to think about. We have the crit session tonight so I'll get some of their input

Richard Boyer

Tuesday

 This is from our last model session at Bryce Liston's studio. We were four so we had some room to spread around, or in this case to move closer together for a back view. In poses like this, one generally doesn't want to be on the end, because you end up with a foreshortened view down the length of the figure. 

Richard Boyer

Saturday

I started another 40x30 inch painting for the show at the May Gallery in February.  This one will be from the Red Light district in Amsterdam and right in the center of it all is their oldest church from the 14th century. It just seems fitting to have the church surrounded by scantily clad women trying to seduce the church going clients. I remember walking back through the area after a long painting session with easel in hand  Okay grant it, I could have taken the more direct route back to the hotel, but on this sunny afternoon my artistic curiosity took over and I did a small side trip through the red light district. There the women in their tight booty shorts beaconed me over to have a look at my painting in hand. After a few had crowded around me, we heard the growling voice of their boss, calling them away and for me to move on.  

So as I work on this piece I am left with the dilemma, do I put a few of these women in the painting?  It would make it a fun piece, but almost certainly guarantee that it would never sell. Let's be real here…"hey, honey how about this painting of the prostitutes for the livingroom wall?!!"

There is actually a more conservative dress code for the ladies during the day when all the children are present. Most of the working tend to be middle aged with all private bits covered. That means proper shorts which barely cover and halter tops. When evening comes things get spicier, the women tend to be much younger in their twenties and the preferred article of clothing being just a small thong. Breasts are flying everywhere and business is brisk. 

Maybe I should satisfy the question that's on your mind: No, I have never done it!!!  

Richard Boyer

Friday

Still working on the figures today. They seem to be coming together well, but I need to figure out what I want to do with the background on the right side. The idea of a small door cracked open might be just right for that space. Yes, what would Anders Zorn do?

Richard Boyer

Wednesday

It started snowing this morning and hasn't really let up all day.  Lina and I are suppose to head up to the mountains to do a little Cross country skiing, so we shall see just how bad the roads are?

I worked on the girls reading, trying to define the faces more. The center figure I want to have as the focal point with that nice orange shall it should be a delight for the eye to linger on. I'm really liking the way the viewer looks past the girl on the left, her head turned towards the center figure adds to the composition. 

I finished off the southern Utah painting yesterday and took it down to Southam Gallery, they had a few lawyers come in to look at it. And as it turns out they liked it so much, they bought the work. It was a fun painting to do so I'm glad it has found a home.

Richard Boyer

Monday, Jan.6

Kim from Southam Gallery gave me a call last Friday; she was wondering if I could try something larger from Zion's National Park. So over the weekend I worked on this 16x20 evening painting looking down the Virgin River towards "The Great White Throne", from what I've heard the rock face is a popular climbing wall.  Bryce Liston and I set up here during our southern Utah painting trip last fall.  This is where they warned us halfway through painting that there was a flash flood warning out and it would be best to get up out of the river bottom.  The last think the artist needs is to be washed away, easel and all in a torrent of rocks and debris.

Richard Boyer

January 3, 2014

New Years was very nice for me!

Its back to reality, time to get ready for the next show at the May Gallery. I worked some more on the water in my Amsterdam painting, so now I'm quite happy with it.  The painting has that nice morning feeling of people going off to work in their traditional style of travel.

Another work I started on, I'm actually very excited with. Its the girls reading in the old family farm house in Sweden. The light is soft and seems to glow around them and if it turns out well I'll enter it in the Oil Painters of America show.

Richard Boyer