What’s shakin’ at Rodzart

What’s shakin’ at Rodzart 9-26-2009

What’s shakin’ at Rodzart 9-26-2009

Hi folks. I hope everyone has had a good week.

I’m sorry to say it, but I didn’t finish any paintings this week. I started painting my last canvas and that always makes me slow down. I’m stretching some more canvas though, so I’ll be back on track next week. I’ll have more on canvas stretching later.

When I start to run out of canvas to paint on, the first thing I do is to go to my “dud stack”; of paintings that didn’t come out as I’d have liked; and I strip the canvas off the stretchers, and stretch new canvas on them. Once I get the canvas on the stretchers, I prime it with three coats of white gesso, and then two coats of white acrylic paint.

The purpose of the gesso is to form a barrier between paint and the canvas. I add the two coats of acrylic to create sort of a flexible plastic layer to paint on. So even if the canvas itself rots away, the image will still be sitting on its blanket of white acrylic. With any luck at all, that will allow the entire image to be remounted at some point in the future. At this point, I can tone the canvas in any way I choose, simply by covering it with another coat of acrylic in whatever color I choose. Anyone who follows my work should know of my penchant for working on a toned canvas.

I have to admit, there is something really cool about stretching a canvas. I approach every canvas as a potential masterpiece. You just never know what the future holds. Every canvas that I paint has the potential to exist and be viewed hundreds of years from now. That’s really kind of neat to contemplate.

Every now and then I like to remind everyone that I do in fact accept commissions. However I do ask that you have a look at my recent work so that you understand what sort of painting you’ll get. If that doesn’t scare you off, then just drop me an email to info@rodzart.com and we’ll see what we can work out.

Shout out to Paul Reubens..Welcome back Pee Wee! We missed you!

Here’s some links to remember:

For original paintings, just email me at info@rodzart.com
For original paintings sold at auction go to:
http://www.artbyus.com/auctions.php?a=6&b=85

Original works on paper can also be purchased at:
http://rodzart.etsy.com

To buy prints on paper or canvas, mouse pads, mugs, refrigerator magnets, puzzles, etc. check out:
http://www.artwanted.com/rodzart
http://rodzart2.deviantart.com/gallery/

To obtain fine art prints, framed or unframed:
http://rod-schneider.fineartamerica.com

I’m also on Twitter, Myspace and Facebook as Rodzart.

Hope everyone has a peaceful and prosperous week.

Thanks!!

Rod

What’s shakin’ at Rodzart 9-18-2009

What’s shakin’ at Rodzart 9-18-2009

Hi folks. I hope everyone has had a good week. It’s been a pretty interesting week here at Rodzart.

First off, we have a new member of the Rodzart team, Fella. .
Fella’s going to be living with us while his Mom is in the hospital recovering from an illness. He’ll be helping Jack with the security chores. It’s going to be interesting for Fred, but at least Fred can climb walls.
Speaking of reptiles, we also have a new blacksnake which has taken up residence near the Rodzart studio. Fortunately it hasn’t bothered us, so I guess we’ll live and let live for a while.

I don’t know if anyone knows this, but you can get jigsaw puzzles of most of my paintings from either ArtWanted or DeviantArt. (Links to both of them are below).
I ordered one just to see what they looked like, and sure as shootin’ its a print that’s been mounted on a puzzle. So if you love puzzles, or you need Christmas ideas, this might be a thought for you.

This week I’d like to talk a little about non-representational art, and where I feel it fits into art in general, and how to view it. Abstract Expressionism is essentially non-representational art, in that it doesn’t start with a recognizable object which is then reduced to abstraction. With most abstract painting, you can see the object which was abstracted.

Since I’m painting thoughts, or feelings or rhythms, there is no “thing” or place at the center of my paintings. Now this I guess is the thing that hangs people up, since when most people look at a painting they immediately want to know; “What is it?”.

When you’re looking at my paintings, or any other non-representational work, push that “What is it” question right out of your mind. Just look at the painting. See the way the colors relate to each other, look for the rhythms of the paint, the way it was applied. Hows that make you feel? Can you see movement? Does your mind project images onto the painting? Every painting has something different to say to every viewer, and, you may well see something different every time that you look at the painting. Personally I think that’s kinda cool.

Sadly, the art world has no shortage of snooty people who like to look down their nose at everything, and tell other people what they should like or not like. The salon mentality has cost the world a lot of great art.
Don’t let others decide what art you should see, or even what is art and what isn’t. Make your own choices. If you like it, buy it, if you don’t like it, don’t buy it. It really is just that simple folks.

Remember, real art should touch your heart, not match your sofa.

OK that’s enough pontificating for one week. It’s Saturday, go do something fun.

Here’s some links to remember:

For original paintings, just email me at info@rodzart.com
For original paintings sold at auction go to:
http://www.artbyus.com/auctions.php?a=6&b=85

Original works on paper can also be purchased at:
http://rodzart.etsy.com

To buy prints on paper or canvas, mouse pads, mugs, refrigerator magnets, puzzles, etc. check out:
http://www.artwanted.com/rodzart
http://rodzart2.deviantart.com/gallery/

To obtain fine art prints, framed or unframed:
http://rod-schneider.fineartamerica.com

I’m also on Twitter, Myspace and Facebook as Rodzart.

Hope everyone has a peaceful and prosperous week.

Thanks!!

Rod

What’s shakin’ at Rodzart 9-12-2009

What’s shakin’ at Rodzart 9-12-2009

Hi folks. I hope everyone has had a good week. It sure seems to have gone by quickly.

I finished one new painting this week, Expression 951, a black, white and blue painting on a gray 18 X 24 canvas; I also did a couple of 5 X 7’s and some ACEO’s which will be showing up on ETSY pretty soon.

I’m going to take a little time here to explain the process I used to create “Expression 951”. Again, there’s no title because I want you to decide what you see, rather than have to see only what I tell you is there.

Expression 951 started as a thought. I like the way that black, white and blue work together, particularly on a gray background. That’s why I started with a gray toned canvas. Also, black plus white makes gray, which establishes a color harmony on the painting. Next I decided that I wanted to give the black and white elements contrasting motion, that’s why black goes fore-aft and white goes port-starboard. I used the blue element as an accent, to highlight what the black and white were doing.

The application of the paint itself took place over several days. I started with a black passage, and then a few hours later, after observing the canvas was telling me, I added a white passage, to compliment what had gone before.
I continued this process over the course of a week and a half. Some paintings take longer, some less. I added the blue passage on top of the last white application, and then added the last black passage over the blue. This served to tuck the blue into painting, rather than simply have it lying on top.

When I start to feel that a painting is finished I set it aside for a few days. When I come back to it, if it still seems finished, I’ll sign in, write some identifying stuff on the back of the canvas, photograph it, and voila it appears on the net.

So, there you have it, that’s pretty much how “Expression 951” came to be.

Here’s some links to remember:

For original paintings, just email me at info@rodzart.com
For original paintings sold at auction go to:
http://www.artbyus.com/auctions.php?a=6&b=85

Original works on paper can be purchased at:
http://rodzart.etsy.com

To buy prints on paper or canvas, mouse pads, mugs, refrigerator magnets, etc. check out:
http://www.artwanted.com/rodzart
http://rodzart2.deviantart.com/gallery/

To obtain fine art prints, framed or unframed:
http://rod-schneider.fineartamerica.com

I’m also on Twitter, Myspace and Facebook as Rodzart.

Hope everyone has a peaceful and prosperous week.

Thanks!!

Rod

What’s shakin’ at Rodzart 9-5-2009

What’s shakin’ at Rodzart 9-5-2009

Hi folks. I hope everyone has had a good week.

It’s been a couple of weeks since my last blog, for which I apologize, seems like some weeks I just can’t think of too much to say.
To be honest, I’ve never liked talking about myself that much, and I guess that somewhat hampers my abilities of self-promotion.

I have finished some new paintings, Expression 945, a predominately black painting; ; Expression 947, which is a really nice painting, particularly if you like blue. I think this one would look nice behind a sofa; ;
Expression 949 is an expression of earth tones; ; and lastly Vert, a green on green; .

Let me just mention again, most of the time I don’t put a descriptive title on my paintings. In non-representational art, (art that is not a picture of something), what the painting is, or what it means is decided by each individual viewer. What I see in a painting, and what you see can be quite different. When I’m painting, I’m working toward a rhythm and harmony in color and application, not really am image. I don’t just throw paint at a canvas and see what happens. Non-representational art is not for everyone, I’m afraid some people will never be able to just look at a painting long enough to let the painting take them where it will. No biggie to me, just to don’t condemn it because you don’t like it, or can’t understand the concept.

I’ve got three paintings in progress this week and I hope to have them finished and photographed by the end of next week.

I sold Expression 554 last week to a collector in Australia. That means I have a painting hanging on every continent except Asia and Antarctica. Not to shabby.

Here’s some links to remember:

For original paintings, just email me at info@rodzart.com
For original paintings sold at auction go to:
http://www.artbyus.com/auctions.php?a=6&b=85

Original works on paper can be purchased at:
http://rodzart.etsy.com

To buy prints on paper or canvas, mouse pads, mugs, refrigerator magnets, etc. check out:
http://www.artwanted.com/rodzart
http://rodzart2.deviantart.com/gallery/

To obtain fine art prints, framed or unframed:
http://rod-schneider.fineartamerica.com

I’m also on Twitter, Myspace and Facebook as Rodzart.

Hope everyone has a peaceful and prosperous week.

Thanks!!

Rod