Waterlily

Just a quick watercolour of a waterlily as a gift for my mother's unwell friend.
Watercolour on paper. 29.7x21cm (11.7"x8.3")

Ardleigh Fish & Chip Shop

Ardleigh Fish and Chip Shop - graphite on A4 paper.

Self portrait 2

Self portrait in charcoal on paper. Time taken: two days.

Hyperrealists/photorealists

Artists A-I by surname

Artists J-R by surname

Artists S-Z by surname

White Grapes.

Here's my latest piece: White Grapes, pastel on paper - 19"x14".

The quest for hyperrealism.

A spin off from the 70's 'photorealist' movement, 'hyperrealism' is a movement dedicated to being 'more real than real'. To not just copy a photograph in paint, but to add or create an element that not would be evident from looking at a photograph. It might be a reaction, emotion or thought that just a photograph would not envoke.

Below is an excerpt from "A Brush Stroke for Every Human Suffering" - Ari Siletz, Media Watch about the below painting by Denis Peterson.

"This instance of hyperrealism is a performance art. Viewers are deliberately made to notice the amazing amount of time and painstaking effort that went into portraying this Darfur refugee. Peterson isn't showing off; he is a radical painter, compelling us with his dedication. The astonishing realism is the result of every wrinkle and twist of hair being colored and shadowed in the context of reflected light from every other object in the scene. Whereas the camera does this mindlessly as a matter of optics, this artist has endured whatever it took to make sure human eyes do not respond as mindlessly. We can flip the page on a Newsweek photo, worth a click of the camera, but we can’t as easily turn away from such an extraordinary labor of compassion."

Don't Shed No Tears Acrylics on canvas 24"x36"

Some veritable hyperrealist artists are Denis Peterson, Tom Martin, Pedro Campos, Simon Hennessey, Raphaella Spence, Randy Ford and Luciano Ventrone. Below are sample paintings from each of the above in order.

Denis Peterson - Apocalypse 16"x23" Watercolor and watercolor pencils on paper

Tom Martin - Wholewheat
Acrylic on panel 100cm x 100cm


Pedro Campos - Oil on canvas 116cm x 89cm

Simon Hennessey - The Duality of Colin
Acrylics on board
60 X 160 cm 2008



Raphaella Spence - Impressions 2008

oil on canvas 95 x 127 cm

Randy Ford - Mixologist
Oil on canvas 26"x14"



Luciano Ventrone: Aureolin
oil on linen 60 x 70 cm

As you can see, they are truly hyperreal! I never knew that one could paint so realistically. However, if you think about it, of course one can! It's just a series of colours arranged in a certain pattern; the same as a photograph is. It's the 'exactness' that makes them different to regular paintings. The exact colours, tones and brushwork. Some use watercolours, some use acrylics and airbrushes, some use oils; the results are just as breathtakingly amazing as each other.

A little thank you...

These two drawings were made as a thank you present for two kind ladies from my local library that saved me a lot of money. I won't go into details but let's just say it involved 6 library DVDs and my car roof! :-p

Pencil on paper. H, 2B and 4B plus a blending stump.
I'm quite pleased with the cherries, but quite a bit less so with the strawberry. I think it needs more contrast. (Too late now of course as i don't have them anymore). The strawberry is also a redo as I botched up my first attempt by trying to add chalk pastels for colour having completed a full tonal drawing as you see here. So don't try that one! I wonder what the cherries would look the size of a watermelon!! I think I'll give that a go some time. I've always had a great urge to paint a still life of fruit, but overly massive. An apple 3m x3m for example! I have a 1m x 1m canvas waiting beside me here for a first go.

Protea Cardinal.

This post is not a tutorial I'm afraid as I didn't photograph it in progress. However, it is another painting I've been working on recently and deserves to go up here.

The painting is of a Protea Cardinal flower, which I believe is a native flower of South Africa. It was lying around at my mother's house when I went to visit her last month, and so I photographed it for future reference. It's oil on canvas and quite large being 16" across by 48" high. (Intended to be upright, it works on it's side too)! I originally bought the canvas for a panoramic landscape.

So here it is: (click on the image to enlarge) The photo doesn't really do it justice, so I will take some more piccies outside tomorrow when the sun comes out.



(WORKS STILL IN PROGRESS 02-08-09: A Series of four and a commission for some apples).
So Stay tuned!

Welcome from designmobius

designmobius is a creative design company. Not only does it produce graphic design work and interior designs, but it creates fine art.

This blog is here to help those interested in fine art, those looking for tips and tricks and those interested in seeing how an artist thinks as a piece of artwork is created.

As I create drawings, paintings and perhaps sculptures - I will document the progress, the problems and my thoughts as they come.

Thanks for visiting and please bookmark this blog, link it, add comments should you feel obliged.
-Tom Mulliner.
Copyright © designmobius 2009