Sherlock Holmes on radio.

[Carol the Dabbler]

I don’t really do much artwork these days as being a carer tends to take up so much time and effort.

 

To say nothing of energy!  I take it you're caring for a family member?  Me too, my Mom.  I manage to sneak in a little writing when she's napping.

 

The pointillist ones take forever and make my hand ache. [....]  I’m not quick and find it hard to ‘finish’. I keep changing bits. I annoy myself actually.

[Arcadia]

I was thinking of trying some smaller stuff. The prices just reflect the time taken unfortunately. The pointillist ones take forever and make my hand ache. And the black and white line drawings with the smaller images within take even longer! I’m a bit of a nitpicker with portraits. I’m not quick and find it hard to ‘finish’. I keep changing bits. I annoy myself actually.

[HerlockSholmes]

 

 

I don’t really do much artwork these days as being a carer tends to take up so much time and effort.

To say nothing of energy! I take it you're caring for a family member? Me too, my Mom. I manage to sneak in a little writing when she's napping.

The pointillist ones take forever and make my hand ache. [....] I’m not quick and find it hard to ‘finish’. I keep changing bits. I annoy myself actually.

[HerlockSholmes]

 

 

I was thinking of trying some smaller stuff. The prices just reflect the time taken unfortunately. The pointillist ones take forever and make my hand ache. And the black and white line drawings with the smaller images within take even longer! I’m a bit of a nitpicker with portraits. I’m not quick and find it hard to ‘finish’. I keep changing bits. I annoy myself actually.

[Arcadia]

Those are amazing, but y'know, I prefer someone like Sargent or Rembrandt. I want to feel a painting, not marvel over an artist's eye for detail, know what I mean? So don't go comparing yourself to those folks unless that's really what you aspire to, there's many many ways of doing good portraiture. (Sorry, teacher in me coming out. )

[Carol the Dabbler]

I agree -- if it's gonna look like a photograph, why go to all the work of painting it?  Just get a good photographic portrait!

[HerlockSholmes]

I tend to agree with both of you but I’ve always been a little wary of saying it as I always suspect that someone will reply: “well you’re only saying that because you can’t draw that accurately.” It’s difficult not to marvel at the skill levels though. And the examples I showed were drawings, paint is much more difficult (that’s why I largely avoid it.)

 

I don’t know if you’ve heard of Richard Estes and Ralph Goings? I remember seeing some of their work years ago. I argued that they were photographs!

 

https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=realist+painting+diner&rlz=1C9BKJA_enGB704GB704&oq=realist+painting+diner&aqs=chrome..69i57.9583j0j8&hl=en-GB&sourceid=chrome-mobile&ie=UTF-8#imgrc=D8Amp05Hg9zl_M:

 

https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=realist+painting+diner&rlz=1C9BKJA_enGB704GB704&oq=realist+painting+diner&aqs=chrome..69i57.9583j0j8&hl=en-GB&sourceid=chrome-mobile&ie=UTF-8#imgdii=g6ODpvVKPz7LcM:&imgrc=D8Amp05Hg9zl_M:

[Arcadia]

Heard of Estes, don't remember Goings. But to be honest, my memory for names is so poor, the man could be living next door to me and I probably wouldn't know.

 

I agree painting is harder, although I suspect that's also why I'm drawn to it more ... I like a challenge. And as for comments that you don't draw accurately ... try responding that you're trying to be an artist, not a draftsman, see if that gives them pause.

[HerlockSholmes]

Couldn’t agree more Arcadia. I can applaud at the high level of skill required to do a ‘photographic’ portrait but give me a Rembrandt or a Lucien Freud any day. It’s all in the eye of the beholder anyway. My 2 favourite artists are Francis Bacon and Van Gogh. I don’t know what that says about my taste?

[Arcadia]

Interesting combination, I don't know either!

 

Me for the landscape painters like Monet and Constable, and a lot of Asian art. Although I also really like a lot of the abstract artists like Motherwell and Rothko. There's a lot of Rothko's at the National Gallery, I drool over them. They had a special exhibit of several of his red paintings one time, which I stumbled across without even knowing  they were there; I thought I'd died and gone to heaven. My friends (probably quite correctly) think I'm nutz....

[HerlockSholmes]

Interesting combination, I don't know either!

 

Me for the landscape painters like Monet and Constable, and a lot of Asian art. Although I also really like a lot of the abstract artists like Motherwell and Rothko. There's a lot of Rothko's at the National Gallery, I drool over them. They had a special exhibit of several of his red paintings one time, which I stumbled across without even knowing they were there; I thought I'd died and gone to heaven. My friends (probably quite correctly) think I'm nutz....

Arcadia I’ve just re-read my post. Have you really not heard of Vincent Van Gogh? Or have I misunderstood what you’ve said?

 

Francis Bacon’s work is very dark and visceral and definately not everyone’s cup of tea

 

https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=francis+bacon+artist&rlz=1C9BKJA_enGB704GB704&hl=en-GB&prmd=inv&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjAqPzUtuHXAhUFaFAKHROiDV8Q_AUIEigB&biw=1024&bih=1251#imgrc=L0fPpep4ZnVt7M:

 

https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=francis+bacon+artist&rlz=1C9BKJA_enGB704GB704&hl=en-GB&prmd=inv&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjAqPzUtuHXAhUFaFAKHROiDV8Q_AUIEigB&biw=1024&bih=1251#imgrc=r01fsn43g8oMAM:

 

https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=francis+bacon+artist&rlz=1C9BKJA_enGB704GB704&hl=en-GB&prmd=inv&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjAqPzUtuHXAhUFaFAKHROiDV8Q_AUIEigB&biw=1024&bih=1251#imgrc=1bGnyW9VXC5AAM:

 

Not really the kind of stuff you would hang on your living room wall unless it was to keep the kids away from the fireplace.

[Carol the Dabbler]

My 2 favourite artists are Francis Bacon and Van Gogh. I don’t know what that says about my taste?

 

Interesting combination, I don't know either!

 

Arcadia I’ve just re-read my post. Have you really not heard of Vincent Van Gogh? Or have I misunderstood what you’ve said.

 

I think she meant that she likewise doesn't know what that says about your taste.  ;)

 

And I see that's a different Francis Bacon.  Oh, good -- I thought I had missed some of the essayist's other accomplishments (which I presumably have anyhow, but at least not that one).

[HerlockSholmes]

The more I thought about that one Carol the more I felt that I’d misunderstood Arcadia.

[Hikari]

The more I thought about that one Carol the more I felt that I’d misunderstood Arcadia.

[Arcadia]

Okay, I just spent the last five minutes re-reading and re-re-reading those last few posts, trying to figure out where the confusion lay. It took me that long to see it. Carol wins the interpretation war!

 

And it was years before I realized there were two Francis Bacons. How inconvenient! The swine.

[HerlockSholmes]

Okay, I just spent the last five minutes re-reading and re-re-reading those last few posts, trying to figure out where the confusion lay. It took me that long to see it. Carol wins the interpretation war!

 

And it was years before I realized there were two Francis Bacons. How inconvenient! The swine.

I have to take the blame for the confusion Arcadia. Aided by the vagaries of the English.

 

You used the phrase ‘I don’t know either’ by which you meant ‘I also dont know.’

 

As I’d mentioned my two Favourite artists (Bacon and Van Gogh) I took your sentence to mean ‘I don’t know either (of them.)’ And so for that short time Arcadia I thought that I’d met someone who had never heard of Vincent Van Gogh! I should have known better

[Arcadia]

Vincent who? :p

[Carol the Dabbler]

... it was years before I realized there were two Francis Bacons. How inconvenient! The swine.

*groan*