Storm

Remove all ads!

So I thought I would brainstorm some ideas about what to paint. There is a lot of potential in a 60" x60" canvas. The actual canvas size is 62" x 64" but I blocked out the appropriate size area with blue paint about inch wide more or less.

A large part of making fine-art is the process of thought. Most people who have not studied art do not understand the significance of Abstract Art. Abstract is actually a study taken from real life and abstracted down to a varying degree whether the abstraction may be visual or psychological.

I'm leaning towards abstraction because the concept is so huge that I'm not sure how to approach it.

This is the information that I have on the subject so far.

Evagrius of Pontus lived in the time period of 345 - 399. During that time he drew up a list of eight offenses and wicked human passions. In order of increasing badness - gluttony, lust, avarice, sadness, anger, acedia, vainglory, and pride.

All of those have a Punishment in hell, Animal, and Colour. Sadness does not. So if I choose to do a painting of the sin of sadness then I will have to decide what colour is appropriate - if I should use symbolism - if I want an object that represents a figure, or a figure, or something else to complete the composition.

I'm tempted to start painting and see what just appears but that might not be the way to go with this one.

 

I actually made my underpainting with a number of colours. (Like usual) And I'm a little mad at myself because it all seems too cliche with a giant eye in the middle and all. I don't think I reached nearly deep enough for it to be significant.

 

Right, I agree. I see blue in a lot of ways too. But there are a lot of people who associate blue with sadness - red with anger - green envy etc. I want to find a way to convey a message in a deeper way. Not so much what is expected.

 

What about warm and cold? Warm spectrum ranges from yellow to red, cold from violet to green, or so I understood. (Sort of like with lighting - incandescent lights are in the red range and are 'warm' which is why people like them, and fluorescents are in the blue/cold range, which is why people don't like them so much.) Also white = total light, black total lack of light, which should make sense as far as feelings of happiness or sadness go.

Proof! ... that sadness is blue and/or black, and happiness is orange and/or white.

See - I am (not) an expert!

p.s. - The notion of objectively sad or happy colors is an interesting one though, similar to major and minor keys in music. There is basically no consumer discretion allowed for as far as that goes - minor chords are universally perceived as discordant or dissonant and thus 'sad,' pretty much, with major being the opposite. Same for colors as applies to visual art, or is that too simplistic? And if not colors, is there anything else that's universal?

 

Actually there are cool yellows and reds as well and there are also warm greens and blues.

Also if you mix a couple of minor chords with a few major ones you can have a very interesting sounding piece.

 

Minor chords always win out, funnily enough.

What is an example of a cool yellow or a warm blue?

 

Cool yellow - Titanate Yellow
Warm blue - French Ultramarine

There are a lot of other examples but you would have to go get some paint and start mixing to find them.