Studio E

Non-app-based vote possible for the Chromatic Typewriter!!

2012-01-19T18:47:00.001-08:00

The typewriter and a few paintings are altogether the portfolio I've entered into the 2012 Artists Wanted "Year in Review" competition. Please click the link above to vote (via a Facebook 'like') for this portfolio. It's the best I could manage for folks hoping to somehow support the little typewriter outside of the West Collects app. (Though you still need a Facebook account to vote--nothing is easy, so it seems.)

The People's Choice Award, which is awarded via the most 'likes' on a particular portfolio, is pretty interesting: a month long residency in a New York City loft. It would be fun, I think, to work on one or two large pieces during that month. We'll see, I'm entering the competition a little late, but I might still have a chance with your support!

Introducing the Chromatic Typewriter: A 2012 West Prize Entry

2011-12-07T19:34:00.000-08:00

The 2012 West Collects "West Prize Competition" is off and running. The little Chromatic Typewriter, a conceptual art piece, is out in the world and the feedback has been great. Although it does not paint, I've decided I can at least re-type my artist statement with the thing, so long as I can limit it to a paragraph. It ought to be equally decipherable as any other artist statement I've read lately.

I'm super excited about it. The reaction to the piece has been pretty special. It seems to be making a lot of people happy and it has started some great discussions on the translation of art into words and words into art. Folks with synesthesia seem to like it, too.

If you have an iPhone/iPad/Ipod, please download the app and browse around. ~~Don't press the 'Top Dogs" button or it'll hang and you'll have to delete the app and then re-load it.~~ (Edit: the new version fixed that bug. Seems to work great now.) The "search" function seems to work, and the scrolling works last time I checked. Seriously, bugs aside, it will bring some amazing art to your iDevice. And please remember: YOU CAN VOTE ON THE TYPEWRITER ONCE A DAY. I really need those votes!

http://westcollects.com/westCollection/view_artist/artwork/2718

For everyone else, I'm sorry you are unable to vote. I truly am. But please give the West Collects folks some kudos. $300,000 is a lot of money to spend and it's going to make a bunch of artists very happy and help them continue on with their work. In a seemingly darkening world, at least we still have art.

Progress

2011-08-23T19:55:00.001-07:00

I've had this painting hanging around the studio for two years and for the most part had liked where it was, but still felt it needed something else. I was never entirely happy with the top third of the piece. It served no purpose, really. I thought about unstretching it and cutting it down, but never got to it. The bottom was interesting enough: the "islands" are a pretty transparent green, and there was some interesting things happening with the yellows. Still... This painting nagged at me every time I had to move it out of the way.

So, a little facelift was in order.

Progress

2011-08-22T01:56:00.001-07:00

Here's a last look at a work-in-progress. I'll have this one up and finished for Art Walk on the 2nd of September. See you then!

Process: How the stretcher bars are made!

2011-08-12T12:39:00.000-07:00

It all starts here in the shop, ripping up 2x2" utility-grade dimensional lumber to size. One side of each 8' stick has a 15 degree chamfer cut the length of the stick. If I'm not cutting lumber for specific pieces of painted-on, un-stretched canvas, I'll cut the lumber down to a number of standard lengths (24", 36", 18", etc.), otherwise, the leftover lengths from the larger pieces become nice sized stretcher bars. After the chamfered pieces are cut to size, the pieces are mitered.

Back in the studio the pieces are assembled, glued & screwed. Larger stretcher frames are constructed with cross braces.

I use a sturdy #12 cotton duck canvas. It's best to buy the stuff in bulk, rather than retail. A 6' x 30 yard roll like this costs about $130, which is about half of the retail cost for canvas.

Here the canvas is rolled out and the stretcher bars are laid out, then the canvas is cut to fit, stretched, stapled, and folded and ready for gesso.

Gesso provides a barrier between the cotton fibers and the oil paint (primarily linseed oil). Oils would, over a relatively short time, degrade and rot out the cotton canvas. In the past, painters would size the canvas with rabbit skin glue, which provided a better barrier between the oils and the canvas, and tightened the canvas significantly, but was still prone to cracking, as it is a hydroscopic (water-absorbent) substance, which expands and contracts with changes in humidity.

Modern acrylic gessoes do a great job of sealing the canvas from the oil paints, providing a flexible surface upon which the painting-- --should it ever require restoration-- can actually be taken off the gessoed canvas and re-mounted to another piece of canvas. I use two thick coats. One to seal the cotton canvas, and one to provide some initial texture.

I set these outside the studio to dry and went ahead and tacked another sheet of canvas to the wall.

This one is six feet by seven feet. I already have a good start on it and can't wait for the paint to dry enough to begin the long and interesting process of 'glazing', which is the application of thin, transparent layers of color. Here's the under-painting, pretty well fleshed out:

Stay tuned for updates, mostly happening on the Facebook page!

Location:Bellingham,United States

New work summer 2011: the (big) squares

2011-08-08T21:15:00.001-07:00

Untitled. 70"w x 65"h

In all the years I've been painting I have avoided painting squares, until recently. I chalk up that reluctance to my training as a 35mm photographer, and the way that I found composition to be more natural in that particular aspect ratio. Squares, I found, were just not suited to containing a horizon.

Untitled. 65"w x 66"h

I recently attempted to get past that creative block, and to do so I figured I might as well go big: If I was going to paint on a square, it was going to be one big square. So I removed the built-in easel on the painting wall, patched up the holes and scraped and sanded down until I had a nice uniform surface: a place where I could staple up a 7'x7' piece of canvas and go to town.

The first attempt was just too intimidating and I couldn't even bring myself to put any color on the large square, so I ended up cutting the thing in half and making two separate paintings in the usual aspect ratio: more wide than tall. They are here:

The second attempt is here:

                                     Untitled. 68"w x 55"h

It took about eight months to finish this painting (the progress is somewhat demonstrated here.) As it is wont to do, the day job kept me away from the studio quite a bit. I eventually reached a point where I was very happy with the sky and the treeline, but the bottom third lacked any sort of interest whatsoever. I came very close to cutting it off, even, which would have resulted in something not quite a square, and sort of defeated my attempt to just get over any anxiety about squares.

The river and the grass in the foreground were sketched in, and that seemed to unify the thing as a square painting. I'm sure that some of you will recognize the tricks I had to employ in 'correcting' the perspective of the river. That was a huge pain in the ass, and several times I came close to screwing that whole section up. This was, incidentally, also the first painting in a long time that was significantly more representational than abstract. I enjoyed the challenge of tightening things up a bit.

                                     Untitled. 68"w x 54"h

The next few squares, including the blue one at the top of this entry, were of varying sizes. Now I'm completely hooked on large paintings, and (I should add) over the idea that I can't paint squares.

                                     Untitled. 70"w x 65"h

There are a few problems though. The first is that I need to get into the shop and construct a bench to stand upon to help me reach the tops of these things. At the moment I'm using a couple of milk crates and two hollow core closet doors. After a couple months of use, the doors are now crackling a bit as I walk over them. And the crates can slip out of alignment and create a tipping issue. See that sort of green brush mark in the center and just below the horizon? That was one of those 'tipping issues'.

Lastly, who has the wall space for one of these? No one I know at the moment. I guess there are corporate clients who need larger pieces (call me, will ya?), but having any more of these also presents a bit of a storage problem: Studio E is only so big. That won't stop me from painting big, though.

In the works...

2011-05-16T11:35:00.000-07:00

Waterfront Artist Studios and Studio E will be open for next Month's Art Walk here in Bellingham. June 3 is the date and the walk happens from 6pm to 10pm. You must come to this Art Walk to see what we've done to the place. We spent the past Saturday ripping out the carpet, scraping down the glue and repainting the floor: it looks great! We're also working on live music and -as always- we will have plenty of food and drink. Quite possibly I will have fired up the still by then, too, so if you ask nicely you might get a sample of plum moonshine.

I'm still waiting for the weather to improve so that I can get outside with a few like-minded artists (Todd Horton, Steven Cousins, and John Webster) for some en plein air work and adventuring. I'll be showing again at The Table in August and hope to have a bunch of the smaller plein aire pieces available. Steven has work up there now and it looks fantastic.

The Blue Horse gallery is pulling out all the stops for artists on the Whatcom Artist Studio Tour. Details are still being hammered out, but there will be a big opening with artwork from all the artists on the tour, and a reception or two during the run-up to October's Studio Tour. I'll post the information as it becomes available.

I'm also looking forward to some sunshine. It's been a wet and cloudy spring so far. Even the the evergreens are begging for towels at this point.

A whole slew of new work and work in progress right here:

2011-05-05T10:45:00.000-07:00

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Tyree Callahan | Painting and Poetry

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Save the Date! December 3 Downtown Art Walk

2010-11-01T08:51:00.000-07:00

The Waterfront Artist Studios will be hosting a gala opening on December 3. 14 talented artists on one floor! New work in progress: pictures may be posted soon, but don't hold your breath.

See you there!

Paintings up at The Table

2010-10-07T10:02:00.000-07:00

A small series of paintings is now up at The Table, on Commercial Street, adjacent to the Mount Baker Theatre. Try the Rosalyn Brewery beer while you are there. That stuff is delicious!

It's been too long, old friend

2010-08-09T13:52:00.000-07:00

New show at the Honey Salon this month. 310 West Holly. A mix of old a new work. Great space. There are two new pieces on the wall at the studio. I had grand ambitions of photographing the entire process of the larger piece, but...The way I paint is so utterly time-consuming and chaotic I gave up after the first month. At this rate, then final slide show could have topped 500 images. I'm a terrible painter, at least in terms of efficiency.

September's First Friday Art Walk is shaping up to be a big deal. Please stop by. We get pretty excited at the Waterfront now that we're on the walk on a quarterly basis.

New poems are in the works! One involves 20,000 bright red ants.

More later...

Art Walk Friday June 4

2010-06-01T17:04:00.000-07:00

That's affirmative! The Waterfront Artist Studio Collective will be open for our quarterly gala this Friday the 4th. Come see new work by Bellingham's most amazing group of artists. There will be food, drinks, merriment and live music. See you there. 6pm-10pm.
More here

Where to go for inspiration

2010-05-24T11:33:00.000-07:00

Process. Every so often someone will ask about the things that inspire me. Because I am the only one in my family that drools over sunrises and sunsets, I have to admit that my inspiration is mostly culled from the play of natural light over landscape. Nothing really novel there. I do, however, have a machine that sometimes helps me to find that light. May I introduce?

This is a 1980 Honda CT110. Often called the "Postie Bike", because of it's long-running service with the Australian Postal Service. It's not too fast, very light and nimble and great for exploring the endless Cascade foothill logging roads. Here, it is perched on Blanchard Mountain looking westward over the San Juan islands.

It is small enough to get under or around locked gates and/or fallen trees or to go further into the forest where the old roads, like this one, are devoured by nature.

(This photo reminds me to buy a machete for the next ride.)

The motorcycle allows me to attain vistas I'd not otherwise have the energy to reach, with time enough to sketch, paint or just soak in scenes like this, the Samish Overlook on Blanchard.

As much as I dearly love the CT110, I am thinking about an upgrade. Something that will at least go 50mph and permit me to travel on highways. Ideally something like this:

(If it isn't concealed, you don't need a permit, right?)
Okay, I guess I'll settle for something with less firepower and more room for art supplies. But...Wait a minute...are those really camouflage tires?

Dry Spell

2010-05-20T15:23:00.000-07:00

Regression. I'm considering a career in storm chasing instead. Where did all the hours go? The last few years I lived in Arizona (some 20 years ago now) I chased thunderstorms at every single opportunity during the monsoon season. Somewhere around here I have a box with hundreds of photos of some pretty incredible storms; photos I wouldn't want any loved one to see, frankly: you could get shocked just by handling them. It's a wonder I'm alive: my tripod was pretty tall, after all. And aluminum. From less than 50 yards away I've witnessed huge satellite dishes glow a blinding purple upon being struck by lighting, my ears left ringing by the simultaneous cannon-cry of thunder: the very sky torn open for a brief second by the hot expansion of electrons. I've been scared to pieces by the fury of nature and ever thankful for non-conducting rubber tires on cars. I miss that rush, I guess, that feeling of a storm brewing.

Something similar wells up inside every creative-type, I'm sure. A creative storm (if you'll pardon the awful cliche): A blinding and overriding need need to create... But for the love of Sushi where the hell is it right now? All I want to do is quit work and go chase storms.

Larger than life

2010-03-20T22:59:00.000-07:00

Progress. I think I've had this one on the wall for about three months now. I wanted to paint big. I covered the east wall with a piece of primed canvas that was about 70" by 60". Right away it was too intimidating and not in the right format: I can't seem to paint on a squarish shape to save my life. So I cut the thing in half and ended up with two rather large 'widescreen' pieces of canvas. This is the final result of canvas number 1, measuring 70" wide by 31" tall.

There was a particular challenge in this painting. I wanted an offset focal point, but I still wanted one's eye to be able to travel around a little. Here the focal point at left is (I hope) balanced with the brighter areas on the right, creating what I hope is a nice "reading" of the whole. Hopefully the eyes won't get bored (click on the painting for a larger version and see for yourself). It is yet unmounted and unframed. I reckon I should wrap up the lingering projects in the garage and get the woodworking tools out again.

Now for the second half. I've been staring at that blank canvas tacked to the wall for two days now and don't have the slightest clue where to start.

Open Studio(s)

2009-12-18T09:32:00.000-08:00

Studio E will be open on Sunday December 20 from 10a.m. to 3p.m. for an end-of-the-year sale. Refreshments and snacks provided! I may also convince a few of the other artists in the collective to open their doors, too! Please stop by, look at some work in progress and find a great deal on local art. See you there!

New work in progress

2009-10-07T13:50:00.000-07:00

Some nice things are happening here on this much larger piece. A little experimentation can go a long way. Very wet pigments, plenty of dripping paint and multiple glazes are all coming together to create a nice surface.

I'm also rediscovering a source of inspiration I had misplaced. My parents were stained glass artists and it's no exaggeration to say I grew up in beams of intensely colored Arizona sunlight that filtered through the windows my father constructed for the house. The glass studio-- itself a room in the house --had an incredible variety of art glass manufactured by Bullseye, Spectrum, and others, and a few sheets were simply too beautiful to cut into. While I was bringing down the blue from the top of this painting, the effect and color created as it began flirting with the reds below suddenly reminded me of a particular sheet of glass in the studio. From that small memory came a wellspring of other memories and the rest of the day I spent thinking about the possibility of working in glass myself at some point.

For now I guess I'll focus on the painting.

Here's a detail from a very similar piece.

Be sure to visit the studio on October 10 & 11, from 10 am to 5pm, for the Whatcom Artist Studio Tour. I think this one ought to be just about finished by then.

You know that kind of light....

2009-10-06T14:26:00.000-07:00

This small piece is one of a series of small paintings I'm working on between the larger paintings. I like the small pieces because they are cheap to frame and I can let them go for a song. Additionally, not everyone has room for a larger piece. These also look really fantastic in groups of two or three with the gilded frames. It's like having a minuature museum wall.

Whatcom Artist Studio Tour

2009-10-05T09:02:00.000-07:00

While not part of the official tour, Studio E will be open for the 15th annual Whatcom Artist Studio Tour October 10-11, from 10am to 5pm. Fellow painter and studio neighbor Todd Horton is on the tour and it is the single best time of year to see a majority of his work and to pick up some great deals on art. I look forward to seeing you there!

New work and new work in progress will be posted soon!

A Prize!

2009-05-04T15:01:00.000-07:00

Well, I've really done it this time. In the absence of pigment and something to paint upon, I used words. I subsequently submitted those words to the 4th annual Sue C. Boynton Poetry Contest and, well, won! So my poem, along with nine other linguistic paintings, will be engraved and put on display for a whole year at the Bellingham Public Library's "Poetry Walk", right outside the library. The poem will also be printed up and displayed inside WTA buses for the same time period. There will be an awards ceremony and a public reading of the winning poems on Wednesday, May 13, 2009 in the Whatcom Museum of History and Art's Rotunda Room at 7:00pm sharp. It would be swell to see most of you.

Comparison

2009-02-12T22:56:00.000-08:00

The finished painting above began with warmer tones groping for imagery:

When the painting arrived at this stage, elements of landscape could be recognized, so I began to bring down the sky and work some cooler greens on the horizon (using thin blue glazes over the orange and yellow) , yet the overall paining was still fairly abstract. I enjoy working in this gray area immensely-- the place where representation and abstraction come together-- but it can also cause frustration, especially when the abstraction does not yield.

Here is an example of an "unyielding" abstraction:

I still don't know what this is supposed to 'be', if anything. And I know that's part of the problem, sometimes: trying to force something to be what it really has no intention of being. Sometimes things are beautiful as they are. This painting isn't quite there yet, though.

New paintings

2009-02-09T19:42:00.001-08:00

There are many paintings in progress at Studio E! This one is nearing a point where I'm ready to consider it finished. I am a fussy painter. It is very difficult for me to call a painting "finished"; in general, I don't consider a piece finished until one of two things happen: a) it is sold and leaves the studio, and/or b) I have lived with it hanging on a wall for at least six months without feeling like it needed more paint.

Every single painting, including the one above, has been a minimum of two other paintings during its stay in Studio E. For example, the texture at the bottom of the above painting used to represent a cloudy sky, right side up. The two horizontal lines above and below the trees were old horizon lines, one of which sat a crisply-defined waterline under the aforementioned clouds. Turn it upside down and it's a new painting altogether. A rich history exists here, and portions of the painting's past, along with the minutiae of brushstrokes and broken bristles, emerge with careful study.

The intention herein is to track the progression (and often, regression) of these creations. How in the world does this...

...emerge from nothing but a white expanse? What a fascinating process painting is! It will be a treat to share with you, dear readers, the process, progress, the frustrations and the unexpected discoveries.

Don't forget to come out to the Bellingham First Friday Art Walks and stop by the studio. 6-10pm. We'll have treats and refreshments and usually some great live bluegrass!