9 inches by 7.5 inches
acrylic paint and ink on found paper
October 17, 2010
Sunday, October 17, 2010
MOBY-DICK, Page 409
Title: ...as the wind howled on, and the sea leaped, and the ship groaned and dived, and yet steadfastly shot her red hell further and further into the blackness of the sea and the night, and scornfully champed the white bone in her mouth, and viciously spat round her on all sides; then the rushing Pequod, freighted with savages, and laden with fire, and burning a corpse, and plunging into that blackness of darkness, seemed the material counterpart of her monomaniac commander's soul.
9 inches by 7.5 inches
acrylic paint and ink on found paper
October 17, 2010
9 inches by 7.5 inches
acrylic paint and ink on found paper
October 17, 2010
An absolutely astounding line of text from the novel. I think I could easily have produced dozens of illustrations based on that passage. I had so many ideas, and they were all becoming more elaborate, more involved, and more detailed. I feared that if I gave in and ventured down that path, I might set myself back a week or two while I worked on just this one piece.
ReplyDeleteUltimately, after an earnest conversation with my wife about possible ways to approach this piece, and some self-reflection on one of the initial reasons for this entire project (to teach myself how to create simpler yet more expressive art more quickly and more intuitively) I decided on this more subtle and suggestive approach. In the end, I think this piece worked almost perfectly. It communicates everything I believe this passage from the novel does, but in ways that are difficult to articulate. A new favorite piece of mine.
i love this. i found it litterally arresting in that, late night, lots of work, wanting a quick wander into your blog, my scrolling screeched to a halt on this. i look forward to time to read your long write posted today, for now, i added that edition of moby dick into my cart at amazon's, for next trip to US in december... also awaiting momentarily the framed piece. tbc lizzy
ReplyDeleteI was initially so uncertain about this piece, but it is rapidly becoming one of my favorite pieces of art ever. At least, one of my favorites that I have ever made. Again, I attribute a lot of the success of this piece to luck rather than skill. I still don't feel very comfortable with a brush, and the looser and more suggestive the brushtrokes are, the more terrified I am of the outcome. But perhaps there is a lesson to be learned there.
ReplyDeleteyou are so precise with a brush - and intuition, i suppose and looseness are sources of art, don't you think? but i understand tha terror at looseness. anyway. love it
ReplyDelete