I signed off on all the proofs for the April issue this morning, at about 11:45 and walked into Robert Ray's office and said, "I can't stand this 'Vendetta Riders' splash page. My painting sucks!" And Robert said, "So go home and paint a new one."
So I did. In fact I painted three different versions, counting the big, ambitious piece of crap I did over the weekend. In fact, I finally, went back to the original study and added a half-dozen riders to it.
Daily Whip Out: "Vendetta Riders Final"
Here for your viewing displeasure are the failures (warning: looking at these is like viewing a slow-motion trainwreck):
"Piece of Crap, In Progress"
Not a bad start, some decent rendering here and there. . .
Piece of Crap Overworked
It's at this stage that I typically go into panic mode and start trying to lock down the elements.
"Piece of Crap Overpainted And Ruined Completely"
What is that, a laser gun?! Smothered the dust completely, broke the front legs on Wyatt's horse and made mud out of his face. If it's mud you want, I'm your Man!
"Every artist needs another artist to stand behind him with a mallet and at the appropriate moment, start bashing the artist on the back of the head, yelling out, 'Stop! Stop! You're ruining it!!'"
—Walter Henn, the late, great Lincoln, New Mexico artist and friend.
I'll be contrarian: the first one was magnificent... and I would proudly use it on the cover of one of my chapbooks if I were allowed to do so. Magnificent.
ReplyDeleteHa! One of my art teachers said something very similar. " The Two things an artist needs for making a great watercolor painting are talent...and a good friend to break your arm when you are finished." --- Bill Parks
ReplyDeleteI think you are being too hard on yourself Bob. I don't see any failures in the bunch....(but I do think that the first one is the best)