News:

2008

Wednesday, June 11, 2008

A childhood favourite, John Wayne, from True Grit.

An enduring memory of my youth was watching "John Wayne" films. Whether a Green Beret in Vietnam or a gunslinger in the frontier, I couldn't ask for a bigger icon to whom I could aspire. It was a much more idealistic time in the sixties.

In particular, the role of Rooster Cogburn in True Grit, was a favourite of mine. He showed a certain vulnerability I did not see in other roles. The eyepatch itself seemed emblematic of elemental weaknesses: he was a drunken, uncouth, and undisciplined has-been. Yet, in the end, he rises to the challenge and meets the enemy head-on (literally) to win the day.

Throw in Robert Duvall and Glenn Campbell, and you've got one entertaining piece of celluloid.

Friday, May 23, 2008

Another famous icon joins the ranks.

Having only starred in 27 films during her illustrious, 37-year career, Audrey Hepburn, none the less, became one of the world's most enduring icons.

In particular, her role as Holly Golightly in the classic film, Breakfast at Tiffany's, will probably be how she is best remembered. It is for that reason, that I chose to personify her in my work as this most famous of her characters.

The cavalier manner in which she weilds her cigarette holder, was just one of the visual trademarks she employed, to great effect, in bringing Truman Capote's literary work to life on the silver screen.

Measuring 12 x 24 inches, this original work is painted in black acrylic on a primed, gallery-style canvas.

Sunday, May 11, 2008

Humphrey Bogart joins the gallery.

It seemed only fitting that after starting with two of Hollywood's most famous ladies, that I add an equally well-know male star to the collection. Bogart seemed the perfect place to start.

I recall watching many of his performances as part of my film-studies courses in University. Despite the versatility of his characters, it was his hard-boiled gumshoe, Sam Spade, who always resonated with me. So, it should seem no surprise that I chose to create a composition which embodies the spirit of that great film detective.

The starkness of my minimalist approach only seems to lend itself to this character, helping the contrast of harsh light played against dark shadows to reinforce a film-noir setting.

Monday, May 05, 2008

Second original painting honours Marilyn Monroe.

One of the world's most enduring celebrity icons, Marilyn Monroe seemed a logical choice for this series. Her curvaceous figure and seductive glance were her trademarks, and they are well suited to the minimalist approach I take with my subjects.

Because her entire body was so much a part of her visual brand, I felt it necessary to compose an image which showed as much of her in the frame as possible, as contrasted against my painting of Marlene Dietrich, which is composed primarily as a head-and-shoulders shot. I also integrated the three-dimensional aspect of the canvas into the composition by having Marilyn's hand reaching around the edge, holding the door.

Like the previous work, this original is painted in black acrylic on a stretched, gallery-style canvas, measuring 12 x 24 inches.

Monday, April 28, 2008

Bill completes first original canvas.

After a hiatus of almost thirty years, I have returned to painting original art — in this case, acrylic on stretched canvas, which was something new for me.

What started out as a response to my sweetheart's request for something to fill a space on the wall, turned into my first attempt at painting acrylic on gallery-style canvas. This is canvas stretched over one-and-a-half inch wooden bars — twice the thickness of regular canvas. This allows the work to be hung directly on the wall without the need for framing.

As a consequence of this style of canvas, I elected to paint the images around all four edges. This can create an interesting point-of-view, depending upon which angle the artwork is viewed from.

The piece measures 12 inches wide by 24 inches high and is painted with black acrylic on a white primed surface, then sealed with a satin varnish.

Look for more in this series to come.

Saturday, April 19, 2008

The ink is dry on Juxtapose VI.

The printing of Juxtapose VI marks the completion of the first third of the series. Work is ramping up to complete the series by the end of this summer.

Like the other prints in this series, Juxtapose VI seeks to challenge the viewer's perceptions of reality by removing all extraneous information from the composition. This minimalist approach avoids biasing the audience's judgement with preconceived notions of concensus reality.

Instead, the viewer must form their own opinion using only their own experience filters, creating a narrative which ultimately exposes their own biases. How many times have we encountered a situation which, upon first glance, proves to be entirely otherwise once we have the luxury of time to learn more about the players. Without the benefit of such insight, we are largely left to making knee-jerk reactions to first impressions.

Juxtapose VI is an edition of twelve (12), two-colour prints, measuring 15 x 15 inches. They are printed on Black Stonehenge 140 lb. archival paper, using permanent acrylic inks.

Friday, April 11, 2008

Version 4 of the Web site goes live.

Whether simply an effort to exercise my creative muscle or, frankly, the necessary evil of altering code to suit the ever changing environment of browsers, I have recently launched the fourth iteration of this site.

If you have ever visited this site using a standards-compliant browser, you probably are wondering why I am so concerned. Well, the unfortunate reality is that the most popular browser on the planet — the ubiquitous Internet Explorer, has largely thumbed its nose at Internet standards right up until the most recent update. As a result, almost half of the browsers currently in use will display my site in a somewhat haphazard or "broken" state.

While this latest version is certainly not perfect, it goes a great deal further than previous versions in addressing some of Explorer's deficiencies. Having said that, if you really want to experience this site's (or any other for that matter) intended layout, design, fonts and colours, then I highly recommend downloading and using Apple's Safari browser. It is available for both Macs and PCs and is blazing fast as well as fully standards-compliant. In other words, when you visit a site, it looks the way it was intended.

Tuesday, February 12, 2008

Bill accepts one-month contract with Canus Plastics.

The regular routine in the studio will be interrupted for several weeks. I have just agreed to provide silk screening services to the good folks at Canus Plastics in an effort to help them meet a crucial deadline with one of their clients.

The process will be somewhat different than that to which I am accustomed. Special enamel inks must be used in order for the ink to "bite" the plastic, creating a strong permanent bond. Unfortunately, this means using a respirator as such inks (and the solvents required) are quite noxious and can be harmful under prolonged exposure.

Wednesday, January 30, 2008

Juxtapose V is now ready for framing.

After more unforseen delays, the next serigraph in the Juxtapose series is now complete.

While the schedule seems to be fluctuating, the quality of the final prints is not suffering as a result. I have still been taking time to produce the necessary detail, a task which is challenging at the best of times when hand-painting with drawing fluid on a polyester screen.

All of the serigraphs in the Juxtapose series seek to challenge the viewer's perceptions of their surroundings by creating an unusual "juxtaposition" of characters. Our reliance on the collective conciousness tends to cloud our judgement of events to a fairly uniform degree among society. But, when looking beyond the prejudices of our sometimes myopic vision, we can begin to see an entire host of alternate possibilities to each scenario. I believe that only when we can open ourselves to the possibility that we really don't know what's going on, can we truly become open-minded.

Thursday, January 03, 2008

Bill completes first commissioned print.

Sometime in the fall of 2007, my girlfriend Manon had suggested that I create a very short edition of prints capturing the essence of her uncle's beloved cocker spaniel, Miguel.

In effect, she commissioned me to produce four final serigraphs to present to her uncles in time for Christmas.

Now, I don't profess to being a huge dog lover. Don't get me wrong — I love pets, just so long as they are someone else's. However, Miguel is truly special.

At about fifteen years of age now, Miguel is a pleasantly pampered little pooch, very set in his ways. Yet, he has the most doleful eyes I have ever seen, and weilds them with the precision of a sharp blade.

I really wanted to capture this element of Miguel's countenance. I ended up using an image I captured during his master's birthday party. The festivities were in full swing when Miguel, perched on his own lawn chair, looked forlornly over his left shoulder as if to suggest to me that there wasn't enough attention being paid to him. It was that moment which I captured and ultimately extended into the limited edition of four commissioned prints.

The serigraphs measure 15 x 15 inches and are printed on Stonehenge Black 140 lb. archival paper using three permanent acrylic inks. Each is signed and numbered by the artist and are exclusive to the collection of Mike Monderie and Gerald DesChamplains.