Truth in Painting
One of the secrets to making a good painting is to refrain from filling it with extraneous marks. These are marks without purpose or thought. This is a challenge painters experience throughout their artistic life. It could be compared to asking a writer not to include any extra words in their prose. Sometimes it is really hard to tell the difference between a "true mark" and one that is just made to fill in space. Ideally each mark in a painting should be considered and be the necessary one for that moment and that space.
One of the reasons I object to people re-using old canvases textured with the residue of previous paintings, is because all that bumpy texture has nothing to do with the new painting. I'm not against the repurposing of surfaces, but the “used” surface has to be considered as already having a previous meaning and a life of its own.
The same thing happens when a painter excessively overpaints to cover up previous brushstrokes and disguise “mistakes”. It is like a lie that always finds itself out. Covering up a mistake is often a way of drawing attention to it. Painting doesn't lie. If you are just quickly filling up space with your brush and not considering what you are doing, it will be evident in the final result.
The strength of Jeremy Herndl's work (currently on display in the Slide Room Gallery at VISA), is that all his brushmarks feel considered and necessary; there is an urgent confidence to the way he uses his brush. There is no covering up of errors. And he is not dabbing paint with his brush just to fill in space. The "dabs" are all specific parts of a greater whole. When looking at his work, you feel as if you could trace every mark made from the start of the painting to the finish. Nothing appears to be hidden or deliberately covered up.
In the detail image of Herndl's Castle and Tree, you can see the individual marks that make up the full image. You will notice that on close viewing, the work is made up of abstract marks of varying thicknesses; there are areas where the paint has been diluted to such an extent you can see the original surface and other areas where the paint is layered on like thick icing. Each mark is specific and holds its own on the painting's surface.
Herndl's paintings are representational without being photographically realistic. The work speaks a lot about the way our eyes perceive things. We see things in fragments and our brain puts together these elements so we can make sense of the world. It definitely takes time and focus to pay attention to the details of perception, but the end result makes for a satisfying painting.
There is no need for an image-based painting to look like a photograph. It is much more exciting to have paintings that offer multiple ways of seeing them. Herndl's paintings seem to dissolve into abstraction as soon as you get close to them. The viewers gaze shifts from the image to the paint. The method of painting is true to the materiality and physicality of the medium used.
John Marin (1870-1953) was an early modernist who spent much of his life painting the sea. I compare him to Herndl because Marin fills his surfaces with purposeful brushstrokes that also melt into abstraction at close glance. Marin was one of the first American artists to make abstract paintings and his innovative approach and expressive brushwork led the way to the abstract expressionist movement. For more information on Marin’s work, there are two excellent videos: John Marin's Watercolors: A Medium for Modernism and Marin's Work: In the White Mountains.
I appreciate that in both Herndl and Marin, you can see glimpses of the original substrate -nothing is covered completely. You can see the first marks and the last marks. This gives the work a freshness and an aliveness. These artists give us multiple ways to experience their work -one as an expressive and emotional image and the other as surface of energetic marks of very physical paint.
Herndl's work can be seen at the Slide Room Gallery until September 25.
For more information on Herndl’s work:
You too can learn how to approach drawing or painting with focus and integrity in one of the upcoming courses offered at the Vancouver Island School of Art.
Wendy Welch
Executive Director
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Jeremy Herndl, Castle and Tree (2022),
oil on linen, 48 x 36"
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Detail: Castle and Tree (above)
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John Marin, Castorland, New York (1913)
oil on canvas 22 x 27"
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John Marin, Hurricane (1944)
oil on canvas 25 x 30"
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John Marin, Autumn, On The Road To Addison, Maine (1946), oil on canvas. 28 by 22"
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Fall 2022 Courses
Our Fall Courses are now open for registration!
To check out course schedule:
See below for a small sampling of options
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This drawing course focuses on some of the current themes in contemporary drawing such as: mark making, mapping, science, nature, architecture, ornament, narrative and nostalgia. The focus is on a mixed media approach to imaginative explorations in image making.
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In this new craft-focused course, students will learn basic quilting, embroidery and cross stitch techniques with a focus on mapping and memory. Students will have opportunities to learn and develop skills in two-dimensional artwork, sculpture and book making.
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With simple tools such as scissors, glue and found materials, students will find excitement and spontaneity in class projects, while learning essential foundation principles of composition and colour.
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This course offers a thematic approach to the hands-on study of painting. Topics in Painting Today I include The Photographic, The Figure and Painting Space.
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Do you want to learn to draw but don't know how to get started? This is an ideal course for people with little or no experience in drawing. By the end of twelve weeks you will have the confidence to sit down in front of any subject and start to draw.
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With a focus on the overarching theme of flora and fauna, this course provides a “sampler” of art materials, processes as well as professional practices such as learning to write an artist statement.
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Fall 2022 Workshops
Our Fall Workshops are now open for registration!
To check out workshop schedule:
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For those of you who are unable to commit to a course try our
or
drop-in sessions
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ERRANT ART SPACE
Gfran Alakash and Farid Abdulbaki
Homeland
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Opening Friday, August 12, 6-9pm
This is a two-person exhibition of a couple who left Syria to make a permanent home in Canada. Visual artist Farid Abdulbaki presents an array of paintings centred around his homeland of Syria. The poetry of Ghran Alakash is displayed in beautiful calligraphic script by local artists Lorriane Douglas and Kathy Guthrie. The exhibition is curated by Ira Hoffecker and Jane Coombe.
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XCHANGES
Neil McClelland
Bright Black Starry Sunny Night
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September 9-25, 2022
Opening Reception: September 9, 7-9pm
Artist Talk: September 24, 2pm
For more information & gallery hours:
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MADRONA GALLERY
Halin de Repentigny
The Way We Are
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September 10-24, 2022
For more information & gallery hours:
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ERRANT ART SPACE
Group Exhibition
We Are A Very Naughty Group
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September 16-October 2, 2022
For more information & gallery hours:
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GAGE GALLERY
Anna B. Grant
The Painted Land
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For more information & gallery hours:
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DELUGE
High Summer Screenings
A wonderful selection of art-related films being screened at Deluge for the month of August. For the list of films:
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FIFTY-FIFTY
Group Exhibition
Unmarket
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Continues to September 2, 2022
For more information & gallery hours:
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OPEN SPACE
Group exhibition
For Love, Loss & Land
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Continues to October 29, 2022
For more information & gallery hours:
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AGGV
Group Exhibition
Adorned
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Continues to November 20, 2022
For more information & gallery hours:
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Deadline: August 30, 2022
For more information:
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Consider giving a donation to your art school |
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Over the last two years, the Vancouver Island School of Art has relied entirely on tuition and donations from our generous supporters to keep our organization running. All fundraising initiatives were cancelled. We need your help more than ever to keep Victoria's only downtown art school alive and well. We appreciate all donations no matter how small. To donate online click button below. |
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All donations are tax deductible. Donors will receive a tax receipt as soon as donation is processed.We are extremely grateful to all who support us in bringing dynamic art courses and workshops to Victoria and surrounding area.
Registered Charity # 86392 1433 RR0001
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