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Below are both the photos of the murals as the painting progressed, as well as sketches and color studies. They pretty much speak for themselves; and while there was significant sketching and photo research to get to this point, these are the highlights. Needless to say, I went through a lot of paint, and broke about four pallette knives. Though it was a challenge in some ways to paint in the dead of winter (some weeks it never got above freezing), it was actually a huge blessing: I could mix up large piles of paint and then draw from those pre-mixed colors over subsequent days and weeks, as it wouldn't dry when it was so cold. This saved time and, more importantly, allowed for a much greater complexity and consistency of color. |
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NORTH PANEL Here are a few photos of the painting as it has progrssed. Notice how each additonal piece influences the other, either empahsizing, or de-emphasizing different parts and relationships. |
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SOUTH PANEL This is the mural which will go on the South side of the barn. It has been painted in about three weeks.
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NORTH COLOR STUDY
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Here is the official color study of the North Panel. There were some things that definitely changed as this progressed to the final. |
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SOUTH COLOR STUDY
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| This is the South Panel. There were some things that I really loved, and others that I was still thinking about. |
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SKETCHES
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This was one of the first color sketches I did. I was in a children's book illustration class at the time, hence the definite style. Originally, I was thinking about being very narrative and showing the pioneers coming across the plains and arriving in the Valley, and finally, Philo and his wife facing West planting seeds. The progression of Seasons from winter to fall also seemed like a good idea at the time, but in effect becomes one giant rainbow. And a huge chromatic circus didn't exactly say "Heritage and Faith" to me. And even though the narrative idea was fine, I wanted to be a little more symbolic. Eventually, I would end up even more literal with the scene itself holding elements of symbolism. Also, forgive the hack Photoshop job, the original illustration was only three quarter width, but I wanted to get a quick full panel idea for some mock-ups. |
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Final Sketch-North Panel
You'll notice a big change from my initial thoughts above to this final sketch. At least I hope you do. There were dozens of intermediate versions in between that and this, but it got closer to where I wanted to go with it. This sketch was done from the final photo montage that you'll see on the Barn Project home page. I slid the vanishing point over, as well as the trees to give her some more breathing room. This sketch is set at sunset, and the back panel (below) is set at sunrise. This change allows for both symbolic and color variation.There were some slight proportion problems in the female figure that were rectified in the final painting.
Final Sketch-South Panel
This sketch is quite in line with the vision I had for the painting. As with the previous sketch, I put several photos together to get the right reference.
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