The Paintings of David Oleski The Studio Journal |
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Monday, September 22, 2003I'm back from the weekend in Armonk. We worked hard, we had fun, and now we're both totally exhausted. Many more paintings have found new homes, and once again my inventory of work becomes even smaller.
I spent today catching up on paperwork and stretching a few more large canvases, in preparation for the arrival of yet more white tulips tomorrow morning. This wraps up an amazingly productive and exciting summer. I still have a few more good shows over the next few weeks, culminating with the big four day One of a Kind show in Chicago in December. I've already started applying to a string of Florida shows for February and March, and we're researching some new midwest shows for next summer as well. Throughout all of this we'll be looking for a new studio space, so it's safe to say that some really big changes are in store for the future.
Read on...to Fall of 2003
Friday, September 19, 2003I'm finished with the painting, and as usual we're racing out the door for a delivery in NYC, and then on up to Armonk to get ready for an early morning setup.
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Thursday, September 18, 2003I continued to develop the new painting of white tulips against a dark red background. Throughout the day the sky was a steely gray from the approaching hurricane. I hope my windows don't get blown out, as supposedly tonight there's going to be some fairly intense wind. I'll be finishing this painting before the end of tomorrow's session, in time to drive north to this coming weekend's show in Armonk, just north of NYC.
Wednesday, September 17, 2003I finished mixing colors for the new painting of white tulips against a dark red background. I managed to throw down a first resolution of paint just to get things moving before the sky grew dark. As I was cleaning up, I caught a glimpse of the very end of a spectacular sunset. There are so many things that I don't see within the narrow focus of my attention. There was a time when I loved to watch the sunsets from the windows of my studio, but now it's rare that I notice them before they've been reduced to a crimson edge on the horizon.
Tuesday, September 16, 2003I brought the painting of white tulips against a blue background to a swift and smashing finish. Like an automaton forging blindly ahead with only one central purpose I immediately started mixing colors for my next painting. I'm looking forward to tomorrow, when I'll launch myself headlong into the abyss of another large painting of white tulips.
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Monday, September 15, 2003The painting of white tulips against a blue background is almost finished. I should be able to wrap this up in time to start yet another large painting of white tulips against dark red. I feel that I'm finally back in the mindset to make fast and broadly sweeping color decisions. Things seem to be moving quickly, and once again I'm comfortable with throwing around some huge amounts of paint.
Sunday, September 14, 2003The paint was really flying today when I slammed down the first resolutions of color on this new large painting of white tulips against a blue background. I'm hoping to see this piece coming fairly close to completion by the end of tomorrow's session. We shall see.
Saturday, September 13, 2003I finished the painting of three red bartlett pears, and immediately started mixing colors for a large painting of white tulips against a blue backdrop. Tomorrow will be an exciting day when the paint really starts flying.
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Friday, September 12, 2003I am almost finished with the new painting of three red bartlett pears.
I received a phone call last night, announcing that white tulips are once again available, so I raced down to Central Market this morning and picked up two nice bouquets. I am looking forward to diving into a large painting of tulips tomorrow.
Thursday, September 11, 2003I finished the painting of three bosc pears.
I immediately started on another small painting, this time of three dark red bartlett pears against a dark yellow background. I managed to block in the colors in the last few minutes of fading sunlight. Tomorrow should see this piece start to snap together.
Wednesday, September 10, 2003I'm almost finished with this new painting of three bosc pears. I should easily be finished with this tomorrow, hopefully in time to start an exciting new painting of some nice red bartlett pears I picked up a few days ago.
Tuesday, September 9, 2003I laid some paint down on this new three bosc pears painting, but now I'm racing out the door to go to my Rittenhouse Square Fine Arts Association board meeting.
Monday, September 8, 2003I'm back from Wilmington, busily mixing colors for my next painting of bosc pears. The weekend in Brandywine Park was quite enjoyable. Our neighbor for the second year in a row was Richard Carlson, which helped to make the show even more pleasant. Other artists that were present from our circle of friends were Chuck Kaiser, Stephen Brehm, and my high school art teacher Marilyn Hobday and her husband Dennis. We also ran into an old friend of mine from a show I did several years ago, one particularly lively little fireball, Kim Robertson. Just about every one of my Wilmington clients from over the years stopped by to say hello, and on Saturday night we stayed at the comfortable home of Drew and Sherry Hastings, the proud owners of Brandywine Sunflowers. We had a nice barbecue on the patio to the gentle sound of the fountain in their little koi fish pond. It was all very nice. Another large painting found a new home in Wilmington, and I even shook hands with a 100 year old man. The fun just never stopped. Now I'm exhausted, and looking forward to starting a new series of paintings, embracing the colors of fall with several varieties of pears.
Friday, September 5, 2003I've brought the painting of three pears to a smashing finish. Once again the fervor of the moment has produced some of my finest works, and now I'm racing out the door to Wilmington to set up for this weekend's show. Every year I seem to be setting up in the dark at this show because of trying to put the final snap to a painting. Such is life.
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Thursday, September 4, 2003It feels like it's been almost a week since I've been in the studio painting. At my show last weekend, a client pointed out that I haven't painted pears at all so far this year. So today I mixed colors and slammed down a first resolution on a commissioned painting of three bosc pears. I'll work intently on this painting tomorrow, ultimately to see it finished by the end of the day. This weekend is the Brandywine Art Show in Wilmington, Delaware, so once again I'll be out of the studio for a few days.
Here is the painting before I blocked in colors.
And here it is after I threw some paint around.
Friday, August 29, 2003The first day of Long's Park show was ended early today when the sky grew dark and the wind started kicking up. Thunderstorm warnings had everyone scrambling to tie things down, and by the time the sun came back out the public was nowhere to be seen. Once the show was officially ended I wasted no time racing home to finish the tryptic of gala apples. It is a lively and solid painting series.
I have to admit that it's pretty strange being back at my home computer to make a journal entry in the middle of a show. I've already lined up a commission for next week, and there seems to be serious interest in several of my larger paintings. I'm looking forward to tomorrow.
Thursday, August 28, 2003Amid great frustration and anxiety, I almost finished the new tryptic of gala apples. I'm sure at this point my cats believe I'm totally insane, as I bounced off the walls trying to finish this piece before this upcoming weekend's show. With the show only a short ten minute drive up the road, I'm hoping to be able to somehow work in one more short session to finish banging this piece out.
Wednesday, August 27, 2003I'm back to work again, this time working on a tryptic of brilliant yellow gala apples. Tomorrow morning I'm setting up for the Long's Park show in Lancaster, and then returning to the studio to finish this piece.
The show last weekend was exciting and successful. Several paintings found new homes, and we continued to cultivate a strong following in Highland Park. It was like a who's who of the top artists in the show circuit. We caught up with some of our old friends, including pastel artist Jeffrey Cannon and Paige from Austin, and sculptor/photographer Luca Battaglia from Abiquiu, New Mexico, as well as the legendary multimedia artist David Gordon. We even spent some time with the surgeon that operated on my voice last year, Dr. Tucker and his wife Cindy. One of the many high points of the weekend was sitting down with them to have sushi on Monday night, and finally having a chance to get to know them a little better. We finally made it home on Tuesday afternoon, and I'm barely back on my feet again in preparation for this coming weekend's show. It's good to be busy.
Thursday, August 21, 2003I finished yet another small painting of two granny smith apples. We're out of time, and packing madly to get on the highway heading west.
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Wednesday, August 20, 2003I'm finished with the small painting of two granny smith apples.
Against all better judgment, I may attempt to execute one more painting before we begin our trip to Chicago tomorrow evening.
Tuesday, August 19, 2003I'm finally finished with the large painting of sunflowers.
I wasted no time immediately starting on a tentative commission for a small vertical format painting of two granny smith apples. This will be the third time I've done this tentative commission, and maybe at some point it will actually make it to the intended client before someone else claims it.
Monday, August 18, 2003And just when I'm finally back in the studio, racing to finish this painting for once and for all, the sun starts fading from the sky even earlier than ever before, and in the murky darkness I'm still stabbing at this painting, trying to fight it back into submission one more time. It might be finished, I'll see tomorrow.
Sunday, August 17, 2003Of course I'm not finished with the painting yet. I'm racing out the door to take Heather into Philadelphia, and staying over to ship a painting to Madison in the morning. I hope to get right back to work on this painting and wrap it up tomorrow.
Saturday, August 16, 2003I continued to work on the large painting of sunflowers. I've discovered some crucial elements to the saturation of light and color within the flowers themselves, and hopefully I'll be almost finished with this by the end of tomorrow's session.
Friday, August 15, 2003I slammed down some colors to get things started on the large painting of sunflowers. It is turning out to be an exciting piece, and I'm looking forward to making some more progress on this tomorrow.
Thursday, August 14, 2003I started mixing colors for a large vertical painting of sunflowers in a glass vase. This will be a bold and exciting painting.
Wednesday, August 13, 2003I'm finished with the large painting of a mixed trio of apples.
This morning I took Schwartz to the vet for blood tests. When they handed him back to me, blood was pouring out of his body onto the floor and the front of the technician's clothing. I was a little freaked, but apparently it clotted quickly on its own and stopped. It was strange seeing a puddle of my cat's blood on the floor. Life is so fragile.
Tuesday, August 12, 2003I continued to work on the large painting of a mixed trio of apples, almost finishing it. This morning I picked up a massive bouquet of sunflowers, and stretched another large canvas. I'm looking forward to embarking upon what will surely prove to be a maddening challenge in the next day or two. I must do what I must do.
Monday, August 11, 2003I started on another large painting of a mixed trio of apples today. This will be my challenge to see how quickly and easily I can capture the same image in less time, with fewer marks, and less frustration.
Today I ironed out details of the Art Sunday show in Lancaster in October. I will be doing it this year, but not at the Trust Building where I've been for the past three years. We'll see if it's something, or if it's not something.
Sunday, August 10, 2003I finished the painting of a trio of mixed apples.
I immediately stretched another large canvas for tomorrow. Ultimately I would love to do another large painting of a mixed trio of apples just for myself. Seems like a long shot, but we'll see.
Saturday, August 9, 2003I'm so close to being finished with this painting of a trio of mixed apples that I can almost taste it. I'm hoping to slam down the final few marks early tomorrow.
We're trying out XM radio in the studio and in the van. So far we're really enjoying it. I question if it's really CD quality, although the lively ongoing selection of music is quite excellent. It reminds me of the old days when I was in art school, living in the warehouse, with some amazing college stations setting the pace for the studio sessions until all hours of the night.
News flash. When they started playing Nine Inch Nails Head Like a Hole I quickly threw the Pretty Hate Machine disc into the player and did an A and B comparison. There is no comparison, although they do save themselves by saying that the quality is only "remarkably close to Compact Disc". The only thing lacking is the solid bass, crisp highs and smacking dynamics of a compact disc. It will be yet another ongoing lesson in compromise for me.
On a side note, Schwartz is becoming increasingly more aggressive, especially at night, and especially toward our feet. When he kept attacking Heather's ankles, brief time outs would suffice. Last night he ripped at my right foot while I was sleeping, and then a few minutes later after we trimmed his claws he did it again. Right now every part of my foot is burning, and he's been relegated to spending the night in our upper storage room. The vet tells me that the aggression is the result of his hyperactive thyroid gland, so I'll be taking him in for more tests this week. During the day he's as sweet and lovable as anything, but at night when he was growling and shredding at my foot with both claws it was like having a vicious, rabid demon for a pet.
Friday, August 8, 2003I'm almost finished with the new painting of a trio of mixed apples. For some reason I'm having a hard time understanding the play of light across the different colors of the gala apple. Hopefully tomorrow I can resolve this issue and bring this piece to a swift and solid conclusion.
Thursday, August 7, 2003I started slamming down some massive amounts of color on the new painting of a trio of mixed apples. Things should quickly come into focus on this piece over the next day or two.
This morning I switched some paintings around at the Mazzi restaurant. As my inventory continues to diminish I wonder how much longer I'll be able to keep work on display there. As much as ever, I must keep painting like the wind.
Wednesday, August 6, 2003I'm finally back to work in the studio, mixing colors for a large commissioned painting of a trio of mixed apples. Tomorrow I'll begin throwing some paint around to get things started.
The weekend in the Hamptons was excellent. We had a great time with my cousin and his family in East Hampton, and the show at Westhampton Beach was pleasant and relaxing. Once again my inventory is thinned out considerably, and we managed to stop in Brooklyn for a quick overnight visit with the legendary H. Philip Lauer on Sunday night. It was a bit anticlimactic to return to dusty and dirty little Mount Joy after several days of hanging out in the splendor and affluence of the Hamptons.
The studio is very quiet now, as Heather has just started working full-time at the daycare in Philadelphia, while staying at a friend's apartment during the week. The cats and I miss her very much.
Tuesday, July 29, 2003I finished the painting of sunflowers in a vase. It still feels a bit clunky, but I think I've found a nice balance between areas of polish and areas of roughness and rudeness.
Tomorrow I'll have time to do nothing more than frame a few new paintings, load the van and then start driving. We'll first be going to East Hampton, where we'll spent a day with my cousin and his family before heading to the weekend show in Westhampton Beach. We're looking forward to being on the road again.
Monday, July 28, 2003Amid a kaleidoscope of distractions I managed to almost finish the painting of sunflowers in a vase. I was really hoping to have nailed this painting down by the end of today's session, but at least I did make some good progress. Once again I'm humbled by the education I've gained in deeply saturated colors.
Sunday, July 27, 2003Yesterday's art show was fun despite being a fairly long and grueling day in the heat. Amazingly I found the strength and energy to jump up today and get started on a mid sized painting of a bouquet of sunflowers in a vase. Of course my fatigue and the ever difficult subject of sunflowers made the entire session quite the struggle. Tomorrow should see things start to gain some definition and substance.
Friday, July 25, 2003I finished the painting of two granny smith apples.
Tomorrow is the Lititz art show, and hopefully I'll be ready to dive into another painting on Sunday. I'm totally exhausted, but I'm excited to get right back to work in the studio.
Thursday, July 24, 2003I continued to work on the vertical format painting of two granny smith apples. I should easily be done with this painting tomorrow, hopefully early enough so I can start setting up for the Lititz art show before nightfall.
Wednesday, July 23, 2003I finished the small painting of three granny smith apples.
I immediately started mixing colors for a tentative commission of a vertical format mid-sized painting of two granny smith apples. I'll start slamming down some paint tomorrow.
Tuesday, July 22, 2003I continued to work on the small painting of three granny smith apples. Despite several urgent tasks that commandeered most of my day, I managed to almost completely finish this painting in the last few hours of the afternoon. I should be able to easily wrap this piece up tomorrow, and ultimately in time to dive into another painting.
I'm striving to avoid the notion of rebuilding my inventory, because in the end I wind up losing perspective on why I am painting. Regardless of how I attempt to view it, my last few shows did clean out most of my stock of paintings. With nine or ten more shows coming up over the next few months, it's obvious that I should be focusing on covering much ground and finishing many paintings. I have friends that complain of losing the sense of fun and exploration in their work, as they scramble to make up inventory between successful shows. I seem to have an easy time of convincing myself that none of this comes easily enough to ever feel only like production. Trying to make things look easy, while attempting to tweak every detail so it looks easy perfectly is enough to keep me very connected with each painting. In the last few paintings I've been focusing on the effects of reflections of the backdrop colors on the white foregrounds. Suddenly I'm finding an entire course of study within the variations of colors within the white, and there is a completely different quality of light and color between directly lit objects and the glow of reflections of color around the objects. Even when the backdrop color is not actually present in the painting itself (such as the painting I'm about to finish), it creates an exciting play of color within the light and shadow. Such is the substance of my self-imposed struggle.
On a side note, I did receive the call today that tulips will no longer be available for the rest of the summer. Thus ends the exciting series of white tulips paintings, at least for a few months.
Monday, July 21, 2003I finished the painting of white tulips against a dark yellow background.
I immediately started working on a smaller painting of three granny smith apples. A storm came up and blotted out the sun to end today's session.
Sunday, July 20, 2003I continued to work on the painting of white tulips on a dark yellow background. Every part of this painting continues to be a struggle, and the end of the day has me feeling totally wiped out. This piece is all but finished, and after addressing a few final details in the morning I'll be able to sign it and post a final image.
Saturday, July 19, 2003I had fun slamming down some color on this newest painting of white tulips on a dark yellow background. I'm not sure if it's because it's my first day back in the studio actually painting, or if I'm just exhausted or burned out on renditions of tulips, but today was a bit of a struggle. Seeing progress from one hour to the next was the strongest source of excitement, although I didn't feel as though I was really getting a good grip on the mindset of building a painting. Hopefully tomorrow some things start to snap and make sense for me. I already have some ideas about some exciting new color combinations for my next piece.
Friday, July 18, 2003I'm finally back to work, mixing colors for a large painting of white tulips against a dark yellow background. I only managed to make a few reference marks on the canvas before the end of the session. I'm looking forward to throwing some paint around tomorrow.
Tuesday, July 15, 2003We're back from Madison. Hoo boy, what a great town. The new van was a dream to drive, despite being the size of a small bus. We had the chance to catch up with our good friends, artist Jeffrey Cannon and his wife Paige, and we spent some time with my cousin and her family. I even had a chance to briefly meet one of my online artist friends, Steve Dwyer and his wife Nicole and their new little baby Logan. The weather was spectacular, and the people are great. Heather and I are becoming big fans of The Great Midwest.
The people also cleaned out my collection of paintings, so once I settle some things I'll be working feverishly to build up a strong body of new work.
Thursday, July 10, 2003The painting is finished, and we're heading out the door for Madison.
This weekend we're also celebrating my birthday, when I'll be turning one hundred and ninety three years old.
Wednesday, July 9, 2003Yikes, I'm exhausted. Today started much too early, but I was able to finish wrapping up details with the new van, installed the cargo restraint system, and managed to all but completely finish the painting of white tulips against a dark red background. I'll address just a few small details in the morning before we leave for our weekend trip.
Tuesday, July 8, 2003I made some great progress on the new painting of white tulips against a dark red background. Unfortunately I got a fairly late start, due to the time spent settling things with the new van. The excitement continues tomorrow, when I should be seeing this piece completely finished. I can see that it will be days and days before I get enough sleep again. At least now the big new van is parked in front of the building, towering over my other two full-size vans parked on both sides of it.
Monday, July 7, 2003The newest painting of white tulips in a glass vase is finished.
I immediately started mixing colors for yet one more painting of my last bouquet of white tulips, this time against the dark red background. Unfortunately the tulips were hopelessly bent over, so I bound them up to straighten them out and threw them back into the refrigerator for the night. Tomorrow should be exciting. I'll be picking up my new van in the middle of the afternoon, and hopefully I'll be able to get an aggressive and productive session of painting in around that event. I'll have to nail this painting down in two sessions, so we can leave on Thursday morning to start our drive to Madison for this coming weekend's show.
Sunday, July 6, 2003After a day of angst and frustration, I think I'm all but finished with this painting of white tulips. I still have just a few items on my to-do list for this painting, but I should easily see this piece wrapped up without too much effort. I have errands to run tomorrow morning, but I should be back in the studio by early afternoon, hopefully to get started on yet another large painting of white tulips.
Once again, it seems as though the website is still not up. I'm hoping that something happens and things are back up and running again soon.
Saturday, July 5, 2003I continued to work on the large painting of white tulips against a light blue backdrop. Most of the day was spent merely building up a paint surface, and only toward the very end of the session did some exciting things start to happen. I'm working hard to push and pull some interesting things from this subtle color combination.
For some reason the website hasn't been up and running all day. Hopefully the problem is corrected soon.
Friday, July 4, 2003 Independence DayWe picked up tulips at Central Market this morning, and then raced home so I could finish stretching a large canvas, mix colors, and then begin laying some paint down for an energetic first layer of resolution. I decided to set the white tulips against a light blue backdrop, and so far this seems as though it will be an exciting piece. I'm looking forward to continuing work on it tomorrow.
Thursday, July 3, 2003Yes, the painting is indeed finished.
I wound up having too many loose ends to tie together throughout the day, so I didn't get any work done in the studio. I'll have more tulips arriving tomorrow morning, so I should be able to focus once again on painting.
Wednesday, July 2, 2003I believe I'm finished with this large painting of white tulips on a dark yellow background. I'll make the final decision after having one more look in the light of day tomorrow.
On a side note, today I actually bought a new cargo van, a 22 foot long Freightliner Sprinter. It's not the tractor trailer I once dreamt about, but it's close enough for now. The blizzard of paperwork begins tomorrow, and hopefully I'll have it parked out front by next Tuesday or Wednesday. I'll need to install a cargo restraint system before I can load it for the trip to Madison next weekend. It's all very exciting.
Tuesday, July 1, 2003Shazam, what a day. I was able to really slam down some serious amounts of paint, making some great progress on this first day of this large painting of white tulips on a dark yellow background. I very well may be bringing this painting to a smashing finish by the end of tomorrow's session.
Tomorrow morning I will start the bidding war between truck dealers for the best price on a new cargo van. I've come to the decision that everything must get bigger, including my cargo transport vehicle.
Monday, June 30, 2003I started mixing colors for another painting of white tulips against a dark yellow background, this time on a large canvas. I had a bouquet on standby in a cooler with ice, but somehow the flowers found it within themselves to grow and bloom within the icy darkness of the cooler. I'll see how they look in the morning and decide if I should risk starting such an ambitious painting with flowers that may be already well past their prime.
I pursued some education over the weekend, and came to the conclusion that I'm suffering from the same allergies that plague many people in this area during this time of year. I started taking an over-the-counter allergy relief medication, and I'm immediately feeling worlds better. I'm still not back to 100% capacity for angst and stress and duress, but I'm close.
Sunday, June 29, 2003I finished the painting of white tulips against a dark yellow background.
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Saturday, June 28, 2003I continued to work on the painting of white tulips on a dark yellow background. For some reason I found myself struggling to make progress on this piece throughout the day. Hopefully tomorrow sees things start to snap into place.
Friday, June 27, 2003I'm finished with the painting of two granny smith apples. This is a fairly rich piece. I'm gaining a better sense of the colors that reflect on the foreground and background, and capturing this has created a powerful sense of the air that surrounds the subjects.
I did pick up some nice white tulips from Central Market this morning, so I wasted no time diving into a tentatively commissioned painting of the tulips against a dark yellow background. I managed to mix the colors and block in a rough start despite being fairly exhausted at the end of the day.
Thursday, June 26, 2003The new painting of two granny smith apples is almost finished. I should easily wrap up the last few details tomorrow.
I did receive a call today that two bouquets of white tulips will be waiting for me at Central Market in the morning. So on the heels of this painting I'll immediately attack another canvas.
Wednesday, June 25, 2003I slammed down some paint to get this new large painting of two granny smith apples off to a lively start. The heat and my sinus congestion has me feeling weak and queasy, but I'm doing my best to stick with this painting. I've already built up a nice surface, and tomorrow should see things fatten up a bit more while the colors gain some more definition.
I ordered some white tulips, which might arrive this weekend if I'm lucky. I should have this painting wrapped up in time to nail down one or two commissions of tulips, if they're at all available this late in the year.
I'm starting a campaign to pursue some education concerning having some choice pieces of my work released as poster editions. I had little interest in this endeavor two years ago when I was being approached by publishing and distribution companies, but at this point I'm envisioning ways it could take me further along with what I'm doing. We'll see.
We're also busy gathering information on a larger cargo van. We'll see how things pan out, but there's a remote possibility that we'll be driving to Madison in three weeks with almost twice the cargo room that we're currently using. Things just keep getting bigger.
I just received the good news that last week my childhood friend Eric McKee and his wife Emily became the proud parents of a new baby boy, Zachary John McKee. Heather and I are very excited for them. Congratulations, Eric and Emily.
Tuesday, June 24, 2003I'm finally back to work in the studio, mixing colors for the start of a series of commissioned pieces. I'm still not feeling quite one hundred percent, but I'm doing well enough to start getting things moving again.
If you find yourself hungering for yet more dramatization of the angst of a painter, see Spring 2003 for the previous season's struggles.