Van Gogh, Ink Pen on Paper, 18.5 x 24.4 inch. Reference Image
I stumbled upon this image on a blog post at making a mark, which has a terrific section on Van Gogh landscape, in particular the sketches done in pencil or ink pen. This particular image reminded me of the Van Gogh painting I used as a reference when I did Pennsyltucky.
Oil on canvas board, 12 x 16 inches. June, 2009. Reference Photo
This is my entry in the Different Strokes From Different Folks (DSFDF) bi-weekly challenge, submitted on 6/02/09.
Once again, this is out of my "comfort zone" because there is a deadline. I am not very happy with the painting, but I know that even if I spent another year working on this, it would not be much better. My primary goal for this project was to use it as a learning experience, and I consider that part a success. I learned a lot.
What did I learn?
As I planned/prepared for this project, I studied several paintings by Vincent van Gogh. I focused on three things - (1) the grass in the foreground, (2) the sky, and (3) the van Gogh sunflowers. I decided to skip the sunflowers and leave that out of my painting. I made an effort at the Van Gogh sky, and I disliked what I had, so I painted over it. My finished painting has a decidedly un-remarkable sky. The grass/wheat/whatever in the foreground of my painting is directly influenced by the van Gogh painting Wheat Field at Auvers with White House - 1890 near the end of his life.
My conclusion - I began this project thinking van Gogh was one of my favorite painters. After attempting to copy him, my admiration and appreciation has grown significantly. He was quite the mad genius.
