My muse, the pear. The perfect way to study light and color with a simply beautiful shape. These two pieces will be included in the June show.
The Bosc Pear
By Christopher
Christopher Stott is a contemporary realist painter.
Bottles & Bartlett Pears
My good friend Karin Jurick emailed me and said she spotted this painting in the June 2009 issue of Southwest Art Magazine, promoting my upcoming two-man show with Manuel Nunes at the Elliott Fouts Gallery in Sacramento.
The article refers to me as Christopher Scott. Easy to do… Christopher Stott / Christopher Scott… see the difference? Even if you say it out loud you can barely hear the difference. It is a common error for the entire Stott clan. Everyone with my last name has a Stott/Scott mix-up to share. The upside is that it is easy to hide my identity should I ever need to. The downside is it makes it hard to Google me to find out more about my work.
Once I get my hands on an actual copy of the magazine I’ll share it with you, along with many more paintings included in the show.
Story Time
This is another piece for my June show. It has pre-sold (along with 1:00, 2:00, 3:00) so I’m sharing them a little early.
Painting these books really lights my fire. I picked up the “It’s Story Time” book at an antique shop near my house. Its red cover and the simplicity of the title really are a great contrast to the heavy, dark books.
1:00, 2:00, 3:00
This is one of the paintings for my upcoming show in Sacramento, California this June. Over the next few weeks I’ll be sharing more completed pieces.
A friend gave me a small suitcase and some old clocks, to add to my collection. Over time I’ll be continuing the series of clocks that I’ve been working on. It’s more than obvious what the next in the series will have to be.
Painting in Progress: Mandolin
Yesterday I went to the library and headed for the fine arts section. It’s a place I spent many hours in as a teenager. I loved it there. Of course this was pre-internet. Every art related magazine is there. Countless massive, glossy books on any artist. A friend of mine used to work at the library and said it’s shocking and sad how the place has become a ghost town. Rarely do people show up to borrow books like they used to. Kids almost never show up to reference books for essays.
I’m guilty of abandoning what was once a favourite place. Along with almost everyone else, I browse the web for info and inspiration, which is obviously fantastic, but I would put it in third place, behind books, and actual paintings in first place if you want to look at art. Books and catalogues have been put together with painstaking consideration in colour correction and detail.
I borrowed Andrew Wyeth: Memory & Magic, along with several other books and browsing through them was completely inspiring. So, if you’re looking for some fresh air and inspiration and are not near any major galleries, head to the library. I recommend it.
Here’s an aerial view of me working on the mandolin. The mandolin is drawn nearly exact to life size. Starting next month I’ll be posting actual completed pieces.
Working on Still Life
After spending a few weeks on larger paintings, I’m taking a breather and painting some simpler still life pieces. Wow, what a change of pace.
The key to success in anything is constantly working on your craft. Painting anything is an opportunity to improve, experiment and refine. I get squirrely when I’m away from the studio for to long. Being in the studio and painting makes me happy.
Below are some photos of my subjects and a shelf in my studio where three pieces in the works wait patiently for their turn at the easel.
Another Artist in the Making
I’ve written about my daughters interest in the studio, but my son has taken me by surprise over the last week or so with his own creative endeavors.
Where my daughter will make art for the sake of making art. My son, however, needs a little more black and white approach. There has to be a concrete purpose behind it. It has to be very linear and tell a story. And nothing does that better for a kid than a comic strip.
So now my studio has early drafts of comic strips hanging around. And the best part is it’s entirely his own doing.
Painting in Progress: Manual of Psychology
Today I began a painting with a book, the “Manual of Psychology” as one of the subjects. By an author who’s last name is so similar to mine that I was thinking I could be very sly and sneak mine in instead, we’re just one letter off. But I won’t because I claim no authority on the subject of psychology.
I’m fortunate to have an antique shop a block from my house. However, I’m a little worried about how long it’ll continue business, as the fellow who runs the place looks like he’s been at it for about, oh, 150 years. When you enter the shop you have to courteously announce your presence because I’m not so sure he can actually turn to see if someone has entered. If I were a portrait painter I’d try with all my might to capture this fellow. I recently read The Lathe of Heaven in which a tortoise-like alien owns and operates an antique shop… well, lets just say that entering the shop near my house leaves you wondering if you’re trapped in a science fiction novel and your dreams are coming true.
I picked up the book “It’s Story Time” at the aforementioned shop. I think its title and subject contrasts perfectly with the thick, heavy subject and title of the “Manual of Psychology”. I’ll put that down in the notebook with ideas for future paintings.
Painting in Progress: A Big Fan
I’m working on a variation of the vintage electric fan. I’ve added a few more shapes to the composition and will be adding several layers of glazes focusing on the surface of the glasses and fan. Fascinating, huh? If you want to see some simply beautiful still life with geometric shapes, check out the work of Volkert Olij.
After this piece, I’m going to be working smaller. When I started this fan, I thought it would be easier than the typewriter, but the truth is the typewriter has so many tiny little details that you can sort of wing it.
Painting in Progress: 1:00, 2:00, 3:00
Here’s another piece in progress. I’m calling it “1:00, 2:00, 3:00”. I’m positive it will be complete during the next sitting. It’s resting on a self in the studio, by the door leading to what once was a balcony. Someone closed it off in the 1950s. I’d like to expand it into a sitting room one day. Right now it serves as storage.
The second photo is of me hard at work on the typewriter.
