throw some bling on it...

I have a friend who found a color copy of a watercolor painting and he has asked me to recreate it, but in a larger size. I have no idea what the size of the original was but this is what I have to go by. It's printed on a color copier on 11 x 17 paper...

I have been walking around thinking about this project for several months now. More than just thinking, almost struggling with the concept of recreating a painting that I don't like. Don't get me wrong, I'm not really criticizing the painting or the artist, because it's probably not that bad. It's just that I don't like the style and because of that, I don't think it's very good. It looks poorly executed and amateurish and that may not be the case at all. It may purposely be done in a style that is supposed to resemble outsider art... I don't know, I just know I put my hands on my hips, pushed my bottom lip out and decided I don't like it. All that being said, I tried...I really did.

I did a quick color study of it...trying to capture that style

I also did a very rough sketch for enlargement purposes...shudder

I think it was at this point that I realized I just wasn't feeling the painting...at all. If I'm not feeling it, it's just not going to happen.

I suppose that were I doing this as a commissioned painting and charging for it, well that would be another story. If all he wanted was truly a larger version of this painting, I could take it and have a larger copy made of it. I am doing this for a friend who likes MY art, but who also really likes the elements in this painting.  He likes the old truck, and the gas pump and the farm house and the landscape. It's possible I'm overthinking this entire thing. I have been known to do that.

Recently he asked me if I had started on it yet (he has seen two or three painting that I have done recently)and I finally just ask him if he cared if I changed it a bit, to which he replied "throw some bling on it", "heck, put a naked woman in it, if you want to." So, yes I was over thinking it.

I think I'm just going to do a painting, in my own style, that contains the elements that he likes about this...

Here is what may turn out to be the final sketch, but who knows. I have drawn in the main elements on a 20" x 24" artist canvas. My plan at this point is to use acrylic liquid paint and build up the layers. This is very similar to the paintings that I did in the heading for this blog.  He actually has one of those paintings and he really likes it. As I said, who knows, the way I do art, I may do several more versions of it before I'm happy with it.

So that's what I've been doing art wise lately.  I'll try to keep you posted, so wish me luck.