Scale Model for "A Risky Bet"
Scale Model for "A Risky Bet"
Directly after art school, I didn’t say no to any opportunity to be paid to paint. It led me to all sorts of interesting jobs, where I honed a diverse skill set and became very adaptable to different styles. This lead to being commissioned to do a large western-themed painting to hang above a patron’s mantlepiece.
In order to achieve a plausible quality of light and form, not to mention a feeling of the scene being directly observed, I took a cue from Charles Marion Russell, and created a miniature poly-chrome model which was then lit and used as my primary reference. I still had to invent quite a bit of dust, drama, and movement.
Polymer Clay, Wire, Window Screen, Acrylic Paint, Plaster, Masonite, and Foam. Modeled at approximately 1:10 scale, Collection of the Artist
If you are curious, you can see the final painting in the “Early Works” section.
Each figure was modeled carefully in layered polymer clay, from the skeletons up. Needless to say, once painting commenced, it proceeded rapidly.
