Thursday, March 10, 2011

Chaco #5 - Ancient Architecture series

Chaco #5
9x12 inches
 pastel on black Strathmore paper

I never cease to be amazed by the skill and resourcefulness of the masons that built the Chacoan pueblo structures.  This is another view of Pueblo Bonita, and you can see what are probably the remains of a T-shaped door up at the top right - on the second story.

It's always fun to work in compliments, and I thought these blues and earth-oranges went well together.  In addition to the practice of experimenting with various color combinations, this series has also been good for practicing linear perspective drawing, something I haven't had to do much of in other landscapes.  

I hope it's not too obvious that the window in this painting is almost smack-dab in the middle of the paper; I made some minor adjustments, but that's where it just wanted to be.  

This will probably be the last of the series from Chaco for a bit [although we are possibly going to Chaco again either tomorrow or early next week].  Next up will be Hovenweep, a scattered set of puebloan style ruins that are much smaller in scale and decidedly less grandiose than either Chaco or Mesa Verde.  

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Here is another example of human artistic ingenuity at work.  Theo Jansen is a Dutch kinetic sculptor.  Take a look at his amazing and delightful creations out of PVC pipe - they look like something right out of DaVinci's notebooks.   These make me smile:

7 comments:

  1. Excellent Chacos! This one is great, but the last one with the red shadows is one I'll remember for a long time.

    Check my Feb.5th post. Great minds...

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  2. Thanks, Sam - I'm really enjoying this series. And learning a lot as well. Glad you like 'em!

    Oh, that is so funny about the vid! The good stuff really makes the internet rounds. I didn't remember seeing it on your blog (but remember the "patty cake" video). This was posted on a non-art blog I read. It's mesmerizing watching the legs move...

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  3. I like that, Dog--excellent Chacos! Most Excellent Chacos, Doc!!! What a vid too. Way over the top. Wm

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  4. One of my favorite combos: blue and orange. Wins every time. This one is very abstract. You know how I love that.

    I've seen these "creatures" on several sites. Wouldn't it be amazing to see them in person? They creep me out and fascinate me equally.

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  5. Bill (I can call you that, right? As per your blog post?) - your comment made me laugh! Thanks much for your thoughts, and I'm glad you enjoyed the vid.

    Jala, I probably channeled you somehow for this piece, and these were mostly Unisons, so there you are. The colors came together quickly for this one. I would totally love to see these Strandbeests cruising around on the beach. I think the reason they don't creep me out is because they are purely wind-driven and quiet...have you seen the BostonDynamics Big Dog? I'll send you the link.

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  6. Love the Chaco series too. Looking forward to the Hovenweep series.

    One the video...Absolutely Friggin' Brilliant!

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  7. Thanks, Susan! Hovenweep will be quite different than Chaco (or MV), and I'm still cogitating on how I want to handle them. Glad you enjoyed the video!

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Your thoughtful comments add value to this blog - thank you so much for taking the time to leave them!

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