On the easel...

[I Only Smoke 4 the Cards]

Great team painting. It is good to see the effort you are putting into the background - those details are often the difference between good and great.

[GKreindler]

Thank you for all of the kind words, everybody.

Scott, never trust that sphinx. Ever. He's been sitting out in the sun for thousands of years - his brain's fried.

Ty, your cousin does some really cool work. Normally, I'm not huge into the surrealist stuff, but his are a nice exception. It's nice to know that the art bug runs in your family. It does a bit in mine as well, though not through my parents. They were both teachers in the Bronx for 35 years (math and science) and don't really have any artistic bones in their bodies. However, somehow both my brother and I got into drawing and music. He's now a professional musician (classical bassoon and a cast of others), as he really stopped drawing a while back - though he can still tear it up if he was given some paper. Also, my cousin Scott caught something too, as he's currently the writer for Batman at DC, and has become very popular in the past few years. It's nice when we all get together because we just kind of get each other on that level. The triumphs and setbacks seem to make so much more sense that way.

Here are a few more shots I got back from the photographers today:


Ty Cobb, 1909 (I think?), 11" x 14"


Casey Stengel, April 19, 1938, 16" x 20"


Jimmie Foxx, 1929, 16" x 20"


Yogi Berra and Mickey Mantle, 1956, 22" x 26"

The Cobb was an interesting exercise, as at first, I treated it like a normal portrait with flat lighting, but it became a bit uninteresting to me. I thought it would be so much cooler if I could have some of the warm light from the field reflecting and glowing back into Ty's face. So, now the golden patina is much more visually exciting, I feel. I just wish I had an idea of when the image culls from - I think it's '09, but I'm not exactly sure. I could never find any information about it, save what little I can surmise from the image itself.

The Yogi and Mickey image was also an interesting challenge, as it was one of those shots that has bright light and flash photography. So those areas that would normally be darker now have fill light in them. That kind of thing can really flatten out a face, so all of the dimension had to be created with varying temperatures and subtle value shifts. I hope I was successful, as it really did a number on me.

Anywho, I hope y'all enjoy them. As usual, I'd love to hear your thoughts, comments and critiques.

Thanks for looking and reading,

Graig

[Runscott]

My favorite of that group is Stengel - love the uniform colors and you captured his expression wonderfully.

[gregr2]

The Stengel really pops!! Love it. I also like the interaction between Yogi and Mick, makes it much more interesting.

[RTK]

I like them all but the Casey Stengel is particularly stunning in it's color and tint.

[thecatspajamas]

Originally Posted by Runscott

My favorite of that group is Stengel - love the uniform colors and you captured his expression wonderfully.

+1 on the Stengel. The Old Perfessor has never looked more like himself, slumped shoulders and all.

[GKreindler]

Thank you for so many wonderfully kind words, guys. I sincerely appreciate each and every single one of them.

Howard, I tell ya, those pinstripes are gonna be the death of me. It's the one annoying thing about painting Yankees - those stripes can be REALLY rough to tackle.

Then again, I'm also going batty because of the batting net on this one...

[MVSNYC]

Graig- the above Gehrig/Ruth is incredible...down to the dirt, which looks real and about to fall off the canvas. awesome, bravo. please keep posting the progress of this one!

[Lordstan]

Graig,
I am running out of superlatives. If you keep posting I'll have to buy a thesaurus to come up with more ways to say these paintings are awesome.

That Gehrig-Ruth is incredible. Is that a commission? If so, they are a lucky dog, whoever it is?

Mark

[Bocabirdman]

Originally Posted by GKreindler

Thank you for so many wonderfully kind words, guys. I sincerely appreciate each and every single one of them.

Howard, I tell ya, those pinstripes are gonna be the death of me. It's the one annoying thing about painting Yankees - those stripes can be REALLY rough to tackle.

Then again, I'm also going batty because of the batting net on this one...

What are the chances of you finding a source photo with your name scratched in the dirt in front of Lou?

[howard38]

Originally Posted by GKreindler

Thank you for so many wonderfully kind words, guys. I sincerely appreciate each and every single one of them.

Howard, I tell ya, those pinstripes are gonna be the death of me. It's the one annoying thing about painting Yankees - those stripes can be REALLY rough to tackle.

Then again, I'm also going batty because of the batting net on this one...

I don't know if I'm more impressed with the netting or that skinny rod managing to hold up those two.

[GKreindler]

Howard, I thought the same exact thing. That rod must be made out of the strongest material on earth.

I'm just about finished with this guy, one of the coolest images ever, as far as I'm concerned. As it is, Addie Joss was not necessarily an attractive fella by conventional standards. At the time the photograph was taken, I think he had less than a year of life left in him. Though, with his death being so sudden, I still don't really understand why he looks the way he does (does writing that make me an awful person?).

But I couldn't deny the beauty in this image. The possibilities with the play of light were endless, especially as it related to the wrinkles near his eyes, and the great texture in his sweater. And those teeth!!! And the hair!!

Seriously, this one was so much fun. I can't wait to get it photographed properly.



Hope y'all dig it!

Graig

[Runscott]

I would simply stop here, and call it 'Lou and the Babe, in front of a painting of a net'. This might be my favorite of yours so far.

Originally Posted by GKreindler

Thank you for so many wonderfully kind words, guys. I sincerely appreciate each and every single one of them.

Howard, I tell ya, those pinstripes are gonna be the death of me. It's the one annoying thing about painting Yankees - those stripes can be REALLY rough to tackle.

Then again, I'm also going batty because of the batting net on this one...

[GKreindler]

Thanks a lot, Scott. I'm pretty happy with it too. I'll be excited to get it photographed.

Speaking of whom, this one's just about ready to go to them, too. And that also makes me happy.



It might sound strange, but getting paintings out of the studio and to the photographers is a pretty satisfying experience. It's probably because once they're photographed, I can add them to my portfolio properly. So, in essence, the joy is in building a body of work.

Anywho, I'm rambling.

I am wondering though, do you guys care whether I post in-progress stuff on here? Usually I just limit it to finished and photographed work these days, but all of the sudden, I've been into putting up these things at different points of the journey.

As usual, thoughts are appreciated.

Graig

[Kawika]

I can smell the cigar smoke.


Yogi Berra and Mickey Mantle, 1956, 22" x 26"

[sayheykid54]

The Cobb is my favorite. You masterfully captured his uneasy emotion at the time the photograph was taken perfectly. A great painting.

[I Only Smoke 4 the Cards]

Originally Posted by sayheykid54

The Cobb is my favorite. You masterfully captured his uneasy emotion at the time the photograph was taken perfectly. A great painting.

Agreed.