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December 02, 2004
a time to buy
A picture had been hanging in an excellent restaurant [Gimbals, Sowerby Bridge] for a few weeks and a couple were very interested in buying it. It was a large reclining nude and they, understandably, took their time. When someone else was also interested in buying it they galvanised themselves [all those electrodes and a bath of zinc - quite frightening] into action.
They came round to the studio to make the purchase and while in the studio, and clearly in a buying frenzy [not to mention being galvanised] they saw a picture on the easel that I was still working on. They asked to buy it.
the picture on the easel
Great, another sale. But there’s a problem. I was still working on it. In my mind it wasn’t finished. [In my mind, it has to be said, a picture is seldom “finished”, what I need is someone to come to the studio on a regular basis and drag the pictures from The Racks and take them away. Leaving a hefty cheque would be a bonus.] So, do I sell the unfinished picture? Do I finish it?
They liked the picture as it was, and they wanted to buy it. Surely that is enough? But it put into question what I was doing. I’m not just making pictures to sell; hell, if I was I wouldn’t be painting large than life nudes. I’m trying to express something. If a picture doesn’t express what I want, or worse: expresses something I don’t want, I have the right to hang on it till it does – er... or doesn’t, if you see what I mean. Just as I have the right to paint out a picture or part of a picture that I feel doesn’t work.
So what did I do? I might hear you ask, were we at a party and not drifting abstractly in cyber-space. I explained that I wasn’t completely happy with it as it was, and needed to do a bit more work on it. We discussed what areas I might be working on, and they agreed to let me finish it. It seemed to be the pose and composition they were interested in mainly, not the tonal values which is what I was proposing to alter.
So we were all happy in the end.
Posted by john at December 2, 2004 08:44 AM
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