The Flyers playoff run of 2010 was two wins short of one of the greatest in all professional hockey. Danny Briere continued to find the net and create incredible chemistry on the ice. This painting is inspired by one of his goal celebrations during a 30-point surge in 23 playoff games.
Process and thoughts…
A quick sketch of his iconic uppercut to gauge the space.
Had the pose, but had no idea how the rest of the canvas would develop. Discovery is a large part of my process.
The only way to find out where you are going is to get there. Reacting to the painting as it develops.
After filling most of the canvas with orange, white, and blue a little black to set the figure.
Some times you have to go backwards to go forwards. Hey Danny, sorry for engulfing your head in fire.
The sound and reaction of something hot hitting water and it instantly turning to steam is similar to that of 20,000 fans on their feet.
A quick rectangle to help me ground the figure in the atomosphere. I was thinking about the reproduced image. We use them to remember things. Collective and individual memory is cultivated from videos and photographs. Rectangular media.
Time to get rid the blue except for the ice and a little bit in the glass.
Get Flyered up! Danny Briere lights the lamp. The red trim and the yellow dasher make an appearance.
Can you see any subliminal messages in the flames? There’s a Flyers symbol, and a “D”…
A Flyers symbol, his initials (D and B), and the number 48. His uppercut fracturing the lens of reality all around him.
Danny I don’t mind if you take it easy during the 2012 season, but unleash the beast come playoffs.
1 of 30 Danny Briere | 18 x 24 inches | graphite, acrylic, and oil on canvas | 2011 | Available
click for larger image
When the game is on the line, especially in the playoffs, Briere is a lethal weapon. He probably has the best tight game in the league, and very sneaky. Boom!
Next up…. Claude Giroux #28.
This painting is available for purchase. I am currently accepting a limited number of new commissions. If you are interested in a sports player/moment commission, or different type of commission contact me directly.
Recent Hockey Paintings
Chris Pronger | oil, acrylic, graphite on canvas | 12 x 12 inches | 2011
Jaromir Jagr | acrylic, oil, pen, collage, and cloth on canvas | 11 x 14 inches | 2011 | Ari Lankin
Immortal Captain | oil on canvas | 30 x 30 inches | 2011 | Ari Lankin
Lord Stanley's Castle | 30 x 30 inches | oil on canvas |2011 | Ari Lankin
Warm Autumn | 30 x 30 inches | oil on canvas | 2011
Click painting for larger image. If video is not working follow this YouTube link.
Questions? info@arilankin.com
Look up at that Bald Eagle. A symbolic bird with a majestic presence.
The client and I agreed that the soaring Bald Eagle is a feast for the eyes. The bird is still, with wings proudly outstretched, gliding through the air at speeds up to 45mph. Power and grace.
It reminded me of the eagles from my youth in Pennsylvania, to the predator birds on my cross-country trip of Argentina, and of course the Bald Eagles of my annual summer trips to Maine.
Let’s take a look at how this commission developed…
A loose graphite sketch exploring scale and placement. Similar to Gaughin’s methods of drawing outlines in blue pencil.
Building from the process in my CMYK paintings I start with magenta. Positive and negative space.
Coming in with Cyan (blue) to divide the space even more, and start to tease out details of the eagle.
CMYK: Y is for yellow.
And K, is for “key“, better known as black.
Filling the foreground to establish a horizon in the background.
A blend of black on the water to accentuate a feeling of flatness relative to the flying eagle.
Now that the coastline is cohesive the space is really starting to be defined. I’m exaggerating the highlights on the eagle to pop it forward.
Using one of my favorite blues to fill in the atmosphere of the sky.
Building the ocean up with more realistic colors, in the final version you can feel the warmth of the red underneath.
Right before its finished the sea darkens with texture, the mountains crystalize out-of-focus in the background, and the final details are added to the Bald Eagle.
Soaring Bald Eagle (for CZ) | oil, acrylic, and graphite on canvas | 14 x 18 inches | 2011
Click image for larger image.
The final painting is a realistic portrayal with a signature painterly handling of the paint.
If you are interested in a commission contact me directly info@arilankin.com
Emotional Architecture is about the human psyche, or perhaps the universal psyche in all things. A psyche that is at once focused on a moment and at other times a reflection of a life thus lived. These carved out and built up spaces are places of habitation and avenues of exploration. These moments I relate to the human experience. Moments of growth, transition, relation, stillness, movement, departure, choice, and with more contemplation comes experience. These paintings are static, but as the history of the viewer changes so does the experience of looking. Read More
CMYK NYC is the culmination of an energy that was building inside of me for a few weeks. When I started this painting I was incredibly inspired to paint at this scale and ready to bridge together several ideas i’ve been working on.
CMYK NYC is in my painting exhibition at RL Fine Arts that is open until November 12th, 2011, in New York City.
For the process video I was lucky enough to work with multi-faceted grammy award winning artist Tony Black of Tony Black Productions & Orange Key. He wrote, performed, and produced “if i told you” – (The Ari Mix), while referencing the process video for inspiration. I feel this song intensifies the richness of the viewing experience by literally expressing a musical quality of the abstract painting. Because he did such an amazing job I am going to let the music and the video do most of the talking.
Lets take a look…
It starts with a white acrylic ground on cotton
I was working a lot with pink and black leading up to this painting, so I started with them.
Turning the organic more geometric.
Back to organic, perhaps utilitarian.
The entire space has been commented on and all of the colors are now present, CMYK.
Opening the space on the left, and closing it on the right.
It’s getting lighter in color and atmosphere.
Archetecture changes the way we live by altering our spatial awareness.
I was considering this state the final piece. It has the feeling of NYC, but it was too literal.
By altering landscape references, I change the feeling of gravity. The relationship of one form to another becomes more informative.
CMYK NYC | 48 x 60 inches | acrylic on canvas | 2011.
Click image for larger version.
You can see this painting right now at RL Fine Arts in Chelsea, see below for directions and images of the other works in the show.
Click here to preview the other paintings from my solo exhibition, “Windows of Self,” at RL Fine Arts Gallery until November 12th
Located in the heart of Flatiron/Chelsea:
RL Fine Arts
39 West 19 Street, Suite 612 (between 5 and 6 avenues)
New York NY 10011
tel: 212 645 6401
email:info@rlfinearts.com
gallery hours:
Tuesday to Saturday 11.00 to 6.30pm, Sunday 12.00 to 4.00pm
As most of you know by now I love the outdoors, and I love painting. This summer I was introduced to the amazing natural landscape of Montauk, the best beaches I’ve ever been to in New York. I didn’t get a chance to paint there during the summer, so I made sure to capture some early fall light on a beautiful warm sunny day in late October. I chose this composition because I liked the way the empty chair was lit just inside this entry way to a garden. The dominant tree in the landscape stands tall like a figure and peers over the fence at the chair. A narrative beckons.
Let me take you through the process…
Starting out with cyan, magenta, and yellow. This was inspired by my last major studio work called CMYK NYC, that is featured at my solo exhibition that is open in NYC at RL Fine Arts until November 12th.
Keeping the brush strokes very loose feeling out the composition and space.
Yellow and green give form to the ground as the blue fills the sky with volume.
The tree actually bends over the fence and stretches over the garden. I like to think it is peering into the garden.
Now I can really feel the depth in the foreground. In the open doorway a chair begins to appear. The two birdhouses on the fence posts are carved in negative space.
After adding the potted plants I have all of the elements in the landscape represented.
Now im adding dark colors to turn up the contrast in the painting. The air was crisp and the sun was warm.
The moss on the tree is an electric green. As the painting develops so does the growth of the tree.
Enjoying the man made elements playing off of the plant life. The juxtaposition of geometric forms to organic permutations.
I decided it was necessary to eliminate some trees in the background.
The Illuminated Chair, Montauk, NY | acrylic on canvas | 24 x 18 inches | 2011
Click the image for larger version.
The lit up chair is inviting the viewer to a wonderful place, the rest of the landscape frames the moment. Nature, man, and mystery.
See more landscape paintings here. If you would like to commission a location painting contact me info@arilankin.com.
RL Fine Arts: Contemporary Art Project
Roarrr | acrylic and oil on canvas | 30 x 40 inches | 2011
Ari Lankin
Windows of Self
Exhibition:
October 12 to November 12, 2011
Opening reception:
Wednesday October 12 6:00 to 8:30pm
Watch the video in high definition.
Everything On The Inside, Out | oil on canvas | 18 x 24 inches | 2011 | Ari Lankin
A major body of my work begins without any preconceived image. They start with the action of painting.
I hesitate to put abstract pieces into words because they are activated by what the viewer brings to the experience of viewing.
With that said I am willing to discuss some of my feelings and thoughts while making this painting.
Non-objective-hallucinatory-relative-flow……. let’s go….
The first image was taken after two sessions with the painting. I liked the way it looked and almost considered it finished for awhile.
I took another look at the painting and laughed at myself for feeling content with it’s current state and decided to explore further. First thing was to get rid of the red because it contrasted the central form too abruptly.
The red is gone and now its time to expand the central form. Line, mass, point and color are the main ingredients. Personal mark making and colors rule supreme.
The forms felt congested so I excavated some unnecessary verbiage. Now its airy.
Back to the red, this time a little lighter. I’m letting the exterior permeate the interior. These two things are essentially the same thing to me.
Now that I’m feeling the inner structure it’s time to let it breath within the frame of the canvas, thank you orange/peach color.
I love my pinks and blues. Boy meets girl, girl meets boy, we meet world. Dance into the fire.
At this point i’m starting to construct elements that relate to one another in more simpler terms. Total cohesion.
Cobalt blue creates new temptations all over the canvas.
What kind of space is this?
Mind, body, eye, palette, flight
Creation in motion by destruction. Invisible mirror.
Potentially kinetic-kinetically potential.
Everything On The Inside, Out | oil on canvas | 18 x 24 inches | 2011 | Ari Lankin
A lot of my work is about growth and exploration. The nature of painting.
Paintings that allow us to live in the space.
I was born and raised in the same town where my parents still live. I have a strong feeling of a home base, and at the same time have a lust for exploring the new.
Viewing this work allows me to break through to realms of fresh thought and at the same time keeps an air of familiarity. Experience and memory.
Release, flow, decay, structure, grow, color, life force….
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
New York, NY - June 23, 2011 – The group exhibition: CLIPPED — “Appropriated Material From The Streets of New York,” will take place during July at Le Salon d’ Art Gallery. Running the entire month of July, this group exhibition will showcase six New York artists, including: Andrew Matsumoto, Michael Serafino, Jeremy Penn, Flip Skip, Ari Lankin and Borbay.
“CLIPPED” refers to the link these artists share using printed paper as their most common found material. These works embody and perpetuate our fractured reality by literally fracturing it even further. Materials, words, and images are clipped from their original context and reborn in new situations. The end result enables the viewer to slip into an infinite realm of the past, the present, and the future.
Artist Reception: July 14th, 2011, 7 – 10 PM
Show Duration: July 1 – July 31, 2011
Location: Le Salon d’ Art | 90 Stanton Street | Manhattan
More About the Show and Preview Images:
