Immortal Captain | oil on canvas | 30 x 30 inches | 2011 | Ari Lankin

As many of you know I have nurtured my love of art for a long time, but I have been nurturing my passion for Flyers hockey since the day I was born.  My parents have blessed our family with season tickets since 1973, well before I was born.

Today the supposed keystone of the Philadelphia Flyers team was traded.  Captain Mike Richards was dealt to the Los Angeles Kings 30 minutes after fellow Flyers star and good friend Jeff Carter was traded to the Columbus Blue Jackets.  The first deal was no real shocker.  The team had salary cap pressure while trying to sign a new goalie, which apparently they did after the Richards trade.

The Richards trade was a little more to stomach.

Will next year be the year the Flyers recoup the Stanley Cup?

During the last week of the regular season I started a Mike Richards painting. Richards was The Flyers Captain and stud player who was destined to be the next great figure in Philadelphia sports. That was until the 2011 hockey season happened. Destiny waits for no man.

On June 23, 2011, The Flyers made big changes in the organization, and I made a big change in my Richards painting.

Here it is..

A spacious grid to give a framework to the structure of the painting.  Screaming orange to set the mood for this painting.

Most of the body has solidified.  And I start adding orange marks in the background.

Looks like this guy is Flyered Up.  Here comes color number three.  I love laying a dark color into a very light painting.  The sensation is tangible.

Building the form up with different shades of orange and white.  Some Flyers symbols start popping up in the flames.

There was too much separation with the black background so I decided to lighten it with some dry brush marks.  I was inspired by the look of ice.

More specifically the ice at a hockey rink.  Art related hockey fact: White pigment is added to the water that is frozen to make the rink.

Starting to really catch that Mike Richards fierceness.  He can really be a beast on the ice when he is on top of his game.

Immortal Captain | oil on canvas | 30 x 30 inches | 2011 | Ari Lankin

The painting now stands as tribute to all Flyers Captains.  Especially the greatest Captain, the immortal number 16, Bobby Clarke.

I have faith in 2012 for this organization. I must admit this is an exciting move by Paul Holmgren. We welcome new Flyers Brayden Schenn, Wayne Simmonds, Jakub Voracek, and Ilya Bryzgalov.

I would also like to give a big thank you to Richie and Carts for taking this team to high levels. You will always be a great part of Flyers history. I wish you both the very best in your careers. It’s unfortunate we won’t get to walk together forever.

You know what they say in hockey, its not the name on the back, its the crest on the front.

Let’s Go Flyers!

Jaromir Jagr | acrylic, oil, pen, collage, and cloth on canvas | 11 x 14 inches | 2011 | Ari Lankin

I recently finished this Jaromir Jagr commission, and I am working on a Henrik Lundqvist, and a Christ Pronger commission at the moment. For information on Immortal Captain, or a custom commission contact me for availability and pricing.

Studio Tour 13 hours later, 20 hour epic Studio Session - Ari Lankin from Ari Lankin on Vimeo.

After you check this out, or even before you check this out, watch the video I posted yesterday at 9pm, this is the video 13 hours later. If I had more mixed paint I would still be painting.

Impromptu Studio Tour 10/28/2010 - Ari Lankin from Ari Lankin on Vimeo.

I decided to shoot a quick impromptu iPhone video tour of my studio after getting off the phone.  Shot at 9pm on 10/28/10, one glorious take.  A little Bon Iver playing in the background. At the 1:30 mark I invented the canvas cam, and I did manage to breach my two minute self-imposed time limit. Enjoy!

Earlier Photo. Oil on canvas.

Later Photo. Oil on canvas.

Two iphone progress shots of the painting I was working on last night. The top photo is earlier in the evening.

Ari Lankin Time Lapse Painting, Oil on Canvas from Ari Lankin on Vimeo.

This is one of my latest paintings completed for the upcoming show.  I captured its process with this time lapse video.  You will see me in the frame in the beginning to get a feel for how I work.  Later in the video I only show the painting develop as if you were standing in front of the canvas painting it yourself.

You can see this painting and others in person on May 22nd at the opening gala for Painting Resurrected.  The show will also feature the work of BORBAY, and Jeremy Penn.

Show Details – May 22, 2010, 6-9PM, 393 Broadway, 3rd Floor, New York NY

I am working on a series focusing on imagery of plugs.  Here is a preview.  Remember that we all have relations.

Let us all enjoy writing the full year of 2010 on every document. It is a very satisfying year to look at. The above image is a work in progress close up photo of a recent painting. This scene is of a rat poppin’ a bottle of champagne. That’s french for sparkling wine. Eyeballs? Below is the whole painting taken earlier in the evening of the above picture.