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
This is the second painting I did after the biblical flu that had me sidelined with a fever for 9 days. Between tripping out on a fever, lucid fever induced dreams, over twenty movies including the whole Twin Peaks series, and not being able to paint I was so ready for this painting to pour out of me.
As usual with my abstract work, I dive in without any preconceived image…
A big yellow amorphous shape, why not?
I kept it very loose and tried to surprise myself. Some strong lines to counteract the organic yellow shape.
New colors and shapes seem to have individualized spirits.
Two strips along the top and the bottom, allude to analog film. This was influenced by watching so many movies and my experience with photography/film. Aesthetically it holds the diverse forms from spilling out of the top and bottom of the canvas.
A canvas is a window to another world. Add light and the image dances. The individual forms start to gather together and a large central form develops.
At this point I’m exploring the organic forms and fleshy feeling. This is balanced by the architectural feeling of the crisp horizontal strips on the top and bottom of the canvas. The self, the brain, and our instantaneous digital connection to the rest of the world….oops, I was just thinking out loud.
There was a lot of destroying and rebuilding while making this painting. I had to take things away to see if they were needed. When I rebuilt them I already had a knowledge of the purpose they served. Also what was was missing in their absence. 
The lower forms are now shining through the strip on the bottom of the canvas. Some people wish their life is a movie. If you ask me, everyone’s life is a movie. Some people turn their projector light up brighter than others.
View With A Room | oil on canvas | 30 x 40 inches | 2011
Some of my best drawings from when I was kid were of hockey players. This commission painting of Jaromir Jagr is the first in my hockey series. It is a pleasure to combine two of my passions. Stay tuned for more hockey paintings, but for now let’s dive into this painting.
Started out by collaging an image to the canvas.
I block out the image I’m going to paint in yellow.
A quick line sketch with pen to get my hand and eye on the same level.
Time to explore the space and let the painting lead the way.
The figure on the right is starting to look like a hockey player.
His gaze was intense and up ice so I added this spiral from his face.
Adding more details to his face and uniform.
The yellow line is what is known as the dasher on the boards. Was toying around with it as a horizon for a landscape.
I had this Rangers crest on my studio door for a few years and decided it would live a better life in this painting. Covered by tape for a dramatic unveiling.
Some changes to the background to bring the two figures into balance with one another.
Check out that patch, it looks great in person with the metallic threads and cloth texture.
Jaromir Jagr, 11 x 14 inches, acrylic, oil, pen, collage, and cloth on canvas, 2011. Ari Lankin
Time to resolve the negative space around the figures and the patch. I added some painterly marks to activate the skaters. A few more finishing touches on the right hand Jagr to make him come alive and the painting is finished.
For the video I selected Metallica because it is one of Jagr’s favorite bands as well as the person who the painting is for.
Next up in the series is a 30 x 30 inch painting of Mike Richards of the Philadelphia Flyers.
Check out the Stanley Cup painting, Lord Stanley’s Castle.
I decided to start my portrait series with a living woman artist. She is a pop icon muse to millions of people across the world, a philantrhopist, and an advocate for LGBT communities. A woman of many looks and states of being, Lady Gaga.
I respect that she lives the life of a true rock and roller. Working hard around the clock and partying when the mood strikes. I poured over hundreds of images of her many looks: on stage, red carpet, ultra glam, sunglasses, and partied out. A sunglass look, and a partied out look made it to the final three, but the winning look is a candid shot of her backstage.
Lady Gaga and Bloom are on display at Atelier Klimat in NYC, now through the end of April.
Let me take you through the painting and then you can watch the time lapse video.
Start the painting with the lips, and a simple grid to map out the space.
And we are officially under way after touching all four edges of the canvas with paint.
A loose foundation with all of her features.
Tighten up the proportions and add some teeth.
Fleshing out her back, giving the figure volume.
Remove the red and add some blue to the background. Later on I decided not to have any blue in the painting.
Now it’s time to add some volume to the hair and activate the negative space with flecks of red.
I collaged on her tattoo and then painted over it.
Time to get rid of the blue, the purple and the handlike flower shape to the left of the figure.
Soften the background with some lighter colors and place a form in the negative space to anchor Lady Gaga.
A curtain falls, everyone in the public eye has a secret private life.
A flower blossoms from her chest and extends out past the curtain. Certain things are better when shared with the world. A lot more blonde hair!
A few composition changes in the curtain and touching up some details.
Lady Gaga, 30 x 30 inches, oil and collage on canvas. Ari Lankin 2011
I’m still deciding on who’s portrait to paint next in the series. Suggestions…..
The Making of Feathered Edge from MOCA on Vimeo.
There is nothing like bringing together great minds to form something truly amazing. The Bauhaus was a school in Germany that brought together creative people from all backgrounds. The result was a creative synergy that reverberated through art, architecture, graphic design, interior design, industrial design, and typography. Students and faculty worked together sharing their expertise eliminating any hierarchy in the arts.
That was a very minimal introduction to the Bauhaus. My point of writing this blog entry is to hear from the international community. Do you know of any modern day Bauhaus’ like situations? They do exist, but for the most part not at an institutional level. Please take a few minutes to share with us any places you may know around the world. Whether it be a university, a warehouse in New York, the streets of Berlin… let us know.
I think the structure of the Bauhaus would be an extremely fertile environment for creative professionals. Think of a school that crosses disciplines like architecture, fashion, new media, science/technology, and the arts.
Benjamin Ball and Gaston Nogues came together to form an ambitious collaboration called Ball-Nogues Studio. A group of people working together in art, architecture and industrial design. According to their website the studio consists of these ten individuals: Benjamin Ball, Martina Dolejsova, Benjamin Jenett, James Jones, Ayodh Kamath, Jonathan Kitchens, Alison Kung, Deborah Lehman, Gaston Nogues, Rachel Shillander. (Please excuse me if any of these links are to the wrong person, I did not have time to verify each link.)
The studio also collaborates with outside professionals to customize production and process for specific projects. Take a look at Feathered Edge, an installation exploring digital technology and craft at The Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles. Click on the title of the piece and explore the project with photographic stills, and a great 7 minute video.
Here is the amazing project description in their own words:
Feathered Edge was commissioned by the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles. The project explores the convergence of digital technology and craft. It is one in a series of installations curated by Brooke Hodge and Alma Ruiz. Integrating complex digital computation, mechanization, and printing with traditional handcrafted production techniques, Feathered Edge explores our desire to alter a space with fluid architectural forms that require a minimal use of material while utilizing a new proprietary technique that yields the effect of three dimensional spatial constructs “printed” to resemble objects hovering in space.
Feathered Edge is comprised of 3604 individual lengths of twine, totaling 21 miles, that have been dyed, cut, and then suspended from mesh scrims installed on the walls and ceiling of the gallery. With the aid of the “Insta-llator 1 with the Variable-Information Atomizing Module,” a machine designed and manufactured by Ball-Nogues Studio especially for this installation, the strings were precisely saturated with solvent-based inks, created by a chemist for the project, using four digitally controlled airbrushes and then cut to varying lengths. Using specialized parametric software developed with a software programmer, we generated a map that was printed onto the scrim to establish the proper locations and lengths of the twine in the space. Each piece was attached to the mesh scrim, and then knotted by hand in a technique similar to that used to make latch-hook rugs. The weight of the string creates a complex system of overlapping catenary curves on which cyan, magenta, yellow, and black segments were “printed” to yield the effect of ghostly three dimensional objects. Sometimes the objects are visible, at other times they blur to resemble a fluid-like vapor that floats and hovers in the gallery space.
The software used to develop the parameters of the resulting ephemeral spatial condition can yield nearly infinite possible design configurations. While the environment is defined by the string formations and printed “objects,” it is also constructed from the negative space found within the array of catenaries, which allows sight to extend into and throughout the spatial structure. The space is activated by people, movement, and light, creating a continually changing experience.
Computers are great at quickly analyzing large amounts of information, then generating data used for fabrication, but they can’t yet produce fully realized works of architecture. At best they can produce highly accurate components and spatial mappings or systems, this is where hand craft comes in. We use our hands and our knowledge of material as a filter for the digital possibilities and to achieve the final “built” environment; in effect, we use the prowess of the computer to push the limits of the hand.
Feathered Edge is the third in a series of projects we refer to as “Suspensions.” Unseen Current (2008), exhibited at Extension Gallery for Architecture, Chicago, featured 2,500 suspended string catenaries, and Echoes Converge, exhibited at the Venice Biennale in 2008 used string to create intricate patterns inspired by the baroque ceilings of the city’s buildings. These softly structural, open-air spaces encouraged social interaction, enveloping rather than obstructing viewers.
Principals in Charge: Benjamin Ball, Gaston Nogues
Project Management: Andrew Lyon
Project Team: Chris Ball, Tatiana Barhar, Seda Brown, Patricia Burns, Paul Clemente, Sergio d’Almeida, Jesse Duclos, Matt Harmon, Karlie Harstad, Ayodh Kamath, Jonathan Kitchens, Andrew Lyon, Lina Park, Tim Peeters, Sarah Riedmann, Joem Elias Sanez, Geoff Sedillo, Norma Silva, Caroline Smogorzewski, Beverly Tang, Blaze Zewnicki, Sasha Zubieta, and the preparatory staff of MOCA.
Feathered Edge was on view July 26-November 15, 2009
Rigging: Kelly Jones of Jax Logistics
Custom Software Development: Pylon Technical
Live Video: Peter West
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!
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
Ripped into this sucker for an average of 10 hours per day for a week straight. I wasn’t always rolling the camera. 1 picture every 30 seconds; 24 pictures for every second of film. The still image is from my cell phone, and not the finished image. High res final painting will be posted in the near future.
I finally saw this clip without hearing any particular spoilers. Just like a good movie I’m glad I didn’t hear all the details. The most revealing thing I heard was that she “hung over the audience and sprayed water on them.” This goes to show just how strong her performance was. It simply could not be put into words by the mass media or tabloid headlines which are hard to avoid these days. In fact, I am going to watch it again right after I finish this article. What a powerful performance. The above picture is from my cell phone. Perhaps more pictures to come. Follow this link to watch the performance, a reproduction of a show at a specific time and place.
‘Pink Soars During \'Glitter In The Air\' Grammy Performance 2010
