Perspective, an original painting by contemporary artist, Charles Baughman



I think the Polaroid is one of the great cameras of all time.  It gave a photographer instant gratification which, at the time, was huge deal.  As a photographer or artist, one had a new tool to use to check composition for pieces as well as a way to capture images on the fly.  In this piece, my playing with contrasting
color and the idea of boxes within boxes is a reference to Joseph Albers' color studies.

Polaroid stopped making cameras like the one above due to changing technologies and cameras going digital.  But in researching this post, I found that Polaroid has come out with a new camera that, again, means instant gratification.   You take the picture and, if you want, print the digital image right there.  The print comes out of the slot in the top of the camera so Polaroid is instant again.

What made me want to post this painting was this great article I saw in our Sunday paper.  It's an amazing story that I wanted to share it with you.

This piece is 18"W x 24"H x 1.5"D and is acrylic on wood.  No frame is needed.  You can buy this piece at my online gallery.

Old School by Charles Baughman Camera Series

In the old days, before digital film, every college freshman in photography class was required to purchase the Pentax K1000.  Some learned to shoot photos better than others.  I am not a very good photographer.  I know good photographers like my wife, Kate, and friends Richard Averitt, Kirk Eck and Demitri Sokouris plus many more than I have room to list here.  But I can paint the camera and black and white is where we start.  Look for more of cameras in coming posts or go to my website or my online gallery.  A few of my camera paintings are on display and for sale at Lawrence Photo here in town.

This painting is on wood with a 1.5" painted base and needs no frame.  Dimensions are 18"H x 24"W x 1.5"W.   

Standing Tall by Charles Baughman Flower Series

The Kansas Orchid Society's Show and Sale is open to the public today at Wichita's Hyatt Regency-so another orchid it is!  I can see why the devotees of the orchid growing society take such great pride in nurturing and caring for these fragile creatures.  They are so unique that a lot of orchids must be pollunated by humans in order to continue their existance. 



I even think the leaves are kind of sensual as they open and are almost lanquid as they reach up to the blooms.   As I write this, I realize I anthropomorphize these flowers because their care and feeding are so unique and unlike the rest of the green house that they have become part of the family. 

This painting is for sale on my web gallery.  The paint extends around the outside edges of the wooden surface so no frame is required.   Dimensions are H20" x 14"W x 1.5"D.

Rooted In Air by Charles Baughman Flower Series

This week is the Kansas Orchid Society Show and Sale here in Wichita and it's always incredibly exciting to see all the beautiful and exotic specimens under one roof.  Orchids have got to be one of the sexiest flowers out there.  I have to paint the orchids when they bloom in my home because it's in the winter and nothing else is blooming.  Some variety of orchids take the moisture and nutrients directly from the air with no soil needed.  The exposed roots are an elemental texture that other plants don't have and that's the reason I wanted to capture that in this painting.

This painting is for sale at my web gallery.  The painting is on wood and needs no frame.  Dimensions:  18"H x 24"W x 1.5"D

Purple Glory by Charles Baughman

  

I love hyacinths. It's the first great smell of the spring. I almost think of it as a flavor because, if I could, I would eat it...it smells so good. I've got a few more of these flower paintings to come. As a gardener, I'm just so excited when spring happens. The other great thing about flowers is that I feel comfortable abstracting them because no matter how far into abstraction I go, I still see the flower in the painting.

This work is for sale in my online gallery.  The dimensions are 20"H x 15"W x 1.5"D. 

Tool Chest by Charles Baughman Tool Series

My tool chest is filled with piles of tools, much like this, without all the fun color and texture.  I almost think of it as a Jackson Pollack, throwing color and bits of pattern at the canvas.  It's just that these have specific shapes related to tools. 

The dimensions of this piece is 24" by 24" by 1.5" deep and the medium is acrylic on paper, collaged on all  visible sides.  It doesn't need a frame.

Crown

"Crown" is a painting for the Lenten Season. Certainly a departure from my typical landscape pieces, which can be viewed at my website: www.robcompton.com

Candy Canes by Charles Baughman

Been away for too long due to technical difficulties.  The key word here is technical.  This piece is a collaboration with my daughter.  Sorry for the candy cane/holiday theme.  Again, technical difficulties.  I couldn't put this up during the holidays but I didn't want to wait until next year.  My daughter often works with me in my studio.  She was making bookmarks that we give to people during the holidays and this design is one of her creations.  I loved it so much we worked on this larger version together. 

Happy Holidays a few days late. 

Original Abstract Acrylic Painting on canvas by Kansas artist Luanne Marten

"Hootenanny"

Original Abstract Painting, 6x6, 

 textured acrylic on stretched canvas, rich layered colors, 

painted with a palette knife, $35.

See all my paintings at my Etsy shop.  

Email me. Visit my blog.  Or go to my Website

Original Abstract Acrylic Painting on canvas by Luanne Marten

"Happy Place"

 12x12 acrylic on canvas stretched on a hardwood frame. $69

See all my paintings at my Etsy shop. Or email me.

And, visit my blog .

Floral Cascade by Charles Baughman Flower Series

I had some students that wanted to do some collage paintings in class.  Part of teaching that process is to start by painting on many different papers while enjoying the work with color and pattern.  The class reminded me of the collages that I had shown on the blog in January such as Bird of Paradise.  In those pieces, I used papers that I had created for fun or were parts of past projects.  In the Spring, the collage process developed into the iris pieces.   In contrast, this piece was planned and begun with the end in mind.  I created the papers and background specifically to produce this piece.  I enjoyed creating it and I hope you enjoy it as well.  Thank you for viewing my blog.

The dimension of this piece is 24"H x 18"W x 1.5" on the sides and needs no frame. 

Tool Find by Charles Baughman Tool Series

I always work on two paintings at once.  I was pulling the stencils out of the other painting I was working on(most recent post) and was putting them into this one.  My daughter is of the age where she is doing the Word Find puzzle books and she thought this was like a Word Find puzzle using tools instead of words.

This painting is not on my website but will be up soon.  This painting is on wood and extends around the outside edges so no frame is required.   Dimensions are H 18" x W 24".

The Gyp Hills of south central Kansas is an area that's hard to define. It has the red earth of Oklahoma, the mesas of New Mexico, and the rolling hills and prairie grasses of Kansas. This makes for interesting subject matter. This piece was created from Rock Road, a back road off the primary "Gypsum Hills Scenic Byway" which can be taken through much of the entire area. This was a crisp, late September morning. To view more work, please click HERE.

Excavation by Charles Baughman Tool Series

I was playing with stencils and layering in paint and pulling the stencils back out of the paint.  It felt like I was excavating the paint out of the space.  I love the way paint pushes and pulls but I need something concrete to hang it on.  The name also refers to the tools that continue to pop out as the viewer spends more time going deeper into piece.

This painting is not on my website but will be up soon.  All my paintings are on wood and paint extends around the outside edges so no frame is required.   Dimensions are H 24" x W 18".

Yoga Pyramid by Charles Baughman Yoga Series

This is just another amazing yoga pose that shouldn't be possible, at least for us humans.  With the elbow up in the air like the body creates a pyramid shape and I thought of the food pyramid that I grew up with and the Egyptian pyramids.  The list is endless. 

This painting is not on my website but will be up soon.  This painting is wood and the image extends around the outside edges so no frame is required.   Dimensions are H 24" x W 24".

This image came fairly easily--or as easily as any of them come. It began with a photograph I took while camping with my daughter. It was a beautiful evening: the clouds were stacked in crazy formations and the light was dancing its way over the landscape and through the trees. I cropped the photo to a square format, and then made several sketches to capitalize on the drama of the piece. I want the viewer to "feel" the evening, not just see it. For this reason I simplified the foreground and tree line and had the clouds really pop out with their intense, warm coloring. At 36 x 36, it is fairly easy to be enveloped by the painting without it taking over the room in which it hangs. For more information or to join my mailing list, please visit my website: www.robcompton.com

Work In Progress by Charles Baughman

 This is me doing background designs before I even know what will be going on top.  When I don't know what to paint, I start with playing with color and design.  I just love pattern.  I want to be a complete abstract painter but I just love 'the image' too much.  Sometimes I really just like to sit with the background and it will sit in the studio until I know what image will fit on top of that background.  The great thing about them is that they are never so precious that I can't destroy them to try something new.

This painting is not on my website but will be up soon.  Wood and paint extend around the outside edges so no frame is required.   Dimensions are H11" x W14" x  D1 1/2".

The Wedding Announcement by Charles Baughman Tool Series

My cousin, the doctor and Iowa farm girl, sent out a wedding shower announcement with a picture of her and her husband to be holding their favorite tool.  She was holding the bolt cutters and he was holding the drill.  Take from that what you will.  At any rate, I decided to paint their tools for them as a wedding gift and here is the finished product. 

This painting is not on my website but will be up soon.  Prints are available as well.  This painting is on wood and paint extends around the outside edges so no frame is required.   Dimensions are H12" x W26".

Divided Sky 44 x 56 is a large image meant to envelope the viewer in the calming, meditative qualities of a wide-open landscape. This late-evening image uses warm hues to capture a sense of calm, with the cooler cloud bank breaking in for a sense of drama and uncertainty. For more information, please visit my website by clicking HERE.

Bonsai Orchid by Charles Baughman Flower Series

Geraniums were the very first plant I was able to keep alive in my room as a child.  They are a desert plant by nature so that explains why they survived.   I love the odd quirky growth patterns and when they bloom there's a beautiful asymmetrical balance that happens.  It is very similar to a bonsai tree.

This piece is on my website and has been sold.  However, prints are available for purchase.  For more information please contact me.

Butterfly Orchid by Charles Baughman Flower Series

I love to draw and I try to draw every day.  I also love color and paint.  This is me drawing into thick wet paint.  There are a few things that I always come back to like flowers and my garden.  Every time a flower blooms it gives me hope.  A gardener is an eternal optimist.

This piece is on my website and has been sold.  However, prints are available for purchase.  For more information please contact me.   Dimensions are H10" x W8".

Limited Edition continues the meditation I have begun on trees and how to represent them using a variety of brushwork. These new paintings differ from my more traditional landscapes in the respect that they may rely solely on the tree itself for the composition and design. Though there is a sense of a ground plain present, it is not blatantly represented. The title refers to the unique and temporary nature of a tree's character in those few days of late autumn when the coloring is electric and the fall is imminent. For more information, or to view more artwork, click HERE.

New Work

Evening at Beggar's Bend is a new painting that has just been accepted into the show Visions of the Flint Hills, a benefit for the preservation of our native tall grass prairie. I will have four pieces total in the show, each depicting a scene from the Flint Hills of central Kansas. For more information, click HERE.

Kalidasope 3 by Charles Baughman with Curt Clonts Camera Series

This is another piece from my Camera Series that is a collaboration with Curt Clonts.  There IS a camera in this piece but it was a vehicle for playing with pattern and shape.

 This painting is on my website.  Dimensions are H8" X W10".

New Work by Rob Compton

Immersion is an experiment in brushwork. I wanted to capture the way light dances through foliage and this scene seemed to speak to that directly. 30 x 24 Framed in a contemporary black floater frame, this piece straddles the line between representational landscape painting and abstraction. For purchase information, or to view more artwork, click HERE.