About the Card Players.

       This series of paintings called “The Card Players” is based on an old, black and white, family photograph my uncle, took in the 1950’s, when he was stationed in Italy. The photo depicts my grandfather (right) and his brother-in-law (left) enjoying a game of cards on a small crowded table. After immigrating to America at the age of 16, this happened to be my grandfathers only visit back to his home town, Velenzano, Italy .

Playing cards was a typical social pastime in my family. I have fond memories of my father and both of my grandfathers playing card games. Of course, I was also interested in the subject from studying Paul Cézannes‘ five versions of  The Card Players in school, one of which is seen below.

The Goal

My goal with this project was to explore how different media, style, and size can effect the over all feeling of one subject.

In honor of Paul Cezanne, the Impressionists, and the Cubist Painters I wanted to accomplish two large versions of “The Card Players”. First a large impressionistic,  version, and second an even larger Cubist version.

This project took a total of ten years of off and on work to complete ten pieces.

Watercolors.

To get a feeling for the figures, I began the series by creating blind contour drawings in pencil. I did all of them very carefully, looking down at my drawing occasionally to avoid too much distortion. Two of the drawings are full length and two are close up portraits.

After drawing, I added watercolors to begin exploring which colors to use for the composition. I tried to imagine the color of their clothing, the table, dresser, buffet and the ambiance of the room.

After I did studies of  the men’s figures, I carefully did two more blind contour drawings, close ups of their faces. I was a bit more fauvist with my colors in the close up portraits.

With each drawing I tried to develop a pallet of colors that would work on the larger paintings.

    

Next I started a large watercolor/ gouache painting on paper, 22″X30″.  This larger watercolor helped me to begin to pull together the relationship of color between players, table, and the room they occupy.

Oil Painting

I did A small gestural painting in oil paint to begin my transition from drawing to oil painting. This 11″X14″ canvas (below) was key to determining color for the larger canvases.

After my oil study was finished, I built a large frame. Stretched and prepared the canvas for the large, impressionistic version of  The Card Players. 

As I progressed with the large impressionistic version of  The Card Players I ran into difficulty. For whatever reason I was having trouble with the table top. Taking the time to do the simple small drawing posted below, helped me sort things out.

I worked on this canvas off and on for a couple years. As I was working on the impressionistic version of The Card Players, I was always considering my approach for the much larger abstract version of this subject.

Phase II Abstracting the image.

During the time I was working on The Card Players, I was taking an experimental printmaking classes at the Evanston Arts Center. I decided this would be a good opportunity to begin the transition from a representative version the Card Players, to an abstraction.

Limited class time forced me to work fast and think more abstractly about the subject.

To begin, the first print I did of The Card Players was a Monotype in black ink on cream colored paper, using the “subtractive” drawing method. With printmaking the subtractive drawing method is done first, by rolling the plate in black ink. I removed the ink using an old rag and both ends of a brush I drew out the image.

 I made the second study below using other peoples wasted ink at the end of class, using a roller to draw out the image as fast as possible. Later I went back into the image with Prismacolor pencils to accentuate the print.

Beginning The Large Canvas.

The Large Card Players canvas measures 57″X81″. My goal was to keep fresh brush strokes with minimal blending. In the past I would tend to do careful blending between shapes, much like the abstract print above.

To start, I decided to use the muck at the bottom of my brush washer and began drawing large gestural lines to suggest the figures much like the drawing below. Once I had a nice gestural drawing, I referred to my prior studies as I began adding color.

The entire painting was done outdoors. I did it in my parents garage which allowed me to step far away from the canvas to get some distance from the canvas, which really helped to bring it into focus.

I mixed my colors mainly on the pallet in an effort to keep blending on the canvas at a minimum.

The Card Players series took a total of about ten years of off and on work. I finished the series in the early 2000’s and had an exhibit of it in 2007 at Old Town Triangle Arts Center in Chicago Illinois.