Urban Cave Paintings

My transition from wildlife art into contemporary art was a series entitled "Urban Cave Paintings." I combined my love of wildlife, my fascination with prehistoric cave paintings, and my new passion for concrete blocks. This series answered the question, "What if you bought a house and went into the basement, only to discover a cache of ancient cave paintings?"

Urban Cave Painting: Wounded Stag (Lascaux)     acrylic on silk    60 x 40 inches

In 1991, this painting was shown in the Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum's "Wildlife: an Artist's Perspective" and was chosen for their world tour. It was the first time one of my cinder block paintings was exhibited, so it was a proud moment for me. In the catalog, the reviewer wrote:

“...Another unusual work is “Urban Cave Painting:  Wounded Stag” by Nolan Haan.  The only wildlife in sight is a crudely rendered prehistoric antelope on a cinder block wall.  All of this is rendered in acrylic on silk in perfect illusionistic detail.  It is one of the few works in the show with depth of content.”  

                                                       —Ron Netsky, Professor of Art, Nazareth College

This is how the painting looks draped, prior to stretching on stretcher bars. I decided to base this series on famous cave paintings from around the world, often taking artist liberties with the color and design. The next painting featured the swimming deer, also from Lascaux.

Urban Cave Painting: Swimming Deer    acrylic on silk    40 x 60 inches

Urban Cave Painting: Elk and Horses     acrylic on silk    40 x 60 inches

I took some liberties with Elk and Horses. After studying the typical stylistic proportions the ancients used, such as small heads, distended bellies, and tiny, thin legs, I created my own horses. Apologies to Lascaux for presuming to improve and their design.

Urban Cave Painting: Falling Cow (Lascaux)     acrylic on silk     40 x 60 inches

Urban Cave Painting: the Hunters     acrylic on silk     36 x 72 inches (diptych)

The Hunters is based on cave art found in Africa. I found the depictions of humans (rare in Europe) to be very contemporary in design.

Urban Cave Painting: Spot lit Bull     acrylic on silk     40 x 60 inches

I conclude my blog today with one of my favorites: the Spot lit Bull. I hope you have enjoyed exploring my urban caves. Please bookmark this page so you can find me again and please come back often. I'd love to hear from you with any questions or comments, and don't forget to visit my website: AddictedToWalls.com. Take care and have a good week.

Progress Report: A Flock of Concrete Blocks/Discrimination

My first Flock of Concrete Blocks is comprised of ten individual paintings that will comment on the various ways we discriminate against the physically handicapped. The paintings are in acrylic on silk, mounted on shaped panels. Three paintings are now completed.

Physically Handicapped      acrylic on silk, mounted on shaped panel     28 x 32 inches

This is the star of the series. Each painting floats two inches from the wall, so shadows of the cement blocks will be cast on the venue wall, adding another level of interest.

Avoidance     acrylic on silk, mounted on shaped panel     52 x 34 inches

When confronted with a physically handicapped person, we are sometimes guilty of avoidance. One of my best friends is wheelchair bound. I love spending time with him, but everything is a bit more complicated. If we go to an art show or the supermarket, he has to be helped into the car, and then the wheel chair has to be stowed in the trunk. My house has eight front steps, so if I invite him for dinner, there is the issue of getting him into the house. Nothing major, just an extra effort. Sometimes that small effort is enough for me to refrain from inviting my friend to a function. Avoidance.

Repulsion     acrylic on silk, mounted on shaped panel     50 x 32 inches

Sometimes the physical deformity is so great that our immediate response is repulsion. Just as we are genetically predisposed to respond positively to beauty within our own species, deviation of the norm can elicit repugnance. Once I was eating in a restaurant when a severely handicapped person was seated at a table across from me. I am ashamed to say that I literally lost my appetite. Intellectually I told myself that he was a person just like me, but physically I could not eat. My compassion could not override my repulsion. 

Below is my working sketch for this series of paintings, showing the scale with the silhouette of the man. I substituted the three concrete block sketches on the right with the first three paintings.

 Sketch for A Flock of Concrete Blocks: Discrimination     showing progress

Thank you for following my progress on this new series. I appreciate your support of my blog, and I encourage you to post comments. If you have experienced discrimination, I'd like to hear from you. Perhaps your story will become part of a series. Please visit my website at www.AddictedToWalls.com. Take care and have a prejudice-free week.

The Physically Impaired

 How do you respond when you encounter a person who suffers from a physical deformity? My first "flock of cinder blocks" will explore my personal reactions--none of which I am proud of. As I work on this series of ten paintings, I will study the psychology of discrimination and share these findings with you. My original, "uneducated" design is shown in the blog entry below. After much soul searching, I determined that, depending on the severity of the deformity, I respond in one of three distinct ways: repulsion (avoidance), indifference (usually feigned,) and curiosity. My cinder block alter egos represent these reactions to the physically impaired. I completed the star of the series today. One of the perks of reading my blog is being among the first in the world to see my new artwork.

Warning: the painting below is not for the faint of heart and may be disturbing to some viewers. It is recommended for mature audiences.

The Physically Impaired     acrylic on silk, mounted on shaped panel   28 x 38 inches   Nolan Haan

 

Obviously, seeing a physically challenged cinder block is much easier to bear than if it were a human being depicted. This is precisely why I work with cement blocks. Viewers are less shocked and will spend more time exploring delicate subject matter if not confronted with the human form. A person missing a third of his body would be uncomfortable to look at for most audiences. Our degree of empathy is less powerful when the subject is cement.

Note: to see this painting in progress, please scroll down and read earlier posts.

My blog next week will feature the first of the cinder block reactions to the unfortunate one shown above. Thank you for taking the time to read my blog, and please leave a comment if you feel inclined. As usual, I ask that you bookmark this page and share with your friends on Facebook and Twitter. This week I revamped my website: AddictedToWalls.com, so please visit. Take care and have a prejudice-free week.

Art of Discrimination

Many people are curious about my process, so today I will take you on a step by step tour of how my concept for a group of paintings entitled "Art of Discrimination" developed.

Step one: the Concept. When I come upon a person who is physically challenged, I react in specific ways. Depending on the severity of the deformity, I tend to respond with avoidance, indifference, or curiosity. I am ashamed of these reactions, but I believe they are typical human responses. I wanted to depict these reactions using a series of concrete blocks.

Step two: the sketch. I drew the installation prototype with a free program, Google Sketchup. With this software program, I can draw a concrete block, then orient it in space. By carefully positioning the blocks, I achieved the attitudes of avoidance, indifference, and curiosity. These simple shapes are all I need to render the final paintings.

Sketch for "Art of Discrimination" by Nolan Haan  7 x 32 feet 

My computer generated working sketch for the physically challenged concrete block is:

The scale is for a 32 linear foot wall, which I consider an average size installation. Each of the cement blocks will be a highly realistic, larger-than-life painting in acrylic on silk. Each will be painted separately and mounted on a shaped panel using acid free adhesive.

Step Three: Preparing the silk. The first thing I do is cut and wash a piece of  silk charmeuse (the same material wedding dresses are made of), using cold water and a gentle shampoo. This pre-shrinks the fabric, so it won't respond to the water based acrylic paint and gesso that is later applied. The silk is air dried and then ironed:

Contemporary artist Nolan Haan preparing silk charmeuse for painting

Silk is difficult to work with, but because it has a smooth surface, it does not compromise the illusion of cement with the texture of canvas. To keep it square, I tape the edges with masking tape.

Step four: The painting begins. The shape of the concrete block is carefully pencil sketched on the silk. The basic planes are blocked in using Golden Gesso. I mix black and white gesso to make various shades of gray.

I do not worry about details at this stage. I want a layer of gesso on the entire surface, and I want to be sure the shapes are all correct.

The gesso layer is complete.

Step five: With the design blocked in, I begin the process of painting the cement detail, using acrylic paint. Over the years I have developed  proprietary techniques to transform the silk into cement. I incorporate brushes, rubbing, and spray paint to transform the luxurious fabric into concrete. No computer, printing, photo transfer, silk screen, or photographic techniques are used. 

Step six: mounting. When the painting is complete, I cut a piece of hardboard to the exact shape of the block, using a jigsaw. I then mount the painting onto the board with acid free  spray adhesive.

The final painting

UPDATE: The Boca Art Museum accepted Art of Discrimination into their highly competitive "All Florida" exhibition. Because of the 8 foot size restriction, I could only enter 3 of the panels. The painting was a hit! The museum's education department asked me to give a talk about my work. It's always gratifying to see a concept come to life and engage a viewer.

As usual, I appreciate your time spent reading my blog. Please bookmark the page and share it with your friends. To see more of my artwork, please visit my website: AddictedToWalls. This week I was profiled in the Cultural Quarterly-- you don't want to miss that riveting read! Questions and comments are most welcome, so don't be shy. Take care, and I'll see you next week.

Boca Raton Museum of Art's "60th Annual All Florida Juried Competition and Exhibition"

The annual show at the Boca Raton Museum of Art  is always my most anticipated event, if I'm fortunate enough to be chosen. This year's curator was Dr. Valerie Leeds of the Flint Institute of Art, who culled through 1800 submissions to choose 101 for the show. My painting, Naked, which was discussed in an earlier blog, made its public debut.

Nolan Haan                                Naked                                   Mitchell Lambert

What artists appreciate most about this show is that each painting is hung and lit perfectly. The curators carefully transition from one painting to the next, cognizant of how the artwork relates visually to its neighbors. The opening reception was well attended, and the concrete block name tags worn by my friends (as seen in photo above) made quite the impression. Branding efforts were in high gear!

"All Florida Exhibition" at the Boca Raton Museum of Art

Although I did not win an award, my friend Virginia Fifield won the prestigious merit award for her stunning charcoal entitled "Contemplations of Life, Death, and Beauty." Congratulations Virginia.

This concludes my blog for this Sunday. Thank you for taking the time to visit, and please come back often. If you have any questions or comments, I'd love to hear from you. To see more images of my artwork, please visit AddictedToWalls.com. Take care, and have an eventful week.