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Saturday, September 7, 2013

Country Outing

Country Outing
I worked on this last signature piece for my barn series for almost a week and it is finally ready for mailing to Ingrid in Sweden.  This piece really gave me problems right up to the bitter end.  I had to problem solve all the way through it, but I actually really like how all the problems turned into something that helped the piece.  First the background was way too bold for any of the barns I had in mind.  I decided I had to add to the background and in doing so created even more of a problem.  I liked what I had done but it still was not ready for any barns. 

Since I was actually working in Ingrid's signature I had to do this right.  Somehow something had to work before I would even think of sending it to her.  I wanted to add "crazy guys" to the piece and that in itself created more of a problem.  For days I anguished over how to fit a barn in with what I was laying out in the signature.  I liked what I had but no barn would work.

This morning I thought about Where's Waldo.  If you don't know this children book, each page has about 100 people and Waldo is hidden somewhere in the illustration.  It is the job of the reader to find Waldo.  So I thought why not hide the barn and it is the job of the viewer to find the barn.  Hint:  Not all of the barn is visible to you.  Another hint, if you have been viewing my series on barns for awhile, the barn has appeared in a previous work.  I rather like how the final outcome of  a hidden barn came to be.  I sure hope Ingrid like it when she receives it.

5 comments:

Cate Rose said...

I love this. But I can't see the barn in there for the life of me!

anonymous said...

This is star quality, John. Fantastic ++. I know Ingrid will love it. I blew it up in Photoshop, changed the mode and unless the barn is under the bird's foot I give up. But then I couldn't see the dancing gorilla either... (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2277759/Can-dancing-gorilla-New-psychological-study-reveals-83-percent-radiologists-fail-spot-it.html)

tgarrett said...

Very nice spread John- I liked that you shared your challenges with us. It's really what I love about collage-it's a problem solving challenge. When I have taught collage classes I always have had a couple of students say at the beginning well it's just gluing stuff down...then halfway into the first one they say oh- this is kind of hard. For me it's the challenge that is the joy and it keep me making more and more.

Unknown said...

Try as I might, I cannot see a barn in this one. I sure like it though!

Brian Kasstle said...

I think I know where the barn is. I will email you separately to see if I am correct. Very fun John!