Beetlejuice Pumpkin, 2018

Here’s a little animated gif of my pumpkin carving process this year… For those Beetlejuice fans out there, this is my version of when he turns into the snake! I love carving pumpkins like this, and look forward to Halloween every single year because of it!

The Coaster Show 2018:V6 - Gallery 30 South, OCTOBER 4–28, 2018

As part of my new yearly tradition, I love creating small paintings in the hopes of getting into one of the most fun gallery exhibition in Southern California, The Coaster Show! In years past, the Coaster Show has been held at the La Luz De Jesus Gallery in Los Angeles. This year the former curator (of LLDJ), Matt Kennedy, is now hosting the show at his new gallery in Pasadena, Gallery 30 South. Seeing as how the show runs during the month of October, I decided to create a movie monster themed piece, featuring a portrait of the Creature From The Black Lagoon. I hope you enjoy this little piece. And, I hope you can make it out to the show. The display format that is used makes for a very entertaining gallery experience, with nearly 1,000 pieces of beer coaster art filling the walls. It's a must see.

Here is a glimpse from last year's artist opening.

- Steve

New Painting Alert!

This is not the only painting that I have been working on over the past week, but it has become one of my favorites. A lot of planning, layering and texture work went into this piece, and the results show it. The base layers consist of burnt umber, raw sienna, and yellow oxide over a black ground... a very analogous earth tone pallet. Then, I used blends of cobalt, cerulean blue and titanium white for the top layers(my own version of a split-complimentary color scheme), keeping them transparent enough to let the earth tones show through, but opaque enough to hold their own in the composition. I left out a lot of other steps of course, this isn't intended to be a tutorial, but that is the color pallet used for this piece. I'll try to post some process pics soon.

I hope you like it. And, don't forget to go the SD fair, it starts June 1st. I have 3 paintings in this year, wish me luck!

- Steve

New Triptych Painting

This is a new painting that I just completed for my mother in law's birthday! The design is very loosely based on elements from Frank Lloyd Wright's "Tree of Life"... very loosely based. The pattern repeats every 10 inches, with each parallelogram being 1/2 inch wide. I created a custom template out of clear acrylic using my new Glowforge machine, to assist with the initial drawing of the design. Compared to how I would normally work, needing to measure and draw out each individual design object onto the canvas, I was able to save many MANY hours of drawing time. I'm still coming to grips with the possibilities of this new toy!

I have included a few process pictures below, showing my custom template of one full repetition of the design, as well as the initial background which was created to mimic an old tarnished mirror feel. All of the paint used in this piece is metallic acrylic, and therefore changes in reflective qualities based on the light. And, the design was created to dissipate as it approaches the top and bottom edges, creating an overall circular feel for the triptych. 

Let me know what you think!

And, as always, please contact me if you are interested in a custom designed commission piece. I love working together with people to create something special, specifically for them!

info@stevepaulsenstudio.com

Surf style

A friend of mine has a surfboard company called, "Jason Rowells Surfboards". After seeing some of my op art designs, he decided to ask if I would be interested in creating a board design for him. I jumped at the chance! Here's what we came up with. It still needs the glass applied, but I'm really happy with how it turned out! Should sparkle when it's all complete. Cant wait to see it!

This is the first time I've painted on a board, but definitely not the last! I hope you like it. 

- Steve

Combining Styles

Recently, I have been experimenting with combing my abstract and op art styles. I have a few more that I will be posting soon. But, I'm really enjoying the effect of overlaying my geometric painting on top of the organic abstract backgrounds. The contrast between the two is very exciting to me, and they seem to compliment each other perfectly! I'm applying the op art painting with a slight transparency to allow the abstract to show though. I feel that by doing this, I'm allowing the two style to merge, rather than compete. I'm really enjoying this process, and there will definitly be more of this to come.

Featured Artist on Artsy Shark Website

Today I was chosen to be the "Featured Artist" on the artsyshark.com website. This website is dedicated to promoting and assisting artists in all of their endeavors, it really is an honor to be featured. Thank you so much Artsy Shark! Check out the link below...

https://www.artsyshark.com/2017/12/07/featured-artist-steve-paulsen/
 

Going Abstract!

For the past few months, I've been researching and experimenting with abstract painting. Compared to my usual "tight and controlled" style of artwork, I wanted to loosen up and see what abstract had to offer, or what I had to offer abstract. I have to admit, I love it! Like most people, I've always liked abstract art... it just took me awhile to understand it. A lot of people look at abstract paintings and think either, "wow, that's really cool", or "I could do that, it's just a bunch of paint splattered around". Let me tell you, it's not as easy as it may appear. If you feel the latter, just try it. You'll change your mind quickly. 

As an artist, you still get that same stress when staring at the blank canvas, wondering what to paint, where to start, or trying to envision the final perfect product before you've even put a brush stroke down. That all still happens with abstract. What I found refreshing and rewarding, was NOT knowing what I wanted the final product to look like, and just letting myself 'explore the canvas'. It's liberating! All of the same principles of painting apply with abstract. You need to really understand composition, color, balance, line and shape; otherwise you won't know how to proceed through to a final piece of art. You'll be lost. Also, the fear that all artists feel about determining when a painting is finished, and whether or not they're willing to 'show the world', is almost more amplified with abstract. If you're painting something representational, you can see at the end if it is or isn't representational, and go from there. With abstract art, there's a definite level of confidence that you need in order to put yourself out there.

Most people will interpret your paintings vastly different than you, and that's great. Think of a group of people all standing together, looking at the sky, and explaining what they see in the clouds. They're all looking at the same clouds, they all like what they're seeing, but they're all seeing something different. To me, that's the beauty of abstract art.

"Cityscape" is the first abstract piece that I've actually wanted to "share with the world". It is by no means my first abstract painting... it's probably closer to my 15th in the past few weeks. But, I love this painting. It was an adventure in mental discipline, experimentation and also trust in myself that the decisions I were making (which could completely make or break the painting) were sound. I love how everyone sees something different in it. I love how big and powerful it is in person. And, I love that I took a lot of chances and trusted myself.

I hope you like this painting as well. Cityscape will mark my first really step into abstract painting. I've also created a new gallery on my website for abstract art... even though there's only one piece in there at the moment. :)

La Luz De Jesus - 5th Annual Coaster Show, 2017

I just found out that two of my paintings were selected to appear in the La Luz De Jesus Gallery's, "5th Annual Coaster Show", in Los Angeles. The show will open on September 1st, and run through October 1st, 2017. For more information about the show, click this link: 5th Annual Coaster Show.

This is one of, if not the number one, gallery that I enjoy going to in Los Angeles. I make a point to go there with every trip that we take up to that area. It's kind of a dream come true to be shown in this gallery! Past exhibitors in this show include Mark Ryden and Ron English, as well as hundreds of up and coming artists. It's a huge honor and I can't wait to go see it!

Here's a sneak peak of my two pieces in the show. They will be on sale at the show, along with over a thousand other tiny pieces of art. Go check it out!

Thank You, San Diego County Fair!

As a result of showing my paintings and illustration at the San Diego County Fair, I have sold three of the four pieces that were submitted. While I will dearly miss all three pieces, I'm happy that they have all landed in happy homes. Here are the three:

Edgar Allan Crow - 24x24, acrylic on canvas. SOLD $500

Last Breath - 24x24, oil on canvas. SOLD $600

Hitchiker - 9x12, ink on clay board. SOLD $250

Betta Fish in Red - 8x10x3, acrylic on plexiglass

This is my first attempt at layered plexiglass painting, and it will not be my last! My mind is 'swimming' with ideas on new paintings and effects to create with this style! I learned a ton of lessons while painting this, most notably process lessons. For example, paint doesn't really want to stick to acrylic the first time. Sometimes it does the second time, usually the third time, though. Haha. The lesson: water to paint ratio, as well as the viscosity of the paint, play a huge roll in how well the paint adheres to the plexi. 

I had a blast painting this and learning how it all works, as well as designing and assembling the sculpture(?)... I guess it is more of a sculpture. I hope you enjoy this, and you can expect a lot more where this came from. Possibly with a few op art designs in the near future...

Below is a real life scenario(slightly blurry) of how this could look in your home!... or, in my home at least.

Over/Under - 12 x 12, acrylic on panel. On display at the SDCCU Festival of Arts in North Park

Over/Under will on display, and for sale, at the 21st SDCCU Festival of Arts in North Park: GALLERY IN THE STREET May 20, 2017 11 AM - 10 PM.

Come by at take a look. Should be a great festival!

New Painting - Untitled - 30 x 40, acrylic on canvas

Staying with my Reutersvard inspired impossible repeating design, this is the newest painting in the series. It's the largest of this theme, at 30 x 40 inches. It's also one of the most symmetrical, as far as the distances between the "caps". This was designed with a 1:2 ratio, which creates a very structured look. I hope you enjoy it!

New Painting - Untitled - 12x30, acrylic on canvas

Just finished this up last night. This began as an experiment, using a gradation for the background and altering the shading on the impossible design. It turned out to have a little bit of a cubist feel to it, which I really like! I hope you do too.

New Painting - 24x30, acrylic on canvas

I've been really enjoying the exploration of Oscar Reutersvard inspired paintings. He's one of my favorite artists, and he influence can be seen throughout most of my work. I'm really happy about how this particular painting turned out. Still untitled at the moment.

"Tavern" art show at The Studio Door, San Diego

My most recent painting, "Where Everybody Knows Your Name", was just selected to be in the "Tavern" art show, at the Studio Door, in San Diego.

"This exhibition encourages visual artists to share their artwork that celebrates the beer culture of the Tavern.  From the Dutch masters to the commercial artists of the 20th Century, the bar lifestyle and its trappings have made for interesting subject matter in pubs and galleries alike."

The show opens on May 5th, and the reception is tentatively set for Saturday, May 6th, 6-9pm.

Please come by and check out the show! Here's the address:

The Studio Door
3750 30th Street
San Diego, CA 92104-3632

A few things that I've been working on...

Lately, I've been experimenting with some abstract pieces and thought I'd share one of my new paintings in progress.

"New Slang (tenative title)" -  acrylic on canvas, 18" x 24"

I've been using a lot of layering to get the variations for the background, as well as to unify the colors. I've also been experimenting with different textures on the canvas to create different results. This particular painting has a triple layer of hard gesso, sanded to a smooth finish.

Last Breath - Stranger Things Series

In the first episode of Stranger Things, this painting depicts the scientist desperately hoping the elevator door will close, before the unseen monster attacks. This was a pretty fun painting to create! The bright light coming from above creates falling light that catches a few of the major wrinkles in his coat, and also blows out the transitions of the collar laying over the coat at the shoulders. I concentrated on keeping the painting loose, and tried to capture the overall feel of the moment, leaving out unnecessary details that would pull the eye away from the intended focus... helplessness, fear.

I hope you like it, too.

Edgar Allan Crow - new painting progress

This is the progress of a new painting that I'm currently working on. The progress so far is the black and white acrylic value study and under painting. Like most of my paintings, the next step is to paint the oil on top, making slight adjustments to the values and detail. I don't think I'll be changing too much, though. I'm really enjoying how this is coming along, and pretty excited to finish it up.

-Steve

Stranger Things - Last Breathe (process), 24"x24", oil on canvas

The second painting in my Stranger Things series is titled, "Last Breathe". It's the last time we see this scientist alive... Here are a few images from the process, initial sketch through first pass on the head, shirt and coat. I hope you enjoy this 'behind the scenes' glimpse.

-Steve