My Beethoven

I am sharing the series of family masterpieces that were the elements of this years family Christmas Card this week. I have shared my Girl With The Pearl Earring and now it's time for Beethoven.

This year I realized how diverse each of my family members are. Each their own work of art, different strengths and skills like the different skills poured into the iconic paintings they represent by the respective artists. Differences in style, era, and color pallets much like a metaphor to illustrate each individual.

Ludwig van Beethoven is my favorite classical composer. His fury and passion you can feel through his music. He also had a serious hearing impairment and wrote his most famous work, 9th Symphony - Ode to Joy when he was completely deaf. An amazing example of overcoming obstacles associated with "disabilities" and creating a unique masterpiece.

I wanted to present my interpretation of Joseph Karl Stieler's Portrait of Beethoven,  painted in 1819, with oil on canvas - 62 × 50 cm (24.4 × 19.7 in)

Journey of the portrait:

*Commissioned by Franz and Antonie Brentano in 1819/20

*Purchased by raffle by the brother of Louis Spohr at a raffle run by the Art Association of Brunswick

* Following Spohr's death it was inherited by his daughter Rosalie, the Countess Sauerma a harpist

* 10 February 1909 Purchased by music company C.F. Peters Henri Hinrichsen

*Mr. Hinrichsen was murdered in Auschwitz 17 Sept 1942 and the painting went to his son

*Walter Hinrichsen took it to New York to hang in his office

*1981 it was sold to Beethoven House in Bonn Germany where it still hangs

(source)

Information about the painting was taken from Beethoven's conversation books, "Stieler was permitted four sittings between February and April 1820. This "concession" - Beethoven considered such sittings to be a kind of penance - was not only due to Stieler's artistic ability but also to Franz and Antonie Brentano, who commissioned the portrait. Beethoven was happy to grant them this concession as he had been close to them since 1809 and once referred to them as his "best friends in the world". source

The painting was created on commission by the married couple Franz and Antonie Brentano, who had been friends of Beethoven since around 1810. Beethoven's conversation [sic] books give rather detailed information on the origins of the painting. The composer was sitting for the painter four times - a very unusual high number of sittings, since Beethoven is said to have been unable to sit still. The hands in the painting had to be painted from the artists memory as Beethoven could not be persuaded to sit any longer.

Stieler's portrait of Beethoven distinguishes itself above all through two novel elements. First of all - in contrast to all other contemporary paintings - it shows the composer while he is performing his art. Beethoven is holding a pen and seems to be working on the Credo of his "Missa solemnis". The face of the manuscript he is holding says: "Missa solemnis / From D # (# stands for Major)"; on the page facing the composer, the word "Credo" can be recognized. Further on, Stieler shows the view to a forest landscape in the background and by doing this, he - for the first time - combines a portrait of Beethoven with the romantic motif of nature. Beethoven's well-known love of nature and his famous "Sinfonia pastoral" op.68, with its haunting musical description of nature, provided him the biographical clues for such a depiction. Both motifs - "Beethoven composing" and "Beethoven in nature" - became very popular during the further course of the 19th and 20th century, and until today, fine artists again and again were depicting those motifs. source  

Unedited original of my step-son as Beethoven

Edit #1 With the painting background

*Wardrobe: I.N.C. Military style jacket (similar trim to Beethoven's in the portrait)

*Red Cashmere scarf - tied slightly different than the painting to cover the ruffled bodice of the 70's men's tuxedo shirt used.

*The book prop was created and the actual sheet music placed inside the book.

All of the makeup, wardrobe, digital editing, card creation and images were created and taken by me.

Edit in frame and used in the gallery of our card.

Watch our Masterpiece Theatre, Journey of a Card:

Girl With The Pearl Earring

Every year my family and I produce a themed Holiday Greeting which also doubles as our family photo for the year. I have posted about previous years; Alice in Wonderland, Game Of Thrones, Candyland and 101 Dalmatians. Each theme represented something to us during that time period.

This year I realized how diverse each of my family members are. Each their own work of art, different strengths and skills like the different skills poured into the iconic paintings they represent by the respective artists. Differences in style, era, and color pallets much like a metaphor to illustrate each individual.

I chose "Girl With The Pearl Earring" for my daughter Kaleigh because the complexity if this piece is found in its simplicity, just like her. She is so beautiful and this painting really had the ability to showcase my daughters beauty. She is the center of our gallery as she is the center of my universe. She is thus, My Girl With Pearl Earring.

I did all of the wardrobe, makeup, photos and editing this year. A huge mountain to climb so I did 6 individual shoots. Her (clip on) pearl earring is Vintage and didn't have a mate. The mustard fabrics are actually large linen table cloth pieces that I found at a thrift store as well as the blue stretch fabric for the headband. I spent $3.50 on both and as a wardrobe stylist for Evolution Vintage I had the earring on hand. With time and imagination, anything is possible. We shot hundreds of images and chose the one above as I felt it most resembled the composition and the spirit of the original work.

The original was painted by Dutch painter Johannes Vermeer and estimated to be painted in 1665, the painting was signed but not dated. It became part of the Mauritshuis in The Hague in the Netherlands in 1902. It is a small piece, 17.5" X 15", oil on canvas. 

There has been much speculation about who the model was for this painting (actually called "tronie" - in dutch it is a study of head and shoulders dressed in exotic clothing - it is not technically a portrait). Because it is an unresolved mystery people for centuries have projected their own story onto the figure. It spawned a novel (that has sold over 3 million copies) and a feature Hollywood film adapted from the novel/ I feel one of the most beautiful elements of the work is the mystery. who do you think the girl is? So much is open for interpretation.

Details are important in my projects. I placed my daughters finished photo in the same frame that hangs in the Hague.

Watch how the entire card was created! *Sound Up*

Passion For The Portrait: Tara Deetscreek

The Artist in her studio

The Internet is a magical place at times. I enjoy connecting with people online and thoroughly enjoy the positive social networking side of the Internet. I love Instagram and sharing images. I had the pleasure of connecting with an artist recently who's gift's I would like to share with you.

It was this image that I shared which sparked some inspiration for Tara.

She transformed this 1950's Dior model into the ultimate shoe maven Sarah Jessica Parker and surrounded her with various SJP Collection Styles

Tara Says, "My love for art began at a young age.  I started to draw everything in sight around the age of 8 and my obsession continued through adulthood.  I ended up pursuing an art studio degree and graduated from Indiana University of Pennsylvania with a Bachelors of Fine Arts degree with my focuses being in drawing and ceramics.  I have always worked in 2D and 3D, loving different qualities about both.  It has always been a struggle trying to keep art a priority alongside being a wife and mother, and with different seasons I have focused on different mediums with varying degrees of time commitments.  

Since graduating about 15 years ago, I have done everything from murals, to pottery shows, to custom work. After raising my 4 boys and keeping my art career more on the side lines and being a mother in the forefront, I decided in 2014 that it was time to let art take more of a priority in my life than in past years.  This meant deciding to look at it more like a job and committing to work every day creating in my studio and searching for my personal voice as an artist.  It has been an exciting year for me, because even though I have created my whole life, I feel as though this year I have become an "emerging artist" in my own sense of the word.  

I looked within and searched within myself for the things that were always there.  I looked to inspirational artists, Bo Bartlett, Frida Kahlo, Alphonse Mucha, and Gustav Klimt, to name a few. I have always been inclined to draw people and love capturing a feeling, mood, or characteristic about a person.  Telling people's stories through portraiture is my passion.  Nothing excites me/ terrifies me more than creating someones likeness, and if I can capture something more about the person I am painting or make them feel beautiful through my work then its even better.  I have always been kind of a dreamer and my work tends to have a strain of fantasy in it.  Fabric and pattern have also been influential in my work, as have nature and everything vintage.  

Self Portrait

As I searched for my voice, I also searched for the perfect medium.  Drawing with pencil and painting with watercolor have been my mediums of choice, but I was frustrated at the size limit of a sheet of paper.  I found the perfect mixed media for me which is working on canvas with fluid acrylics (which act as watercolor) combined with colored pencils. I feel like after finding this medium combination I have been able to develop my work and have some consistency which is so exciting. I'm looking forward to seeing my work continue to develop and to learn people's stories along the way!"

When the UPS delivery man knocked on my door on Friday imagine my surprise to receive the most AMAZING portrait from Tara.

 She even gave me a peek at her process

I feel so honored that she used her time and talents to create this portrait for me. In the image I was in the Hearst Castle gardens of hydrangeas wearing a headdress from The House of Kat Swank. I love this moment and am truly thrilled it is now captured forever. The addition of the peacock feather is perfect for me too and I truly adore every element of this piece. It will proudly be displayed on my living rooms magenta accent wall.

Thank You Tara! 

Commission your own unique piece for your home or as a gift from Tara!

Connect:

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VIVA FRIDA: Part 1

On this day in 1907 one of my SHE-Ro's was born in a small suburb of Mexico City (Coyoacan) - Mexican Painter Magdalena Carmen Frieda Kahlo y Calderón AKA Frida Kahlo. Her life story began in the same place where it ended. She was born in her parents home in Coyoacan, known as Casa Azul or The Blue House. Pain and suffering was the backdrop of her life from the early age of 6 when she contracted Polio and suffered at the hands of bullies and critics for her "bad leg" which she hid under pants and later long skirts for the rest of her life.  

Frida age 12: 1919

At 18 (Sept 17, 1925) she was involved in a bus accident that nearly took her life but after surviving it left her with a lifetime of injuries. The bus she was riding on with her then boyfriend collided with a trolley car.

Frida age 18: 1925

Due to her immobilization after her accident she began to sketch and paint to occupy her time. She spent months confined to her bed in various body casts.  She would return to bed and the casts over the course of her life as her health deteriorated. Always with paint brush in hand.

Frida painted her first self portrait in 1926 

"Self Portrait in a Velvet Dress" 

Once "back on her feet" Frida's next life milestone came in the form of famous Mexican Muralist painter Diego Rivera, 20 years her senior, a mentor, a lover, a tragedy, a husband, and a friend. 

They met in early 1928 and were married (for the first time) August 21, 1929 to the total disgust of her religious mother. She commemorated the event in a portrait.

"Wedding Portrait" - 1931 

Currently at the San Fransisco Museum of Modern Art

She was a VERY multi-faceted individual. She was intelligent, brave, and courageous. She was an eclectic mix of the masculine and feminine. 

She was openly bi-sexual, she drank, smoked and cursed like a sailor in a time where "ladies were ladies" and such behavior was seriously frowned upon, especially in her conservative homeland of Mexico with women's traditional roles.  Her dress defied the "trends" of the time. I will talk about Frida's fashion in another piece where I can get more in depth.

Check out this 3 min synopsis video about Frida!   

Want to see the real thing??? Here is a list of the the locations of Frida's Works and where they are today!

LEARN more about Frida:

WATCH:

The Life and Times of Frida Kahlo - PBS Documentary

A&E Biography: Frida Kahlo

Hollywood Bio-Pic: Frida *Watch all the special features too - AMAZING how they made this*

READ:

Biography of Frida Kahlo By Hayden Herrera

Diary of Frida Kahlo: An Intimate Self Portrait

Frida Kahlo: The Paintings By Hayden Herrera

VISIT:

Frida Kahlo's Home - Now Museo Frida Kahlo

Frida & Diego's Home/Studio

Largest private collection of Frida & Diego's work: Delores Olmedo Museum

*I have been to ALL 3 of the above places in Mexico. AMAZING! A MUST see if you love and appreciate Frida*

VIVA FRIDA PART II  - will examine her later life, more of her work and her relationship with Diego up until her death.