Artist's Magazine - USA (2020-05)

46 Artists Magazine May 2020

methods along with the support-

ing technology was in many cases

methodically phased out of school

systems and replaced by a laissez-

faire, do-it-yourself arrangement.

Representational painting was simply

renamed “illustration.”

LBH: How would you break down

your creative process into separate

stages, and what materials are

involved at each stage?

RS: It all depends on my subject

and the medium I’m working with.

Having said that, my paintings all go

through the same general stages, very

much like a chess game would unfold.

In chess, there’s an opening, a mid-

dle game and an endgame. The most

challenging (and important) stage is always the beginning

because what I do at the start will determine what hap-

pens afterward. The most important thing I need at the

beginning of any painting is a very clear idea of what I’d

like to see on my canvas at the end of my painting.

LBH: What would most artists find unique about how

you work?

RS: Sometimes the way I start a painting is so interesting

to me that I just sign it as a finished painting. A small oil

painting I did back in 1969, titled Sketch of Helga, is a good

example (see The Importance of Shapes, page 43).

LBH: Is there a specific painting in My Still Life Art that

presented a particular challenge?

RS: Geisha and Peaches (below), is an interesting painting

to discuss because of the challenge of perspective it pre-

sented. I was sitting close to my subject, so the little white

teacup and saucer were much closer to me than the large

OPPOSITE

Nancy and Apples

1999; oil on canvas,

30x24

BELOW

Geisha and Peaches

1985; oil on canvas,

22x28