Lonnie Ash
The Place
I've only visited New York City a few times, but I am always in awe of the scale and history of architecture in the city. The red and brown masonry facade of Carnegie Hall stands out among the surrounding, contemporary towers. Its color and texture made an immediate impression on me even though it would be several years later before I painted this image. Carnegie Hallwas constructed in 1891 and was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1961.
The Process
At the time, Carnegie Hall was the largest watercolor painting I had produced. I wanted the painting to be EPIC.
The most important part of this painting was the drawing. At this size, no amount of paint on the paper would be able to hide a bad drawing.
The first wash establishes the overall tone. I make sure the focal point of the image is left the lightest tone so I can build up a greater range of contrast.
The focal point goes in after the first wash. My focus is to not overwork this area but to bring it to a certain level of completeness before stepping back and deciding how to paint the rest of the image.
Signing this painting marked the end for this painting but the beginning of a new chapter in my painting practice.
