Elspeth C. Young's Blog
September 12, 2014
Blog content and functionality now available in Newsroom on www.alyoung.com
By Al R. Young
We have added a Newsroom to our flagship Internet site: www.alyoung.com.
The Newsroom presents the blog posts and blog-page content that have appeared on our blog suite since we initiated them in January 2010. Categories associated with each Newsroom article offer the same functionality and view of content that have been available on the Studios' blogs. And because of the way the Newsroom presents article summaries, we sincerely hope visitors will find that the Newsroom actually makes it easier to peruse the hundreds of articles accumulated during the last four and a half years.
Each blog will continue to be available indefinitely and as presently constituted; however, new articles will be published only in the Newsroom.
We have also modified the blog widget (in the upper right-hand corner of the main page of each blog) so that links to the News Blog, The Storybook Home Journal Blog, The Papers of Seymore Wainscott Blog, and My Father's Captivity Blog redirect visitors to the Newsroom.
Reasons for this significant change include:
Bringing the presentation of blog content within the Studios' IT infrastructure.
Giving online visitors better access to the full range of news and features published by the Studios.
Providing a more stable platform for significant expansion of content delivery.
We have not provided a follow capability as part of the newsroom because the Studios' social-media presence serves the notification function.
We have added a Newsroom to our flagship Internet site: www.alyoung.com.
The Newsroom presents the blog posts and blog-page content that have appeared on our blog suite since we initiated them in January 2010. Categories associated with each Newsroom article offer the same functionality and view of content that have been available on the Studios' blogs. And because of the way the Newsroom presents article summaries, we sincerely hope visitors will find that the Newsroom actually makes it easier to peruse the hundreds of articles accumulated during the last four and a half years.
Each blog will continue to be available indefinitely and as presently constituted; however, new articles will be published only in the Newsroom.
We have also modified the blog widget (in the upper right-hand corner of the main page of each blog) so that links to the News Blog, The Storybook Home Journal Blog, The Papers of Seymore Wainscott Blog, and My Father's Captivity Blog redirect visitors to the Newsroom.
Reasons for this significant change include:
Bringing the presentation of blog content within the Studios' IT infrastructure.
Giving online visitors better access to the full range of news and features published by the Studios.
Providing a more stable platform for significant expansion of content delivery.
We have not provided a follow capability as part of the newsroom because the Studios' social-media presence serves the notification function.
August 28, 2014
Drawing, lithography, and experimentation
By Al R. Young
When I began experimenting with lithography in 1996, I focused on tonal rendering instead of line drawing because tonal pencil drawings had occupied much of my attention as an artist up until that time.
On the Borders of the North by Al R. Young,
6 7/8 in. x 7 3/16 in., pencil on Bristol board, 1985This pencil drawing typifies the tonal rendering technique and architectural subject with which most of my artwork was concerned for many years.The work of artists whose interests draw them toward line as a means of expression has always delighted me, but my own interests invariably drew me toward tone instead. I came to realize that were I to pursue line, I would have to study idiom and technique before I could express the subject; indeed, before I could even discover my own artistic identity in terms of line and then complete the long and arduous journey toward mastery. I realized that, for me, I would have had to learn or perhaps even invent the vocabulary and syntax of a visual language and that--like all languages learned after the years of early childhood--it might never be a native tongue for me.
Eventually, I had to admit that I had no interest in pursuing such a course; that, instead of summarizing by means of line, wherein the nature of the subject is necessarily sorted--with a severe and demanding rigor--into starkly positive and starkly negative spaces, I wanted to pursue what, for me, constituted a fixed obsession with the vastness or infinity of tone. Of course, there is inherently as much infinity in line, I simply needed the feeling of wide open spaces that made tone my native air.
Columbine by Al R. Young,
3 11/16 in. x 2 1/8 in. image, lithograph, 1997The editions of lithographs contain my first and only botanicals.When lithography became an option, I began drawing with a crayon as I had drawn in pencil. The changes, however, in terms of what I drew and the rate at which I did so were profound. The fluidity of lithography, as compared to pencil, significantly increased the rate at which drawings could be completed, but it was in terms of subject that the greatest change occurred.
Sharpening a wax pencil at the drawing table.The holder for the wax pencil is a pocket-sized holder for chalkboard-chalk. The wax-pencil-sharpener is built into the tool caddy clamped to the surface of the drawing table.Like a pencil, a crayon can be sharpened to a very fine point, but unlike a pencil, the point on a crayon lasts only a moment. This means that the control possible while drawing with a pencil is impossible while drawing with a crayon. Of course, pencils as well as graphite sticks and chunks can be grasped and wielded in many ways, but my approach to pencil drawing did not include such options because of the kind and quality of expression I sought. Lack of control in a medium can actually make an artist much more daring in a medium. (See
How do you look when you hold a pencil?
) Consequently, the range of subjects into which I ventured quickly expanded beyond anything I had attempted in pencil. In fact, grouped according to various kinds of experimentation, the portfolio of lithographic images represents a personal Lewis and Clark Expedition into the frontiers of subject matter possibilities:
Figures
Botanicals
Landscapes (sans architecture)
Interiors
Maritime
Black background
Nighttime lighting
Close-ups and vistas
Ornament and whimsy
Composition
Contrast
Gestalt
Occurring at an early period in the development of the Studios itself, our approach to the creation of these artworks also exerted a profound influence on these aspects of the work and operation of the Studios:
Models
Miniatures
Costuming
Props
Equipment
Photography
Archiving
Another important influence at the time was the invitation to illustrate a series of excerpts from The Country of the Pointed Firs by Sarah Orne Jewett. The invitation left up to us the decisions about kind and quantity of illustrations to be produced (the editorial staff making final decisions about what would be included with the installments). The only two stipulations were that Maine be the setting or subject for the artwork and that the illustrations be black and white--the latter requirement being rare in a print-world even then saturated with color.
During the lithographic period of my artwork, I thought I might actually continue making the kind of finely articulated, tonal pencil drawings to which I had devoted so many years, and I even ensured that enhancements to my drawing table could be as readily used for pencil work as for lithography, but the need never materialized. My interest in tone found expression in oil painting, a destination medium to which it had been traveling all along. And my work in lithography--having served a multiplicity of purposes at just the right time--appears to have had its day; even so, even that remains to be seen.
For some years now, my enduring enjoyment of the pencil as an artistic tool has found expression in the crafting of illustrations for The Papers of Seymore Wainscott, an ongoing creative project of the Studios that requires almost as much illustration as writing. And, much to my amazement and delight, drawings for the project, though hybrids, are not so much tonal as line . . .
The Lyon by Al R. Young,
7 5/16 in. x 5 1/2 in., pencil sketch/computer enhancement, 2013This sketch was one of several hand-drawn images created as part of the complex, mixed-media illustration shown below.
17th Century Immigrant Origins of the Lanham Planting
by Al R. Young, mixed media, 2013This drawing is a component of one of 11 illustrations featured in Leornian Feldham Volume One , one of the novellas constituting The Papers of Seymore Wainscott.
When I began experimenting with lithography in 1996, I focused on tonal rendering instead of line drawing because tonal pencil drawings had occupied much of my attention as an artist up until that time.
On the Borders of the North by Al R. Young,6 7/8 in. x 7 3/16 in., pencil on Bristol board, 1985This pencil drawing typifies the tonal rendering technique and architectural subject with which most of my artwork was concerned for many years.The work of artists whose interests draw them toward line as a means of expression has always delighted me, but my own interests invariably drew me toward tone instead. I came to realize that were I to pursue line, I would have to study idiom and technique before I could express the subject; indeed, before I could even discover my own artistic identity in terms of line and then complete the long and arduous journey toward mastery. I realized that, for me, I would have had to learn or perhaps even invent the vocabulary and syntax of a visual language and that--like all languages learned after the years of early childhood--it might never be a native tongue for me.
Eventually, I had to admit that I had no interest in pursuing such a course; that, instead of summarizing by means of line, wherein the nature of the subject is necessarily sorted--with a severe and demanding rigor--into starkly positive and starkly negative spaces, I wanted to pursue what, for me, constituted a fixed obsession with the vastness or infinity of tone. Of course, there is inherently as much infinity in line, I simply needed the feeling of wide open spaces that made tone my native air.
Columbine by Al R. Young,3 11/16 in. x 2 1/8 in. image, lithograph, 1997The editions of lithographs contain my first and only botanicals.When lithography became an option, I began drawing with a crayon as I had drawn in pencil. The changes, however, in terms of what I drew and the rate at which I did so were profound. The fluidity of lithography, as compared to pencil, significantly increased the rate at which drawings could be completed, but it was in terms of subject that the greatest change occurred.
Sharpening a wax pencil at the drawing table.The holder for the wax pencil is a pocket-sized holder for chalkboard-chalk. The wax-pencil-sharpener is built into the tool caddy clamped to the surface of the drawing table.Like a pencil, a crayon can be sharpened to a very fine point, but unlike a pencil, the point on a crayon lasts only a moment. This means that the control possible while drawing with a pencil is impossible while drawing with a crayon. Of course, pencils as well as graphite sticks and chunks can be grasped and wielded in many ways, but my approach to pencil drawing did not include such options because of the kind and quality of expression I sought. Lack of control in a medium can actually make an artist much more daring in a medium. (See
How do you look when you hold a pencil?
) Consequently, the range of subjects into which I ventured quickly expanded beyond anything I had attempted in pencil. In fact, grouped according to various kinds of experimentation, the portfolio of lithographic images represents a personal Lewis and Clark Expedition into the frontiers of subject matter possibilities: Figures
Botanicals
Landscapes (sans architecture)
Interiors
Maritime
Black background
Nighttime lighting
Close-ups and vistas
Ornament and whimsy
Composition
Contrast
Gestalt
Occurring at an early period in the development of the Studios itself, our approach to the creation of these artworks also exerted a profound influence on these aspects of the work and operation of the Studios:
Models
Miniatures
Costuming
Props
Equipment
Photography
Archiving
Another important influence at the time was the invitation to illustrate a series of excerpts from The Country of the Pointed Firs by Sarah Orne Jewett. The invitation left up to us the decisions about kind and quantity of illustrations to be produced (the editorial staff making final decisions about what would be included with the installments). The only two stipulations were that Maine be the setting or subject for the artwork and that the illustrations be black and white--the latter requirement being rare in a print-world even then saturated with color.
During the lithographic period of my artwork, I thought I might actually continue making the kind of finely articulated, tonal pencil drawings to which I had devoted so many years, and I even ensured that enhancements to my drawing table could be as readily used for pencil work as for lithography, but the need never materialized. My interest in tone found expression in oil painting, a destination medium to which it had been traveling all along. And my work in lithography--having served a multiplicity of purposes at just the right time--appears to have had its day; even so, even that remains to be seen.
For some years now, my enduring enjoyment of the pencil as an artistic tool has found expression in the crafting of illustrations for The Papers of Seymore Wainscott, an ongoing creative project of the Studios that requires almost as much illustration as writing. And, much to my amazement and delight, drawings for the project, though hybrids, are not so much tonal as line . . .
The Lyon by Al R. Young,7 5/16 in. x 5 1/2 in., pencil sketch/computer enhancement, 2013This sketch was one of several hand-drawn images created as part of the complex, mixed-media illustration shown below.
17th Century Immigrant Origins of the Lanham Plantingby Al R. Young, mixed media, 2013This drawing is a component of one of 11 illustrations featured in Leornian Feldham Volume One , one of the novellas constituting The Papers of Seymore Wainscott.
August 23, 2014
Limited-edition print documentation now available on news blog
A Limited Editions page on our news blog now provides direct access to our portfolio of 66 limited-edition, original artworks available from the Artists of Al Young Studios. These miniature drawings were produced in a series of 14 editions from July 1996 through July 2003.
Each lithograph was hand-drawn by the artist on a slab of Bavarian limestone carefully prepared for the purpose. Upon completion of the drawings, stones were treated and the images were hand-printed using a chemical process invented in 1798.
Editions of this kind are carefully documented to ensure the integrity of the status of these artworks among collectors as being original, signed and numbered prints. In fact, once an edition of this kind is completed, the images on the printing element are destroyed. Limited editions are very different from open-edition, offset prints (whether numbered or unnumbered, signed or unsigned). The latter may be fine art prints, but they are not original and they are not collectible in the sense of genuine, limited-edition impressions.
While the blog's Limited Edition page provides access to these original artworks by edition (through the edition documentation now residing on the blog) the Limited Edition Collection will continue to provide access to the same artwork via our online art gallery.
Each image in the Limited Edition Collection was hand drawn with a wax pencil on the finely ground surface of a slab of Bavarian limestone. Because the limestone slab becomes the printing element from which impressions are printed in the hand-operated press, images drawn on the stone must be drawn in reverse. Here, the Cinderella-stamp wax-image for Anthony Trollope 1 appears above the wax drawing for Ratty's River.
Each lithograph was hand-drawn by the artist on a slab of Bavarian limestone carefully prepared for the purpose. Upon completion of the drawings, stones were treated and the images were hand-printed using a chemical process invented in 1798.
Editions of this kind are carefully documented to ensure the integrity of the status of these artworks among collectors as being original, signed and numbered prints. In fact, once an edition of this kind is completed, the images on the printing element are destroyed. Limited editions are very different from open-edition, offset prints (whether numbered or unnumbered, signed or unsigned). The latter may be fine art prints, but they are not original and they are not collectible in the sense of genuine, limited-edition impressions.
While the blog's Limited Edition page provides access to these original artworks by edition (through the edition documentation now residing on the blog) the Limited Edition Collection will continue to provide access to the same artwork via our online art gallery.
Each image in the Limited Edition Collection was hand drawn with a wax pencil on the finely ground surface of a slab of Bavarian limestone. Because the limestone slab becomes the printing element from which impressions are printed in the hand-operated press, images drawn on the stone must be drawn in reverse. Here, the Cinderella-stamp wax-image for Anthony Trollope 1 appears above the wax drawing for Ratty's River.
August 21, 2014
A family reading list, 37 years in the making
By Al R. Young
In 1998, at the outset of our involvement with Victoria Magazine, an editor asked whether we had ever compiled a list of books we could recommend for reading as a family. The question sparked our first attempt to list titles we had enjoyed reading aloud as a family during the previous 19 years.
When we launched www.alyoung.com in the fall of that year, the list we had only just formulated was integral to the site's structure and content. We continued reading as a family, and in the summer and fall of 2000, prepared to launch The Storybook Home Journal . As www.alyoung.com became the sole commercial gallery for artwork produced by the Artists of Al Young Studios and The Storybook Home Journal continued its development, the list of recommended titles disappeared from our commercial web site for a while.
In December 2012, The Storybook Home Journal Blog became home to our suggested reading list, as well as reviews of books listed there, particularly those titles less well known and for which reviews and other material are often difficult to find.
As of August 2014, the list includes 180 titles by 71 authors, with links to 65 book reviews on our Journal Blog, along with links to 82 issues of The Storybook Home Journal.
In 1998, at the outset of our involvement with Victoria Magazine, an editor asked whether we had ever compiled a list of books we could recommend for reading as a family. The question sparked our first attempt to list titles we had enjoyed reading aloud as a family during the previous 19 years. When we launched www.alyoung.com in the fall of that year, the list we had only just formulated was integral to the site's structure and content. We continued reading as a family, and in the summer and fall of 2000, prepared to launch The Storybook Home Journal . As www.alyoung.com became the sole commercial gallery for artwork produced by the Artists of Al Young Studios and The Storybook Home Journal continued its development, the list of recommended titles disappeared from our commercial web site for a while.
In December 2012, The Storybook Home Journal Blog became home to our suggested reading list, as well as reviews of books listed there, particularly those titles less well known and for which reviews and other material are often difficult to find.
As of August 2014, the list includes 180 titles by 71 authors, with links to 65 book reviews on our Journal Blog, along with links to 82 issues of The Storybook Home Journal.
August 5, 2014
Stein Eriksen Lodge Deer Valley conference center - project commentary
By Al R. YoungFrom the summer of 2012 through the spring of 2013, Al Young Studios participated in the renovation of the conference center at Stein Eriksen Lodge Deer Valley. Our involvement in the project consisted of creating the original artworks featured in the conference center. The paintings and museum-quality frames are described on the pages listed here, which also offer commentary on the creation of the artworks.
Den Kommende Vinteren(The Coming Of Winter)
an original oil painting
by Al R. Young
Den Kommende Våren(The Coming Of Spring)
an original oil painting
by Al R. Young
Skjønnhet Underveis(Beauty Along The Way)
a polyptych painting
by Elspeth Young and Ashton Young
Ny Verden (New World)an original oil painting executed as a tetraptych
by Al R. Young
Gilded, museum-quality frameshand-crafted by Ashton Young
for Den Kommende Vinteren and Den Kommende VårenVisit us on Pinterest to see more photos
of the Stein Eriksen Lodge Deer Valley conference center project
July 28, 2014
Leornian Feldham serialization now available in three novellas
Among the newly published documents are two star charts.The Hand, a constellation featured in Seymore Wainscott's
Legendary, includes many of the stars in Ursa Major and
several stars from other circumpolar constellations.This set of novellas brings together the serialization of Leornian Feldham's travels to South Carolina and the Caribbean in 1737. They also present the following never-before-published documents and articles in addition to the voyage diary:
"Notes on the Life of Leornian Feldham" by Seymore Wainscott is a document fragment that recounts the early years of Leornian's life and ends just prior to his Caribbean voyage.
"Feldham and Talonen Families of The Lanham Colony" by Al R. Young presents a pedigree chart as well as a map of the 17th Century Immigrant Origins of The Lanham Planting.
"Lytfolc Cartography and a Map of Stowage Aboard the Reliant" by Al R. Young features a facsimile of Leornian's 1737 pocket Map of Stowage Aboard The Reliant along with a glimpse into Seymore Wainscott's knowledge of the ancient lytsongs from which he fashioned his own Legendary.
"Outside In: The Home of Leornian Feldham" by Smythe Lacey includes commentary and illustrations describing the magical world of The Cupola, the famous home of Leornian and Coca Feldham.
Each novella consists of 24 pages (8.5 in. x 11 in.) including the cover and table of contents pages, printed in full color on 24# paper (11 in. x 17 in. sheets folded and stapled).
The three volumes are available individually, or as a set, exclusively at Al Young Studios' online art gallery and book store.
July 18, 2014
By The Wayside - project commentary
By Ashton Young
This portrait of Tamar will be the 47th oil painting in the Women of the Bible Collection. It was completed to meet the production schedule for Women of the New Testament by Camille Fronk Olson. The book, currently in press, is scheduled for release through Deseret Book later in 2014.
Dimensions (width x height)
22.25 in. x 39.75 in.
Support
Panel
Milestones
Composition begins - circa April 2012
Brushwork begins - circa August 2012
Methodology
This section presents only one or two items that may be of interest to professional artists, amateurs, and others interested in the work of the Studios.
The color scheme I selected for the painting is reminiscent of color palettes enjoyed by Mannerist artists of the post Renaissance, echoing the vivid secondary and tertiary hues favored by masters like Reni, Bronzino, Pontormo, and El Greco.
Four Evangelists: Saint Luke by Jacopo Pontormo, 1526
This portrait of Tamar will be the 47th oil painting in the Women of the Bible Collection. It was completed to meet the production schedule for Women of the New Testament by Camille Fronk Olson. The book, currently in press, is scheduled for release through Deseret Book later in 2014.
Dimensions (width x height)
22.25 in. x 39.75 in.
Support
Panel
Milestones
Composition begins - circa April 2012
Brushwork begins - circa August 2012
Methodology
This section presents only one or two items that may be of interest to professional artists, amateurs, and others interested in the work of the Studios.
The color scheme I selected for the painting is reminiscent of color palettes enjoyed by Mannerist artists of the post Renaissance, echoing the vivid secondary and tertiary hues favored by masters like Reni, Bronzino, Pontormo, and El Greco.
Four Evangelists: Saint Luke by Jacopo Pontormo, 1526
New painting by Ashton Young features Tamar
By The Wayside (Tamar)by Ashton Young By The Wayside (Tamar) is the newest oil painting to be added to the Women of the Bible Collection of original artworks from Al Young Studios. Thirty four fine-art print styles and sizes of this new image are now available at www.alyoung.com, ranging in price from $4.75 (4 in. x 7.25 in. poster print) to $369 (22.25 in. x 39.75 in. reproduction giclee canvas).
Click here to see a larger image of the new painting, read the artist's commentary, and look at the selection of available prints.
Tamar wears the signet ring of Judah and appears as described in Genesis. The fact of her place in the lineage of the Messiah is noted in I Chronicles 2:4 and Matthew 1:3.
By The Wayside is the 47th original artwork in the Studios' Women of the Bible Fine Art Collection, and the 162nd image in the Studios' commercially available fine-art portfolio.
The 34 open-edition prints of this new painting bring to 2,394 the number of prints and giclee canvases available at www.alyoung.com -- exclusive retail outlet for all of the artworks produced by the artists of Al Young Studios.
The new painting is also featured in a bookmark, which brings to 81 the total number of different bookmarks now available at Al Young Studios' online art and publications gallery.
Hope and promise are themes of Al R. Young's newest painting
Under Whose WingsThou Art Come To Trust (Ruth)
by Al R. Young Under Whose Wings Thou Art Come To Trust (Ruth) is the newest oil painting to be added to the Women of the Bible Collection of original artworks from Al Young Studios. Forty one fine-art print styles and sizes of this new image are now available at www.alyoung.com, ranging in price from $5.00 (5 in. x 7 in. poster print) to $1,109 (35.25 in. x 75.5 in. reproduction giclee canvas).
Click here to see a larger image of the new painting, read the artist's commentary, and look at the selection of available prints.
Ruth is a timeless example of faith and obedience, depicted, here, gleaning at the edges of fields of grain. Nevertheless, the painting is not intended as a literal illustration of the back-breaking drudgery of gleaning, but as an image of the radiant hope in the promises and protection of the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations (Deuteronomy 7:9)--the God of Israel in whom Ruth has unwaveringly come to trust.
Under Whose Wings Thou Art Come To Trust is the 48th original artwork in the Studios' Women of the Bible Fine Art Collection, and the 163rd image in the Studios' commercially available fine-art portfolio.
The 41 open-edition prints of this new painting bring to 2,435 the number of prints and giclee canvases available at www.alyoung.com -- exclusive retail outlet for all of the artworks produced by the artists of Al Young Studios.
The new painting is also featured in a bookmark, which brings to 82 the total number of different bookmarks now available at Al Young Studios' online art and publications gallery.
New painting by Al R. Young is a poem about prayer
What Is Truthby Al R. Young What Is Truth is the newest oil painting to be added to the Women of the Bible Collection of original artworks from Al Young Studios. Thirty three fine-art print styles and sizes of this new image are now available at www.alyoung.com, ranging in price from $3.90 (4 in. x 4.5 in. poster print) to $278 (24 in. x 27.75 in. reproduction giclee canvas).
Click here to see a larger image of the new painting, read the artist's commentary, and look at the selection of available prints.
Bernice is presented in the attitude of prayer, as one searching her soul alone in the darkness yet illumined by that Light which searches for each of us. It is a moment of decision to which everyone comes time and time again--the moment of choosing whether, as Paul describes it, we shall be almost or altogether (Acts 26:28-31).
What Is Truth is the 46th original artwork in the Studios' Women of the Bible Fine Art Collection, and the 161st image in the Studios' commercially available fine-art portfolio.
The 33 open-edition prints of this new painting bring to 2,360 the number of prints and giclee canvases available at www.alyoung.com -- exclusive retail outlet for all of the artworks produced by the artists of Al Young Studios. The new painting is also featured in a bookmark, which brings to 80 the total number of different bookmarks now available at Al Young Studios' online art and publications gallery.
