ICONS OF THE TWENTIETH CENTURY

ICONS:JACKIE O

OIL ON CANVAS

(inches): 30X40

THE INSPIRATION for this iconic portrait series came about during the economic downturn of 2008. I created images that celebrate some of the most influential and creative minds in music, art, cinema, science, fashion, sports and activism-of the last century. I wanted to execute them in a way that was as unique and optimistic as the subjects themselves. The idea is to encourage creativity and the appreciation of how these people managed to touch our lives.

THE CRITERIA for choosing them as Icons? Jackie Kennedy Onassis is the symbol of non-partisan Camelot royalty Albert Einstein forever changed the way we think about time and space, Cary Grant was one of the biggest screen Idols of Hollywood’s golden age, Muhammad Ali quite simply was the greatest. Andy Warhol made us see everyday objects as art, Anna Wintour is one of the most influential figures in the world of fashion, Liz Taylor (in addition to being a screen legend) was instrumental in helping to bring the AIDS crisis cause into the mainstream.

THE PROCESS these oil paintings are a combination of traditional painting techniques, layered (by hand) with a newspaper printing technique know as halftoning. Each painting consists of three colors, first a bright base gesture under coating is applied, then a contrasting colored line painting is applied interpreted from a well know image of the person. Next a sketch was done from the pho – tograph, then scanned in and a halftone grid was created on a computer. At that point the grid was printed out and transferred to the painting, and then each dot is hand drawn and painted in.