Vincent Thomas Bridge #3

"Vincent Thomas Bridge #3"    SOLD
oil on panel, 2011
7" x 5" (17.78cm x 12.7cm)

Here is an early painting from my Vincent Thomas Bridge series that I never posted.
It is an unusual view that is not immediately recognizable as a bridge but that for me is part of its appeal.

Bridges carry a certain civic pride much like state and country pride. Their primary function may be utilitarian but for locals they are a source of pride.

This view from the catwalk underneath the roadway shows the scaffolding being erected around the tower base. Painting the bridge is a job that's never finished. It’s a 6 month process to wrap the tower from the ground up in scaffolding and then plastic sheeting to contain the work. Then the painting can begin.230

Vincent Thomas Bridge #12

"Vincent Thomas Bridge #12"
oil on panel, 2011
8" x 6" (20.32cm x 15.24cm)

Bridge Series:
Bridges carry a certain civic pride much like state and country pride. Their primary function may be utilitarian but for locals they are a source of identity.

Views looking up like this are described as a worms eye view. Not immediately recognizable as the bridge tower but still a dramatic composition. Visible are the two 'X' braces at top left.

The point of view here is just below and outside the roadway, essentially like hanging off the side of the bridge. On the other side of the chain link fence at left is where the traffic is whizzing by.
This is the bridge tower being wrapped in scaffolding, which will reach to the top, in preparation for painting. The scaffolding will then be wrapped in plastic to contain the work.165

Here is another view that shows the tower completely wrapped.
Click 'Vincent Thomas Bridge' Label below or at right to see more from this series.

Click on image for larger view

Vincent Thomas Bridge #11-Containment 2

"Vincent Thomas Bridge #11 (Containment 2)"

oil on panel, 2011
8” x 6” (20.32cm x 15.24cm)

This painting overlaps two series
Bridge Series:
Bridges carry a certain civic pride much like state and country pride. Their primary function may be utilitarian but for locals they are a source of identity.
Containment Series:
A series on modern construction techniques. Today everything gets wrapped in heavy plastic or tarps to contain the work, a sort of cocoon, keeping dust from contaminating the surrounding environment.
Twenty or thirty years ago it was not done and open construction was more prevalent. Modern green thinking has changed our approach to not only recycling but how we do everything.

This view is of the outer perimeter of the containment area standing against the plastic sheet wall, looking at the bottom of the roadway.

My other painting,  "Vincent Thomas Bridge #8 (Containment 1)", is nearer the center so it shows the darker core of the containment area, with the light filtering in from both sides. This one, at the outer confines, is higher key in value , so it's brighter, and has more pops of color in the purple rope, touches of yellow and the warm toned concrete.

The red in both is the primer used before the iridescent green finish.
It is obvious from the red floor how much over spray would be lost into the environment if the work was not contained. I'm sure it serves the dual purpose of making the work easier and the work area more comfortable by defecting winds.161

See another similar view without containment here.

*Update
Thanks to a comment from a follower it occurred to me that this view mat not be obvious or understood. Having been there I did not even think about it. I can see the point. Here is a better explanation from my response comment: This painting shows the area inside the containment, think of it as a butterfly cocoon hanging off a tree branch, and is literally hanging off the bottom of the bridge, underneath the road way. Set up to paint the bridge as part of its maintenance.

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'S' Curve and 'I' beam

"Vincent Thomas Bridge #15"    SOLD
watercolor on paper, 2011
8" x 11" (20.32cm x 27.94cm)

When deciding on a painting I hardly ever settle on something randomly. Instead I thoughtfully consider each one beyond doing a mere depiction of the subject. Sometimes that is OK but I prefer to be challenged in some way. I would rather have to tackle some sort of problem, figure out what and how to say something, or choose a view that is unique to the subject. Now all the elements of image making can be used as tools to that end.

One of the best and most unique features of the Vincent Thomas Bridge is its signature 'S' curve (actually a reverse 'S') formed by the two approaches of the San Pedro and Long Beach sides.
This view from the Long Beach side of the channel looking west really exploits that 'S' curve from an unusual perspective.
The covered near tower, referred to by the bridge workers as the Long Beach tower, is seen through the supporting columns of its approach.

The sun behind one of the columns casts a dramatic shadow and adds a visual support to the top heavy composition.
I certainly could have chosen a different time of day and still had a good image, still shown off the 'S' but by selecting this late afternoon view I got a little bit more out of it. A composition that echos the construction of a bridge by creating an 'I' beam shape similar to its supporting beams without being too literal.
The shadows and light patterns also echo both the arch design of the bridge and sweeping curve of the approach above. I ended up with the image loosely constructed of the same elements that make a bridge.
That for me is the fun of creating.158

The overlay is a bit clumsy but still gets the point across.

Click on image for larger view
Click 'Vincent Thomas Bridge' Label below to see more from this series.

Industrial Drapery

"CHOC Drapery #1"
oil on panel, 2011
7” x 5” (17.78cm x 12.7cm)

My Containment series on modern construction techniques. These days everything gets wrapped in heavy plastic or tarps to contain the work, a sort of cocoon, keeping dust and materials from contaminating the surrounding environment.
Twenty or thirty years ago it was not done and open construction was more prevalent. Modern green thinking has changed our approach to not only recycling but how we do everything.

This painting of the new Children's Hospital Orange County also gave me an excuse to tie together my industrial subject paintings and the long tradition of classic drapery in art history.154

Click on image for larger view

Vincent Thomas Bridge #8 Containment 1

"Vincent Thomas Bridge #8 (Containment 1)"
oil on panel, 2011
5" x 7" (12.7cm x 17.78cm)

Bridges carry a certain civic pride much like state and country pride.Their primary function may be utilitarian but for locals they are a source of identity.

This painting also overlaps into my containment series, a series on modern construction techniques. These days everything gets wrapped in heavy plastic or tarps to contain the work, a sort of cocoon, keeping dust from contaminating the environment.

Twenty or thirty years ago it was not done and open construction was more prevalent. Modern green thinking has changed our approach to not only recycling but how we do  everything. This painting shows the painting of the underside in progress.

A broad view of the containment area shows all of the working tools and materials needed to paint the bridge.

A platform is hung underneath then everything is wrapped in plastic; wall, floors & suspension hooks. Nothing allowed to escape into the environment.133

*Update:
See the "Vincent Thomas Bridge #11 (Containment #2)" here.

Click on image for larger view

"Vincent Thomas Bridge #13"

"Vincent Thomas Bridge #13"    SOLD
oil on panel, 2011
7" x 5" (17.78cm x 12.7cm)

Bridges carry a certain civic pride much like state and country pride.
Their primary function may be utilitarian but for locals they are a source of identity.

A bright day and back lit, a close-up of one of the towers partially unwrapped, the painting recently completed. A small pulley is used to haul up tools and materials from a platform below that extends out from under the bridge roadway.132

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Vincent Thomas Bridge and Containment

"Vincent Thomas Bridge #6 - Gold"   SOLD
oil on panel, 2011
16" x 20" (40.64cm x 50.8cm)

One more for the show tonight...

Bridges carry a certain civic pride much like state and country pride.
Their primary function may be utilitarian but for locals they are a source of identity.

This painting is from my Vincent Thomas Bridge series as well as overlapping into my containment series, a modern construction method of covering structures entirely while building and maintaining them.

Presenting the bridge in various lighting conditions allows me to show it without having to always use its signature chrome green color.

Late on a hazy day and with the east tower covered, no green at all is present but the bridge is still recognizable by the architecture of the west tower.130

Click on image for larger view

Gothic and Ominous

"Villa Riviera Wrapped for Restoration"

oil on panel, 2009

24" x 18" (60.96cm x 45.72cm)

As the title reveals, this building won't be retired any time soon. It sits near the seashore and overlooks the southern end of the Long Beach Grand Prix Circuit. If what I've heard is true, it was formally a Hotel frequented by movie stars like John Wayne and is currently an apartment building.

So, while some of our physical history gets scraped clean to make room for the new, and some of it is left to be slowly digested by time, by our own doing or lack of I should add, some of it is allowed to remain and in fact, be pushed forward.

My view is looking south toward the Pacific Ocean just before high noon with the morning marine layer reluctantly retreating. The building uncovered stands like a monarch with it's crown-like copper top roof. But wrapped in scaffolding and it's cape-like black tarp it took on a completely different persona, gothic and ominous. This is what really caught my attention after having driven past it for years. I knew I would finally have to address it in a series of images, covered and perhaps now, uncovered.11

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