WIX Art Dept. checking in ...

[Chicoartist]

Whew - thanks for unlocking the door, fellas. It was cold out in the alley. Anyway, something new from the kitchen table ...


First the drawing ~

South Pacific Hot Rods (study)
10 x 15 in., pencil on Bristol





The painting underway on stretched linen. One wing complete. Note the monochromatic underpainting (based on my drawing above - the primary reason to do a drawing) to help judge the color values. A very old technique regularly employed by the old masters. Rembrandt, for example, almost always started with such a foundation. The general approach is to paint the darks thinly, leaving the underpainting visible in the darkest areas, and the lights more opaque, even finishing with a little impasto (thickly applied paint).





And in lieu of a poor-quality handheld shot before scanning, here's a poor-quality short video look at 'South Pacific Hot Rods' via iPhone-cam ... The lighting leaves a bit to be desired (Dammit Jim, I'm a painter, not a filmmaker!), but you get the idea:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cN1kpLM0Y9o



And finally ~ the archival scan. A 600 dpi copy is always committed to archival gold disc.

South Pacific Hot Rods
12 x 18 in. Oil on linen
Completed 2011
Collection of the artist

Two VF-17 "Jolly Rogers" F4U Corsairs cavort above the clouds during a rare break from combat ops, circa November 1943. Sporting beards in many cases and known for their aggressiveness, "Blackburn's Irregulars", as the pilots of VF-17 were known in certain quarters, actually played a large role during their own training period in preparing the Corsair for fleet-wide use. They didn't do so bad once they entered combat, either, scoring a record 152 victories in only 76 days of combat during the Solomons campaign.

The featured aircraft, side #3, was flown by ENS Frederick J. "Big Jim" Streig. Streig flew two tours with the Jolly Rogers and made ace in the Corsair, scoring 5.5 confirmed aerial victories and claiming 2.0 damaged. Jim was promoted to Commander in 1956 and retired from the Navy in 1969. Always a popular presence at Jolly Rogers reunions over the years, "Big Jim" died in August 1995 after a long illness.





Cheers!
Wade

[JDK]

Very nice, Wade!

Is it based on a known, recorded event, or is it just a jeux d'esprit?

Cheers,

[Jollygreenslugg]

Lovely. Evocative and atmospheric work.

Cheers,
Matt

[Robbo]

Very nice indeed.

[Chicoartist]

Thanks, fellas!

... Is it based on a known, recorded event, or is it just a jeux d'esprit

James, you nailed it ... just two Hogs playing in the sun (which I'm sure they must have on occasion). The set up is jeux d'esprit (I will be stealing that, BTW), but of course I *begin* all such larks with accurate planes, paint jobs, etc. The background sky is a montage of pics I've shot myself, with a little imagination thrown in.

Cheers!
Wade

[Django]

Very cool Wade!

[Scott Rose]

Great stuff Wade!