Chuck Close

During his junior college and university days, Chuck Close actually did artwork that followed Abstract Expressionism, a complete opposite of the precise realistic work for which he is known best for. As what I read of him from the interview of an old acquaintance, he was influenced deeply by Abstract Expressionism and the related artists: Jackson Pollock, William de Kooning, and Mark Rothko among others. Below is an example of one of his early works. Such painting was an emotional experience, as described by his art professor from university, because it was spontaneous and completely unplanned.

Man Walking, 1960, Chuck Close

Chuck Close sold this painting in 1960 to an acquaintance in return for US$8. He said that this painting was titled Man Walking because "this is the way I feel ... when I'm out stepping in the bright sunshine and the flowers and the spring of the year."(see http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/roadshow/archive/200905A53.html) This gave me an insight into how Abstract Expressionist artists name their work. Because if you might remember, earlier on I was struggling with why and how abstract artists name their work. But I learnt from this that the emotion evoked in him by what he was painting was the same feeling he had doing something else - and he related them as one. So this also taught me that Abstract Expressionism is about what the artist is feeling; less about what he wants to bring across than self-realisation and spontaneous artistic expression. For although I had studied it I realise now I never actually understood as clearly as I do now.

 After his time in university, he shifted completely from Abstract Expressionism and turned instead to photographic realism. I admire the systematic way in which he does things. In his paintings, the canvas is grid-lined, inch-by-inch, with his own paintbrush. He explained that he is dyslexic and separating the canvas into tiny squares helps him concentrate on one tiny bit at a time, making the task easier for him. He explained that he wanted to make every square inch of the painting detailed and important, citing American artists like William de Kooning and the Renaissance movement for this influence (here we can see traces of Abstract Expressionism still in his artistic style). He was a great experimentalist, like many successful artists are, trying out mezzotints, woven and airbrushes onto the grids he marked out on each canvas. This grid-like separation gave him the patience and tenacity to work with great detail. I was inspired by the precision in his work. His portraiture artworks are breathtakingly photo-realistic.

He had a blood clot in his spinal chord when he was 49, resulting in the loss of the use of his limbs and temporarily halting the successful career he had enjoyed. But slowly he regained the use of his arm and began painting in a new way. He still employed the same grid-like technique, but now he saw each square in the grid as a painting on its own. He realised that he could have assistants mount each little painting for him into a big , being paralysed almost completely now. His story of overcoming all the odds is truly inspiring.

His painting, Emma, was an example where he got an assistant to help him; only this time the assistant did all the technical labour under his direction. His masterful knowledge of how colours work together helped him direct artist Yasu Shibata in this ukiyo-e influenced painting. This painting is made up of dozens of wooden blocks which have been individually painted on. The result is a rippling effect which I admire. I am inspired by the way the colours blend together. It's like Divisionism reinvented.

In this video Chuck Close talks about how he works. An interesting watch! You can learn more about how he paints in grids, and the different ways that he paints. (: