June 18th, Why the sign and why changes are needed?

America's Diner

I was asked "why did you choose a bright yellow Denny's sign instead of another generic restaurant with a less powerful contrast to your painting?"     Good question, thanks Seven.

This questions comes after I commented that my saturation is kind of crazy throughout  my painting.  If I would have chosen a sign solely based on how it would look in the painting, contrast wise, then it would have been very easy for me to pick one or even make one up that blended right in.  But I needed to pick one that helped to tell the story.  It needed to be one I was familiar with because it is after all, my story.  In addition, the sign must also be familiar to a lot of people to make it easier for you all to understand my point of view. The color yellow is also important to the story as well.  Here's what I'm thinking:

Denny's is the "America's Diner."  I think of it as the "worker's restaurant."  It's almost, if not, an American icon.  The food is bland to meet the needs of many, the service is friendly, but not over the top so many people feel okay with their visit, the interior is utilitarian so it holds up well and is comfortable to many.   But.. I think the prices are crazy.  For a few dollars more why not go to Chilly's or Red Robin or somewhere else?  Why not spend a couple more dollars and go to a place with a theme, with food with flavor, a team of waiters, bus boys, drink fillers, food bringers, etc?  Why not go to a place where the walls are interesting, where they have decent stuff to look at?

Because - Denny's is for the working class of people, a worker's restaurant.  We go there because our bellies can't take the spices from Chilly's.  We can't afford to be sitting on the throne if we eat something that our bodies reject.  We go because it's midnight and no one else but DelTaco is open. We go because we are passing through and we know it and it's easy.  Or, we are tired and just need decent food before flopping down to bed.  Or, because we need decent food to keep us going through the day.  We go because we work odd hours.  We go because we don't want the crowds or the people in our faces, we just want to sit and read the paper.  We go so we can hang out with our friends and actually hear one another or not have to wait an hour for a large table.  That's why we go.

 Keep in mind these are my thoughts, ideas and opinions.  I'm not telling anyone they should think like me and I don't want to get into a debate about Denny's.  Just say'in.  If you eat at Denny's or not, I don't mean to offend anyone with my personal observations.  This is one of the issues that occasionally pops up when I start telling people my ideas (I've got some crazy ideas sometimes.)  I'm not always going to think like everyone else.  I'm okay with that and I hope you would be too.

So why the Denny's sign?  Because that side of the street is the working class side.  Big hint here as to what the painting is about. The yellow represents the worker's gold or the worker's value.  It's a beacon of hope, food, companionship and comfort.  Why is it falling apart?  Because it's tired, warn out, not taken care, etc.  It's in need of a change!  (Not equal pay! - whoops, another of my own thoughts - sorry.)

Did you know: If I painted this painting and tried to use the Denny's sign as a means of selling the painting because of Denny's notoriety, I would be in violation of their trade mark.  But, I am free to use the Denny's logo in my work if I am using it as a means to convey my ideas, make a statement, log history, etc.  To defeat me Denny's would need to prove that the success of this painting relies solely on the fact that their registered logo is present.  Let's face it though - someone's going to purchase this painting because of the whale, not the Denny's sign.   

New Shadows

On another note: I made additional changes to the shadows.  The way it is now is just not working.  The fin was too far away from the flippers.  The shadow cast from the left hand building is not good either.   Here you can see where I have drawn over my original drawing.  Just play'in with ideas.  These shadows don't need to perfect, they just need to work, to feel right.  The shadow of the whale I want slightly oppressive, doom-ish.  But, I don't want the other shadows to have the same affect.  The other shadows should feel normal and give a sense that they exist and the world is just passing by.  Not sure how to explain myself here.  This is the kind of "tweak" I think about when I say the shadows should work enough to feel right but can also help give the sense that something is wrong or askew.  It's a juggling act.

Color comp 2

I also played around with the color comp.  I tried printing it out, but my fairly new Epson printer is crap! (more of my own thoughts) I think I need to give up this preference of brand and change printers.  Bummer.

Anyways - I wanted to see what the image would be like if I shifted the color in the sky .
I am thinking darker from the left, behind the whale.  Like he is bringing the doom behind him, or bring the darkness with him where ever he goes.   (play the music from Jaws here!)

Original color comp

See the difference?  This is the original one.

The whale is coming from the bright and happy side.  Like he's the bringer of spring flowers.  But he's not.  With the new colors in my head I am reversing the roles.  Kind of changes the entire feeling of the whale huh?

Do you know what he represents?




With the testing I did on the color comp, I think I'm ready to paint the sky.  This is good because I'm at the point where I almost can't move forward without doing so.  Like I said before: the sky will dictate the color and brightness of everything else.  Once I nail down this big hunk of value and color I can get into the grit of the rest of the painting.  Imagine though, if I would have painted the sky right from the start.  It would have dictated me, lead me toward a finish I maybe wouldn't be happy with.  Blocking in as I have done has left my mind open to changes and new thoughts.  It has allowed me to change directions without wasting too much time or paint.  With blocking in, I can see the colors develop full size (as apposed to a small color comp) and I can help these colors interact with one another and nurture them to a finished painting.  In the next post I'll show you how the changes above have changed the painting.

In other news:
I completed a new portfolio for my website today.  Stop by and check it out: http://www.larryreinhart.com/#!people-we-may-know/ow1do .  This portfolio is for all of my figure paintings (paintings of peoples).  I only have one more portfolio to go, My Obsessions.  If I stay on track I'll have this last one completed by end of next week.  I also entered a small landscape into a contest in hopes of getting my name out there and maybe get the opportunity to get some free supplies.  This weekend I have a meeting with a Redland's charity association regarding an art show scheduled for next month. I need to spend some time getting a CD ready with bio, images and such for their publicity.  The organization is also looking for a donated piece of art work so I need to make a decision here too.  Also this weekend I'm meeting with some locals and we are going to try and start up an "En Plein-Air" painting group.  En plein- air is when you go out into the public and paint things like landscapes, parks, or whatever.  This is different from painting in the studio with the air conditioning running - Big difference - -Huge difference!  The part of this blog where I spoke about blocking in and nurturing the colors - outside in just a few hours - there's wont be too much nurturing going on.  But it will make me a better painter, I'll learn from it and grow from it.  It'll be exciting.   
And don't forget it's Father's Day this Sunday!
With all this going on, I'm still confident I can make some good progress on my painting.

Hope you're having a good weekend.  Happy Father's Day to all the father's out there.

Larry