tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2999230124118604245.post7795834731949680267..comments2024-03-28T09:25:25.716-04:00Comments on Gurney Journey: Meissonier's prep workJames Gurneyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01870848001990898499noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2999230124118604245.post-74675237181764017892013-08-03T09:40:03.258-04:002013-08-03T09:40:03.258-04:00Meissonier was obsessed with both historical accur...Meissonier was obsessed with both historical accuracy of his paintings and equine locomotion. He did not relied on mere cursory knowledge for representation of the uniforms and military accessories - he interviewed veterans making inquiries in which one made up a soldier's pack, the form of a dolman, the color of a collar, the place of a buckle etc. Once appraised of this information he used to run to a tailor, saddle-maker or gunsmith asking them to reconstruct the costume which no longer existed. Gérôme was fascinated with apparatus Meissonier invented which allowed him to observe the movement of all four of a horse's legs from the side - M. installed a plain small railway on whose tracks he had placed a rolling sofa that was pushed at the same pace as that of a horse walking parallel to him. When, on his sketchbook, he had arrived at fixing the position of a leg, he looked for the position of another leg at that corresponding moment, then he looked at a third and thus resolved the problem.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2999230124118604245.post-69495317740385101212013-08-02T23:53:44.632-04:002013-08-02T23:53:44.632-04:00Thanks to your blog and your books, I've gotte...Thanks to your blog and your books, I've gotten to be pretty good about preparing myself before doing a final drawing/painting. I have friends dress up in costumes, I build maquettes, I do lots of preliminary sketches and at least one scaled-down version of the final piece in the same medium that the final piece will be. I think my art has improved dramatically as a result.<br /><br />You said in this post, "This conviction doesn't happen by accident or last-minute inspiration." My question is do you think there comes a point where an artist becomes over-prepared? I worry some times that, by over-preparing myself, I might loose a sense of spontaneity in the final piece.<br /><br />-JamesAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2999230124118604245.post-60721663703167906722013-08-02T17:18:44.664-04:002013-08-02T17:18:44.664-04:00That's a great book! King infuses his works of...That's a great book! King infuses his works of historical non-fiction with an entertaining storytelling vibe. After reading this I had to get his books on Michelangelo and Leonardo too. Juha Peuhkurihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16555316001959798518noreply@blogger.com