Nelson Boren Art

STAR WARS

2011-08-21T17:37:00.002-06:00

I had the privilege of being asked by George Lucas to create an image for the new book he was planning on publishing. He asked me to create a new bounty hunter holding a light saber. I designed a new lights saber and then asked him, "How does a bounty hunter end up with a light saber?" His response: "He kills a Jedi". Here's the piece that was included in the book "STAR WARS IMAGES". He liked it so much that he bought the painting. It's over five feet long and about three feet high.

Sand Creek Arch

2011-08-21T17:15:00.002-06:00

Last year I was commissioned to design and build a forty foot arch over Main Street in down town Sandpoint, Idaho. Sandpoint is historically a fishing community and tourist town. My proposal consisted of using recycled materials - used highway signs for the fish and used steel I-beam pilings for the structure. There are 92 fish swimming over Main Street now. Many of them are pivoted so that they move in the breeze, giving the illusion of a swimming school of fish. It was a fun project.

Two New Pieces

2011-03-10T10:47:00.003-07:00

This a painting Nelson just finished and sent to Morris and Whiteside. It's called FISH'N. Ask our son Michael, the model how cold the water is, Nelson didn't paint the goosebumps.

This is not a model but a true authentic cowboy thus the name AUTHENTIC COWBOY. A few years ago we were able to participate in a large roundup on the Utah/Idaho border and got some great photos. He is the real thing.

Any Opinions?

2011-02-11T12:28:00.005-07:00

So here is the big boot that Nelson painted off the red background study from my last post. There are no shadows to ground it but the leather is remarkable. The painting is six foot long.

This is the boot with the red background. It was a real challenge for Nelson, he just couldn't get a deep enough red to satisfy him. I loved it, even serious art can have an element of fun and red is a great color. I always say it's the only "true color". The kids gave mixed reviews and Nelson was so so. He sat on it for a week and decided the red just wasn't right so he went with a dark background.

I have to admit the background really lets you focus on the leather which is some of the best he has ever painted. The ground shadows are there but the photograph doesn't show them well.

I would love your opinions.

Playing With Color

2011-01-22T11:40:00.002-07:00

Nelson has been using color in some different and bold new ways. This is a small study he finished this week . He has started the large piece and is getting close to working the red background. He will be using the deep red on the left over the entire painting.

Beautiful

2010-12-15T09:56:00.002-07:00

This is a piece of animation our son Michael shared wih us. We loved the simplicity and beauty of the work. http://conteanimated.com/the-animation/

Something Different

2010-11-30T11:06:00.009-07:00

When we moved to northern Idaho twenty years ago, one of the first things we had to buy was a chain saw. The home we bought was heated with wood stoves and the winters here are long. A friend offered to drop off a truck load of fire wood at The Farm. Thinking it would be cut in nice fireplace size logs we were in awe when a huge logging truck drove down our driveway and dumped about thirty trees in front of our wood shed. Even though Nelson had worked on ranches growing up and I spent my summers with my grandparent who were sheep ranchers we still considered ourselves city folk. We had a lot to learn about winter, woodstoves and in particular our chain saw.

Nelson went and bought his saw and stared cutting. For the first half hour that saw was like cutting butter with a hot knife but but soon the work was going very slow and Nelson was getting very frustrated with his new saw. He finally called one of the old timers here that was kind enough to mentor us and told him he was returning the saw, it just didn't work. Earl laughed and asks "Do you know how to sharpen your saw"?

So what does that have to do with painting? All of us need to sharpen our saws, an artist needs to sharpen his skills. That principle holds true to anything we do. Because Nelson has no formal art training it is really important for him to stop painting what he feels comfortable painting and challenge himself to paint new and differnt things. He loves to study the works of artist he admires and try to copy their technique. It really strengthens his skills both with his hands and with his eyes. This last two weeks he has been looking at the works of N.C. Wyeth and others. Below are some sketches that I think have some nice things happening. These small sketches make nice gifts for our children and others, but ultimately this practice or saw sharpening expands Nelson's vision and helps him improve and move closer to the excellence he is trying to achieve.

We have learned a lot about winter and chain saws and art in twenty years but there is still so much to learn. This is a sketch Nelson did from one of N.C. Wyeth's illistrations. I think the hat turned out great.
This a a scene out of Montana, the work is a lot looser than Nelson typically does. He said it was very liberating to try and give detail without being detailed.

This is a barn here in Sandpoint. I'm not sure I am going to give this one away, I really like it.

All Done

2010-11-29T22:01:00.007-07:00

The mural is up. Our family typically will write messages on construction projects in a place that will be covered up. Stephen writing to his wife Rosie and their dog Max before the frame went on.

You can see the protective film that came on the Lexan. The black frame is 1/2 x 2 inch solid aluminum bar, with a black textured powder coat.

Here Nelson is peeling off the protective film. This was the last chore. By this time all the tools and equipment were put away, the floors had been swept and vacuumed, We were ready to call it "done".

Here's the finished work. There isn't any lighting on it yet that is still being designed by a lighting engineer. Because the painting is 18 inches off the floor there will be a a 22 inch high guard rail installed about three feet away from the painting to protect it. Whew, all done!

Trimmed and Ready To Set

2010-11-23T10:43:00.002-07:00

The time for Nelson to place his signature on the painting

. Here we are getting ready to lift the painting and place it in the wall. Several of the construction workers there were kind enough to help.

There was a lot of weight in the support system, the men figured about 700 lbs.

It fit, that was another concern. Actually the opening was 1/4 inch to small but with a little gerrymandering, it went in just fine.

Placing the first frame piece. The frame is very simple. Leonardo DaVinci said that simplicity is the essence of sophistication. The frame finishes but does not detract from the painting at all, so I hope DaVinci would approve.

Th Process Continues

2010-11-22T11:27:00.002-07:00

Michael wiping down the Masonite to make sure there is no dust.

We unrolled the mural, now comes the "do or die" part. All the months of work are put on the line now. Nelson used an archival fabric glue. Several tests were done at the studio in Sandpoint with excellent results but never with a piece this big. The glue's drying time is about 15 minutes so it was critical that it lay smooth without bubbles . Nelson and Stephen spread the glue with what look like big combs from the hardware store so that the spread was even and thin. We then unrolled the painting and used linoleum rollers to press the painting. No pictures of that part of the process because we were working under such a strict time limit. Michael and I were pressing and flattening out air bubbles.

The process gave us a real scare. After working one piece of the painting and moving on to the next we found huge bubbles forming. Because the glue was wetting the paper we were having all kinds of issues. It seemed like all those months of work were about to go up in smoke.

Nelson and I working on the bubbling. We just kept telling each other it would be alright. After about an hour and a half we left for lunch and hoped that as the painting dried that it would respond like the stretching process Nelson goes through before he starts a painting, which wets the paper and as it dries it becomes very taunt. We were truly blessed the painting dried beautifully, tight as a drum just as it should have.

The Project Continues

2010-11-18T14:05:00.003-07:00

Someone came past and commented they liked my style of management.

Stephen and Nelson getting ready to put the Masonite on the plywood base. The Masonite was donated by DEC Panels. Nelson worked with a great contact Tim Boerst.

Putting on the Masonite.

The airport provided concrete blocks and sandbags to weigh down the Masonite. This dries for a few hours while we go into Jackson and look at some of the great art galleries and for Michael, a few slices of Great Harvest Bread.

We're There

2010-11-17T10:48:00.004-07:00

Our son's Stephen and Michael came to Jackson to help with the install. Boy was I grateful they were there. Nelson considered just having the two of us, that would have been a BIG mistake! Even with all the test runs and trials we still had a few surprises in store for us as the installation progressed. Stephen owns his own company www.millcreekremodels.com in Salt Lake City and scheduled time off work to come and help. He is a master with his tools and is an incredible problem solver. Michael produces documentaries but he loves hard physical labor and being with the family. Truly we could not have done it without them. Here's Stephen walking into the airport.

Nelson and Michael unloading the truck. What took hours and hours to prepare to load and load only took a few minutes to unload. Isn't that so typical?

Ahh... slave labor.

Protection for the floor in front of where the mural will be hung. We built the frame right there on the floor of the airport. Everyone was very accommodating and I loved people stopping to visit and view the work.
Building the framework that will hold first, a layer of plywood then non-acidic Masonite.

A Trip to Jackson Hole

2010-11-16T12:21:00.004-07:00

The truck getting ready to leave for installing the mural in the new Jackson Hole Airport. The new airport is a jewel, a great marriage of rustic and high tech. The architect Brent Mather did a fabulous job designing inside and out.
It took Nelson hours to prepare each piece of the of the framing system. Everything had to be wrapped in waterproof material and a system needed to be developed to load each piece on the back of a truck bed that wasn't long enough.

Several of the frame pieces came through the small back window of the truck and through to the front seat.

Everything was wrapped in tarps after the truck was loaded and bungee cords were used to make sure everything was tied down and wouldn't shift. The weather was great and the trip down was uneventful if you don't consider the incredible beauty of Montana and the Big Sky Country. We love driving, and seeing the beauty of the country that we feel so grateful to live in. It is truly art that inspires.

Something Fun Comes to Light

2010-11-03T11:05:00.007-06:00

So the Star Wars people wanted to put together a book of one hundred artist depicting Star Wars in their own genre'. Nelson was ask to participate. The book was released last week. This is the cover of the book. I really like this painting by Masey. It is a wonderful piece.

Here is a friend modeling for "Maverick Bounty Hunter". It's was dull dreary weather with no chance for any outside shooting so we set up the lighting in the studio and put him up on Nelson's painting table (a good angle for photographing.). It was pretty precarious for him because he really is lunging foward with quite a bit of speed.

Here is the finished product. I wish you could see the detail. The metal shin guards are my favorite. George Lucas was first attracted to the shining light saber in Maverick's right hand. So how does a bounty hunter get hold of a light saber was the question Nelson ask George Lucas. The answer, "He's killed a Jedi."

test

2010-10-25T16:17:00.000-06:00

Can't seem to load anything so we are testing

He's been busy but I haven't blogged

2010-09-29T10:06:00.002-06:00

This is a mock-up of the fish arch . Nelson has decided to add a few more of the silver fish to the pattern, they read better. He is also grinding stipes and design into the fish with color. It is really going to be a great project. The footings aren't in yet so it looks like the project won't go up until Spring, we were hoping it would be in before Christmas. The night back lighting will be really nice and would have been fun through the cold winter months here in the north country.

Nelson is also working on some nice commission work with his watercolors. We are doing some photo shoots this week with the nice weather in preparation for those.

FISH

2010-08-23T12:10:00.003-06:00

The first cut fish for the Sandpoint Arch were done today. Nelson picked up the first 30 of over 90 this morning. I had him lay down to give you some idea of scale.

Here is one close up.

The red stop sign fish have great color.

Nelson has put some proposals together for other fun public art projects. I'll keep you posted if he is chosen for the commissions.

Summer

2010-07-02T16:08:00.002-06:00

Last week Nelson was able to take a trip with his brother Hugo, brother-in-law Joe and a couple of Joe's children. This is one way Nelson cleans his soul and also is able to get more material for his paintings.

God is the real artist.

Nelson and his brother Hugo.

Nelson is working on the arch project and loves having the grandchildren in his studio. He is putting together a mock-up and the children are helping him color the fish. Basically he is deciding what species of trout, size,color and position on the arch. I am always amazed at how much work he is able to accomplish with grandchildren swarming about.

The Arch

2010-06-19T15:16:00.003-06:00

The arch completion date has been moved forward to this fall so it will be a busy summer in the studio. The highway department is donating road signs that have been damaged and the fish will be cut from those. The colors on the signs add a great dimension to the fish. The footings will be poured in the next few weeks and the fabricator will start cutting out the fish as soon as the specifiactions are completed. It really is a great project. The span has also been lengthed from 32' to 41'.

In spite of a really full work schedule between the painting demand and the arch, Nelson left this afternoon for a a photography/fishing trip to the Wind Rivers of Wyoming. He will bring home some great stories and hopefully some good subject for painting this winter. Unfortunately children grow up and have lives of their own so this is the first year that none of our sons is going with their dad, but the company is still good with Nelson's brother Hugo and brother-in-law Joe who just came back from a two year stint in Guam.

Art lessons start in the studio next week with the grandchildren, that adds a whole new dimension to work.

New project

2010-06-04T16:16:00.002-06:00

A few months ago the town of Sandpoint ask for artist to submit sketches for an arch that would span one of the streets leading down to the Sand Creek. We have lived in Sandpoint for almost twenty years and have loved this community. It has been a really wonderful place to raise our family. Not only did the project sound like a nice challenge that uses both Nelson's artist and architectural knowledge; but its always nice to think that you might leave a little piece of yourself in your community . Last night Nelson got a call telling him that he had been given the commission. We are both really excited, so are our children.

The project will go in next spring. The whole thing is being put together with recycled donations. All the contracted work will be local. Thanks Sandpoint!

Catch Up

2010-05-27T17:11:00.002-06:00

Nelson has been really busy the last few weeks. He has deadlines on three really nice and quite large pieces so he is painting like a maniac. He has been experimenting with varnishing his work. So far he has only varnished a few small paintings. I love the results. It brings a greater depth to his washes and layering of the pigmant. He will varnish the Jackson painting even though it will be under clear protection (I can't remember what material he decided on). He goes with seven coats. One of the drawbacks of watercolor is the damage moisture can do to the painting. With the varnishing the water runs off the painting like a dream. It's been a great discovery thanks to a friend who also paints watercolor Chuck Middlekauff. You can see his work at http://legacycontemporaryart.com. I am always amazed at how willing artists are to share their talents and techniques with others.

Friday Afternoon

2010-05-08T11:53:00.002-06:00

When Nelson was practicing architecture he always gave his employees Friday afternoon off, paid. We had decided if we ran the world everyone should have Friday afternoon to spend with their families and it would make the world a much nicer place to live. Keeping with that tradition this is what we did yesterday on our Friday afternoon. This is a hike thats about eight miles called Gold Hill. We took fresh strawberries, crackers and cheese and a few tangerines. It was fabulous.

Update

2010-04-27T17:14:00.003-06:00

Well the mural is "done". That means it will be put aside for a few weeks and be pulled out to have a fresh view of it. Nelson has been waiting for Michael to get home from studying in Israel, he has a good eye and can see what needs to be worked. Two other friends are great for seeing needed detail changes, Bud and his son, Tom Miller. I always give my two cents. Nelson knows that when he asks me to come out to the studio to look at a painting my first response is always "it's not done".

Nelson has been working with the mounting and finishing. So far the techniques he has learned and applied to smaller work have really pleased him.

Ta Dah

2010-04-19T14:13:00.002-06:00

The mural is basically finished, Nelson and Ernie put it on the side of the barn to see how it looks and decided what needs to be tweeked.

Rolling it out and tacking it. The piece is huge.

From a distance.

It reads well.

Fun!

Studio/Nursery

2010-04-14T20:44:00.004-06:00

Because Nelson's studio is a converted car shed he's not a bit fussy about kids and animals being inside. Over the years he has had baby lambs, calves, sick cats and dogs needing time to recover from run-ins with porcupines. Today I brought home fourteen baby chicks for him to babysit until they get big enough to go into the coop. He says it should gives his paintings an even more realistic "air" of country living.

Update

2010-04-09T16:21:00.005-06:00

The mural for Jackson is really coming along splendidly. Nelson has reach the last bit of the painting but hasn't done the background or the sparkle. He has learned some great new techniques and finishes for watercolor. I am always amazed at how generous other artist are with their time, talents and techniques. A good friend of ours and a truly talented artist Albin Veselka http://www.albinveselka.com/ has been over numerous times to help Nelson with the baby moose. Nathan our grandson has also been helping this week. He's the one at the right, he paints right along with grandpa.

Jackson Piece Continued

2010-03-26T15:17:00.003-06:00

This large scale work has posed some interesting challenges. Here Nelson is preparing to lay out the middle part of the work. He had to build a support piece over the window that faces Schwitzer. No view of the ski resort this week. The two boxes at the ends are to support the paper rolls. I was surprised at how heavy and bulky the paper is to handle. It is definitely a two man job. Because the piece is so big Nelson had to build a platform outside of the studio to project the image to the scale that is needed.

Here's a view from the outside. We are grateful the weather has cooperated.

Painting Upside Down and Right Side Up

2010-03-18T17:36:00.003-06:00

The mural is being laid out and painted in sections. Nelson is finishing the first section minus the background. He needed to climb up on the table to get to certain pieces of the painting. Because the paper is so big it is a lot harder to turn. Nelson is loving the scale of this piece, he is having way too much fun.

Everything had to be scaled since he is using several different photographs to compose the piece. You can see from this photo he has been painting upside down.

Here he is doing the intial scratching on the first section of the painting. Tonight he will lay out the next section, it will be over eight feet long. That much paper is a lot to handle, it really ought to be a three person job but this afternoon we managed it with two.

What's in Cartersville Georgia?

2010-03-13T23:14:00.002-07:00

Nelson and I just got back this afternoon from Cartesville Georgia and a working trip to the Booth Museum, if you can call the southern hospitality we received work. It was a mind expanding experience and the two days that I was able to enjoy the art while Nelson worked wasn't nearly enough for me to see and expereince everything there was to learn and enjoy. It is an art museum that carries significant work and a wonderful collection. The building itself is beautiful . Take some time and learn more about the museum on their website www.boothmuseum.org. Of course their site can in no way really give you a sense of the treat the awaits. I also got to meet Jack Morris of Morris Whiteside Gallery www.Morris-Whiteside.com in Hilton Head North Carolina. He has been so good to Nelson and I over the years. It was great to finally put a face with the voice of this really wonderful southern gentleman.Natalie and Lisa were amazing and spent countless hours preparing for Nelson's watercolor workshop. The museum staff is the finest I've experienced , their creativity and hard work are evident in everything they do. They love their jobs and the community and that love shows.

The museum asks their visiting artist to do a quick sketch on these large canvases in the member's lounge. Here Nelson is hanging up the canvas after finishing his two minute cowboy.

Starting the sketch.

Teaching the watercolor class. Nelson hasn't put on his painting t-shirt yet which was suppose to save his good shirt which it did, but he did manage to paint his jeans. He has ruined countless shirts forgetting that his shirt isn't for wiping his brushes on so now he just wears old t-shirts unless he forgets and goes out to the studio to just do one little thing an realizes he has wiped his brush on a dress shirt.

The class at the end of the day. These people were astounding, such enthusiasm and excitement for art. After seven hours they were still ready for more.

I can't say enough good things about the museum, Cartersville, the people we were able to associate with and the lessons they taught us. It was FABULOUS!

Jackson Hole Commisssion has Begun in Earnest

2010-03-02T22:00:00.002-07:00

We had a sunny day yesterday so Nelson took the opportunity to stretch his paper outside on the side of his studio. Twenty-four feet is a lot of paper.

Usually the paper is stretch inside of the studio with a bucket of water and a big paint brush. he loved using the hose. Nelson uses an all cotton paper out of England.

Tacking the paper down was actually a three person job, but we got it done.

Influence

2010-02-08T15:05:00.002-07:00

People often ask Nelson what artists have influenced his work. That is always an interesting question, and one that I would like to give some insight to. This is Nelson's mother Clara in 1937. Clara was an amateur artist her whole life. She worked in oils and also did some stunning work on china. She loved to create beauty. Early on in Nelson's life she recognized his gift and talent. She always made sure that no matter where they lived whether in Argentina, Uruguay, California or Arizona that Nelson always had a place to create. That was a real gift for a young boy. Another gift that she gave was that she always told Nelson that if someone else could do something so could he, he could accomplish anything he wanted in this world. With that kind of influence Nelson had the courage to try and try again, to study, observe, try new things and test new ideas. Not everyone who loves art has had that kind of encouragement. So who has had the greatest influence on Nelson's art. No question, definitely his mother.

Jackson Hole Airport

2010-01-28T12:44:00.003-07:00

Nelson is working on some schematics for the 20 foot long mural in the Jackson Hole Airport. Here are some of the drawings. He will work with the client sometimes through several revisions before they are both happy with the way the project is moving.

The figures on the left bring scale to the painting on the right

A lot of research goes into these projects.

Several draft overlays will often times combine several different poses.

Put modeling on the resume.

2010-01-20T17:40:00.002-07:00

Over the years our children and their friends and now their spouses have modeled for Nelson. It sounds pretty glamourous unless he get an idea that he wants to explore on film in the dead of winter or when it's flame'n hot outside. Payday usually comes in the form of an afternoon behind the ski boat. Soon the grandchildren will be in the boots, the skirts, chaps, hats and gloves and another generation will be able to put modeling on their resume.

Here are some of our children helping him put together a shoot for a mural he is doing for the new Jackson Hole airport. He's really excited about this commission. It offers some unique challenges and he loves a good problem to solve. One of those challenges is how to frame and glass a piece that will be over twenty feet long.

2010-01-18T08:05:00.002-07:00

Nelson has decided he is not a blogger at heart so I am taking over. Who is "I"? I'm Jeanne, Nelson's wife. You'll probably get more real information from me anyway.

A lot of people have ask what motivates Nelson's art. There is no one answer to that question but I can tell you that he has a great passion to create. He loves to take raw matierials and organize them ito something that makes others happy. Beyond his art he is a man who is very aware of people and what will bring them joy. I'll start posting a few pictures not only of what he is doing with his art but also what he does with his life.

Magazine Articles

2009-08-15T21:58:00.002-06:00

The August 2009 AMERICAN ART COLLECTOR magazine has a two page feature of some of my fly fishing work. They are also publishing another article in their September WESTERN ART COLLECTOR an article on my cowboy art. Check it out.

TEXAS DUST STORM

2009-07-15T14:08:00.004-06:00

I had a collector call me from Texas a while back and asked for a big painting. I sent him a sketch of a piece 32" x 64". He emailed me back and said he loved the sketch but reminded me that Texas was a BIG state and he wanted a BIG painting. So the finished piece turned out to be 84" x 44". It's called TEXAS DUST STORM.

Not long ago I spent a couple of days in Southeast Idaho fishing the famed Snake and Madison rivers. This painting was inspired by a late evening I spent alone fishing Box Canyon. It took me about an hour and a half to figure out what they were hitting. The secrete fly turned out to be a red Copper John bead head - WHAMO!!!!!!

Welcome!

2009-03-09T22:01:00.003-06:00

Blogging is a new tool for me and I’m excited to dive in and see what happens. My wife Jeanne and I live in Sandpoint, Idaho (50 south of the Canadian boarder). Here, on our little farm, we raised our seven incredible children, several cats, dogs, sheep, cows…etc. It’s been a great place to live, raise kids, fish, hike, fix fences, garden…and of course paint. My studio is a remodeled tractor shed with great natural light and an incredible view of Shwitzer Mountain ski resort. We love the mountains, rivers, lakes, and the people here. Today was a good example of why we love living here: My good friend Ken picked me up at 10:00 am and we headed for a little fishing on the Clark Fork River thirty minutes from the house. You ask: Did you catch anything? Never ask a true fisherman that question…but it was nice to get out.