The Intro Gets Down to Business

"A Moment in Old City"

Welcome.

I am a painter.

And that's what I want to write about in this blog - the process I go through, how I paint, what I want to accomplish, the decisions I make. Along the way, I'll share shots of some of my works in progress, or shots of paintings that illustrate points that I want to make.

Why?

I want to share my thoughts, and I want to get other people's thoughts about what I do and what I face. And, if I deserve it, I want to stimulate more interest in my work.

I'm not going to talk much about myself. I might mention a few things in passing, but my paintings are the most important subject, and you can read a little about me on my website - http://www.williamkosman.com/.

So now, I'm going to start with a painting that I'm working on. I call it "A Moment in Old City."

Have you ever been lucky with something, and you thought that - for that reason - that project was destined for success? That's what happened with this painting. I've wanted to do a painting of Old City Philadelphia for a long time, but I didn't find just the right scene. In my painting, I want to show people in telling situations, moments where there's some emotional content, where the viewer can see something of meaning. I know this is vague, but examples might speak stronger than words. Any way, one day at my studio on Spring Garden, I met a new artist on my floor. Then, when I was driving home later, just as I turned a corner, there she was with a big package. I gave her a ride to Old City, and mentioned that I would be stopping by Cafe Ole to take photos for a photo. Well, surprise, she showed up, and sat for a few moments while I clicked away.

Therefore, I can say that, if it were not for the helpfulness of a colleague, this painting would not exist. From that moment on, every thing in the painting seemed to click. The first problem was that all of my early sketches had the young woman looking out of the frame of the painting, and I could see that the viewer would also be led outside the frame. So, I completely changed the composition. Every brush stroke felt good, every little decision seemed to be right.

I'll share my progress on "A Moment in Old City" in a future blog. But I see I'm getting kind of wordy. I wanted to talk about a lot of things, but I'll save them for another day.

Thanks for listening.