The Famous Old
'The Famous Old' are pieces of work which places popular icons from the 40's, 50's & 60's in an old oil painting style. This style of mid century oil paintings are commonly in museums of biblical/religious events and historical leaders of the world, like King Henry Viii, napoleon and George Washington as Paintings were the only way to evidence an image of a person or place before the invention of photos. Photos were then used to instantly capture the moments through time so many of the older pop culture figures through the 40's, 50's & 60's were photographed. With the world turning like a clock these legends feel just as long ago as the historical leaders of the world that were painted to maintain their legacy. This ignited a theme I would evolve into 'The Famous Old', photos re-imagined as oil paintings of our famous pop culture icons of the past.
THe Rebel
'The Rebel' is a piece which is dedicated to the actor James dean. His most notable films are 'East of Eden', 'Giant' and 'Rebel Without a Cause' which this piece was named after. James had struck gold with 'Rebel without a cause' which pushed him into the spot light as a young up and coming actor who was nominated for an academy award, sadly he was killed in a car crash in 1955 at the age of 22.
Godfather
'Godfather' is a piece dedicated to one of the first and most iconic method actor; Marlon Brando. His films include 'A Street Car Named Desire', 'Apocalypse Now', 'LAst Tango in Paris', 'The Wild One' and most notably 'The Godfather' which this piece is named after. Marlon Brando's performance of the godfather Don Vito Corleone was unmatched and received the academy award for his performance.
Breakfast at Tiffany's
'Breakfast at Tiffany's' is a piece dedicated to the film actress and fashion icon Audrey Hepburn who is most well known for the main love interest in the 1961 film 'Breakfast at Tiffany's'. Some of her other classic films include 'Roman Holiday', 'Sabrina' and 'My Fair Lady'. Audrey was a talented singer who most notably performed the song 'Moon River' in the film 'breakfast at Tiffany's'.
Roll Over Beethoven
'Roll Over Beethoven' is a piece on the person that some say created rock n' Roll, chuck berry. This man who helped push people (including me) to pick up the guitar and play. With his iconic riffs and songs this man inspired so many and most notably the Beatles who covered many of his songs in their early years. His songs have also been publicized by popular films like 'Back to the future' and 'Pulp Fiction'. The title used was taken from his 1956 hit 'Roll Over Beethoven'.
The King
'The King' is dedicated the king of rock N' Roll and is one of the most known musician's in the world, Elvis Presley. The iconic singer made the biggest impact in music history at the time in the 50's and helped push a genre that inspired millions. His iconic voice and songs make his music unmistakable from others. Women screamed at excitement that they were in the presence of a legend at live shows all the way through his career, and even past his death in 1977 people have never stopped loving him or his music. The title was the name people gave him as the king of rock N' Roll and later referred to him simply as the King.
Norma Jeane
'Norma Jeane', a piece dedicated to the Model, film star and Singer better known as Marilyn Monroe. She was what some would say the first real life pin-up which created the obsession of the raunchy posters of women. This scene from the 1955 film 'The Seven year Itch' is one of her most iconic pictures. many people may not be able to tell you film this scene is in or even say they have seen the film but everyone recognizes this photo. The title was Marilyn's real name which is mentioned in Elton John's song 'candle in the wind' which was about her life.
J. R. Cash
'J. R. Cash' is a piece which comes from the last known photo of the country music legend Johnny Cash which was taken by Marty Stuart.
Although the image looks like brush strokes with realistic depth and texture this was all done within Photoshop. Using tutorials and my skills i was able to create a realistic oil painting effect and apply brush strokes over the original image with the brush managing the correct colours when apply the brush stroke over the photo. I added Johnny's signature which later became a continuous theme throughout these pieces of work. The title was Johnny's original name which his parents gave to him as they couldn't decide on a first name.