As the seasons are changing hands, I really felt the need to take a half day off. My schedule is a cruel grind with work, school, practicing, making art, booking shows, applications, art projects, and filming.
I’m preparing to start the final art piece that will be the cover art for the album. I intend to use oil on canvas. Before diving in I wanted to study some of the masters from the Cleveland Museum of Art Collection.
Saint Mary Magdalen, by Simon Vouet around 1630.
In a world of AI generated art, I’m running in the opposite direction. As a musician and visual artist, the art for my album needs to be a unique and personal expression. I see every facet of the album, audio and visual to be interconnected within the theme.
For the cover I really want the mood to evoke a ‘hail to the heavens,’ the act of reaching out to a higher power in a universal sense. As we reach out we find ourselves and rediscover who we are, who we were before trauma, and who we were always meant to be.
In Simon Vouet’s rendition of Saint Mary Magdalen, I can see softness and vulnerability in the light and shadow. This interplay sets the mood for a stage of emotion.
Sacrifice of Isaac, Andrea del Sato 1527
An unfinished painting by Andrea del Sato, reveals the layers of the process. From sketches to washes, to bold color blocks, this was a great piece to study the layers involved.
I love the small delicate details of transparency and metallic reflections. In an age before photography, paintings held idealism and animated surfaces with dimensional life.
Portrait of Francesca Gommi Maratti, about 1701, Carlo Marotti
The eyes are the windows to the soul, in paintings they must be perfect to communicate the correct emotion. ‘A Young Woman with a Turban,’ depicts a commoner, her name lost, she faced a harsher life, looking up as if she had hopes of salvation.
I can’t wait to go back to the museum, I hope to start my full scale sketch soon. I have drawings and test pieces. I will be sharing the process on the supporter side of this platform if you are interested in seeing the album art come to life. Otherwise, you will get to see it closer to the release date this fall.
Thank you for joining me on this journey!
It is wonderful to have you here!
✨🖤✨
Judy June of Glass Aeros