deviant ART

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~Kourete:iconKourete:

Paul Mellender  

  • Status: Member
  • Painter
  • Male/United States
  • Offline for 21m 10s
  • Deviant since Oct 31, 2007, 10:22 AM
  • 80 Deviations
  • 213 Deviation Comments
  • 64 Deviant Comments
  • 4 Forum Posts
  • 14,433 Pageviews

Devious Information

  • Current Age: 36
  • Current Residence: In an old enchanted castle on the Rhine six centuries ago
  • Interests: you
  • Favourite band or musician: Dead Can Dance
  • Favourite poet or writer: William Butler Yeats, or maybe Francis Thompson
  • Favourite photographer: Elliott Erwitt

deviantART Notice

Devious Comments

~FrousteFaireElkke:iconFrousteFaireElkke: 2 days 13 hours ago Mood: Astonished
A wonderful gallery of amazing digital "oils" and sketch engravings that has both the classical elegance of the masters
and
a vibrant spiritual magnetism reflective of your own inner freshness of vision.
Thank you for sharing!
~Kourete:iconKourete: 3 days 3 hours ago
Thank you for the compliments.
~Kourete:iconKourete: 3 days 3 hours ago
Thank you, that is very kind.
*MSDesigns:iconMSDesigns: 3 days 8 hours ago
Great eye for detail and nice subject matter. I adore your gallery.

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EVA.SEP.COR
~thilamon:iconthilamon: 3 days 17 hours ago
Your work is superlative, a kiss on my eyes and mind
~thilamon:iconthilamon: 3 days 17 hours ago
Your work is superlative, a kiss on my eyes and mind
~Credendo-Vides:iconCredendo-Vides: 3 days 18 hours ago
I love your art, beautiful, awe inspiring, it leaves me speechless.

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:analprobe: :boogie:
~percipient:iconpercipient: May 8, 2008, 9:46:35 PM
Thanks for replying. Appreciated.

If it's as difficult as you say, then how come a large majority of your paintings are without reference? Is it preferred? Do you feel using a reference is a cripple? Or do you just like the idea of using something that you thought up of in your mind?

And I do agree it's extremely difficult to create a realistic face from nothing. Even if the drawing is proportionally accurate and the individual parts of the face are accurate, it doesn't always create something that can be seen as real. But then again, I'm comparing what I come up with to a master artist. It's good to set high expectations, though... I think.

And I also have a pretty good idea of how my face is. I haven't done too many self-portraits, but I look at myself often enough that I know where and what everything is. And sadly, I also don't get any better looking.

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"So we'll march day and night, by the big cooling tower. They have the plant, but we have the power."
~Kourete:iconKourete: May 8, 2008, 6:17:41 PM
Usually portraits require references. When I have done portraits without reference (which is extremely difficult so I rarely do it) people are often creeped out by the results. The portrait "Mylinh" is a mix. We started with photos, which weren't giving me the details I wanted, then to a live sitting (I think the world of Mylinh but she fidgets), and then memory and imagination.

For my own self portrait I used a photo. I was giving painting lessons at the time, and my student was doing a portrait of me so took the photo I used. She ended up using another photo, and I used this to give a painting demonstration, which is why it only took 3 hours. Previous self portraits have been done with mirrors or by memory. Sadly I have my face so clearly in my head I can draw myself in about 5 minutes from memory. Strangely, I never get any better looking.
~percipient:iconpercipient: May 8, 2008, 8:47:47 AM
I have a question, if you don't mind:
How often do you actually use references? I noticed you don't use references for a lot of your work. Is there ever a time where you feel it's necessary to use a face for reference?

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"So we'll march day and night, by the big cooling tower. They have the plant, but we have the power."
~Kourete:iconKourete: May 4, 2008, 7:41:46 PM
Thanks, Peetie.
*Peetie:iconPeetie: May 4, 2008, 8:28:44 AM
Paul, you’re up there with the :painter: Masters. Awesome!:worship:
~Catastrophic-Demise:iconCatastrophic-Demise: May 3, 2008, 9:50:04 PM
You have absolutely beautiful, and I can't wait to see more. Your attention to detail is impeccable and I love how your figures show character but keep to realistic tendencies.

Take care,
-Stephanie
~starbuxx:iconstarbuxx: Apr 30, 2008, 4:27:28 PM Mood: Wow!
:wave: dude... I just wanna say that your art is amoung the most amazing i have ever seen!! i can only envy you shading skills and hope to be that good one day!!!!!!

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"I am the only one of us that can even be compared to normal in this contest of freaks."

"Don't follow in my footsteps. I run into walls."

-Grand Ambassador Kool-Aide of the SRP's
- :star: :dollarus:
~lilliksior:iconlilliksior: Apr 27, 2008, 2:46:55 AM
amazing work! :)

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Jestem łoś superktoś :p
*RudolfIskandar:iconRudolfIskandar: Apr 24, 2008, 6:42:40 PM
Thank you for your talent, your works are amazing, it will inspired others.
~henrynguyen:iconhenrynguyen: Apr 22, 2008, 6:58:44 AM
Nice 2see gallery. FAV 2pics.
Hope 2study more more frm u.
Nice day vvork & relax. Yeap.
Dear.

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make the strange
~proames:iconproames: Apr 21, 2008, 2:45:13 AM
nice work very carefuly considered

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saxophone vs. mobile phone
*apoetsdream:iconapoetsdream: Apr 15, 2008, 4:58:49 PM
*Since you didn't go to college..

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Jesus loves you
*apoetsdream:iconapoetsdream: Apr 15, 2008, 4:58:25 PM
What did you do out of highschool to make money?

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Jesus loves you
*Elandain:iconElandain: Apr 13, 2008, 4:28:18 PM
Okay, thanks. I'll check those out. The other half of my dilema is that I'd really love to teach art at the college level. Except that you can't do that without a Master's degree. And ateliers don't offer Master's programs, do they???
~Kourete:iconKourete: Apr 13, 2008, 4:15:45 PM
Hey ElandaiHey Elandain,

I'm not sure where to lead you on this. I'm self taught, and I have to admit schools are a little off putting to me, so I wouldn't know where to recommend as far as university. As far as ateliers though I here Jacob Collin's ateliers in NY are awesome, and Tony Ryder teaches workshops, anf my friend Bart McCoy who is a classical painter has told me the classes with Tony Ryder are great. Check out the website ARC (Art Renewal Center) and I think they have a list of ateliers.
*Elandain:iconElandain: Apr 13, 2008, 3:31:48 PM
Can I ask you where you went to school? I know you've got a lot of talent, and that you're probably primarily self-taught. I'm not downplaying your gift. I'm just looking for a good school to study figure painting and anatomy at. Most big universities and art schools don't teach the classical kind of art like this. So... do you have any advice/suggestions?