PATRICKRILEY.ART
patrickriley.art is where art and poetry merge together as one. I combine my love for art and writing, and strive to create something thoroughly unique by intertwining the two. Leonardo da Vinci once said, “Painting is poetry that is seen rather than felt, and poetry is painting that is felt rather than seen.”
I’ve forever been fascinated by Edgar Allan Poe and his works. Poe had a distinctive way of describing scenes in such incredible detail. While immersed in his stories, readers find themselves becoming the painter-- the canvas being their mind, and each word, the brush. I seek to do this through my artwork.
Reportedly, Poe's last words before his death were "Lord, help my poor soul." The word 'PoeSoul' that my studio is named after (PoeSoul Studio) is my homage to him. PoeSoul Studio is an outlet to express my emotions, passion, and art.
Lastly, each of my paintings includes a handwritten poem or piece of prose that I produced. The writings are a piece of my soul, if you will. It's something very special to me-- pulled deep from within my heart.
“Poe’s last words before his death were “Lord, help my poor soul.” The word ‘PoeSoul’ is my homage to him.” -Patrick Riley
Color is my day-long obsession, joy and torment.
-Claude Monet
FEATURED ART
A Place To Rest My Mind - Original Oil Painting
A trail of solitude, high in the mountains, offering nothing but peace and comfort.
This painting quickly became one of my favorites. It took me approximately 6 months to complete. Of course, there were some breaks during that time while I worked on other projects, but this allowed me the opportunity to build in my mind what the next steps should be. With that being said, I never felt like I was losing control of the painting. Occasionally, I’d feel that a certain part of it could look better, so I’d add another layer of paint on top of what I had just completed. I’ve done this many times before, and it adds to the overall depth. It can be time-consuming, but mediocrity is born from wanting to move on to something else before properly finishing what’s in front of you.
The trees on the right side of the painting have many layers applied, giving it an ultra-textured look. I painted the trees to the left of the trail in a slightly different style to reflect the light the way that I wanted. Like almost every other painting that I do, I used a palette knife for approximately 95% of it. I then went back and meticulously added subtle highlights and shadows using a brush. I’ve been using this technique for a couple of years now, and it allows me a lot of flexibility. It’s a sort of hybrid approach of using several tools to accomplish your main goal. Tools that are not necessarily used together.
I say this time and time again— the painting is very difficult to photograph. The vivid colors of the heavily textured paint combined with a thick coat of varnish make it reflect light in a million different ways. Viewing the video gives you a better example of the detail that I’m not able to capture via a photograph.
The painting is mounted in a beautiful brown and gold, ornate wooden frame.
Art is not what you see, but what you make others see.
-Edgar Degas
