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SUBTERRANEANS (1992)
Acrylic on Canvas - 44” x 33”

Companion piece to CLIMBER and THE RED STEP, this painting is firmly set within my Faded Star series.

My original conception of the image didn’t seem right somehow, and I had been wondering how I could improve on it. 1/4

#personalvisions #imaginativerealism #fineart #fadedstar

In a worm's eye view up a massive stepped wall, a solitary figure crouches on the bottom tier looking up, awed by a view of concrete climbing as far as he can see. The facade shows intricate patterns, like many derelict building merged together. A trapezoid of filtered light stretches along the side wall hinting at a way out somewhere off panel. The muted tones, just gray and rust with a slight hint of blue, combine with dusty quality to give the painting an oppressive atmosphere.
#fineart #imaginativerealism #personalvisions #fadedstar

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Michael Whelan
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Michael Whelan
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While attending my daughter’s winter music concert at her school, the answer came to me and I could see it in my mind’s eye. Fortunately I had a little pad of paper and a pencil in my pocket on which to sketch it while it was still fresh in my mind. 2/4
Alternative approach to SUBTERRANEANS. Black and white charcoal on charcoal paper, 6" x 4". A straight-on view of the stepped wall with a solitary figure standing lower right.
Sketch for SUBTERRANEANS. Graphite pencil on notebook paper, 2¼" x 2". Sketch of massive stepped wall working out the false perspective
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Michael Whelan
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Michael Whelan
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The perspective is false. For some reason, whenever I tried to make the picture do what I wanted it to do via the conventional laws of perspective, it lost the focus and feel of ascending immensity going on forever. So I discarded true perspective in order to paint it the way that felt right. 3/4
Detail from SUBTERRANEANS featuring a worm's eye view up a massive stepped wall. Light filters in from above hitting the side wall, lending the space a hazy atmosphere.
Close detail from SUBTERRANEANS featuring a solitary figure crouched at the base of a massive stepped wall
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Michael Whelan
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Michael Whelan
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The painting later became the cover for a comic by Harlan Ellison. 4/4

michaelwhelan.com/galleries/su…

Comic cover for HARLAN ELLISON'S DREAM CORRIDOR issue #1 published by Dark Horse Comics

SUBTERRANEANS

The perspective is false. For some reason, whenever I tried to make the picture do what I wanted it to do via the conventional laws of perspective, it lost its focus, the feel of ascending immensit…
The Art of Michael Whelan

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nellie-m
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nellie-m
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amazing how music can make your mind soar. 😊

I like that first alternative idea, too. Did you ever pursue that further?

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Michael Whelan
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Michael Whelan
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@nellie_m The two sketches are a progression of thought with the second fixing the issue of the first through false perspective.
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