Sunday, September 8, 2019

Four Seasons Follies by William Eicholtz


'Johnny always enjoys the creative process and his contribution is invaluable to the artist.'


The images in this series assemble so many of the themes I'm passionate about and love to explore on FH. A talented artist and a hot naked model, (Johnny) are just the beginning.  Many regular readers know how much I love to cover the changing visuals of each season.  I try when I'm able, to chose shoots that follow the weather, the degree and intensity of heat , the colors and locations associated with the season in which I'm posting in.


I also love both story and process, and artist William Eicholtz (dishboydreaming) provides both in his new series, Four Seasons Follies.  Some of you may remember William's work from previous pieces on the site, most notably his Courage sculpture and exhibition from 2014. (HERE:HERE:)  Some viewers may also remember Johnny, who was one of several models William used in the creation of Courage.


Winter

William's new project, Four Seasons Follies are architectural decorative wall vents. They contain figures that William wanted to romp and tumble with coquettish abandon over rococo furniture and play with typically European symbols of the passing seasons. Each suggestively fingers his accompanying furniture, completely oblivious that their sole purpose is to regulate airflow and prevent mildew. Quite the feat and dual purpose for an art piece!

When working on such an intricate and focused piece, it's important to have a model you can not only depend on, but also a model who provides inspiration through their poses and movements.  William says that working with Johnny is also a joy and he he is defiantly an inspiration with the huge amount of enthusiasm he brings to every project.

Spring

'Johnny always enjoys the creative process and his contribution is invaluable to the artist.  After the major achievement of the COURAGE sculpture, Johnny and I started working on works of a smaller scale. Although the classical life model is always working diligently to perfect a pose, this series was much more like a standard life drawing session, with rapid change of pose about a theme… some useful, some altered to fit the format, some falling into place perfectly.'


'The follies are cast plaster and at 8 X 10 inches each, may be used for ventilation purposes. As the initial concept was to make standard sized architectural plaster wall vents into a campy and baroque fantasy, the standard size was an immediate consideration. Although Johnny pushed creative boundaries by nature, we played within a strictly confined tableau. This is roughly sketched within the subsequent working photos, and show something of the structure and thought process in the final works.'

Summer

I love the beautifully subtle ways that William used to distinguish the four different season.  Given they are meant as a series, it was important not to have drastic changes in color from one to another, instead have them blend seamlessly together.  William did this through pose and the antique chair which appears in each piece. There are also subtle color changes, and most beautifully through the small additions of flowers and fruit associated with the season they're reflecting.

Autumn

The Baroque Four Season follies that ornament a ceiling with homoerotic joy, and are currently on show Maunsell Wickes gallery in Sydney, Australia through September 15th.  If you're in the area and want to check them out, check out more HERE:



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