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An EmotionalConnection:

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\Vlrr* sor.D-our sot-o sl-iows,NI,TMEROUS AWARDS, ;\ND PR0MINENTCOLLECTORS "I'O F{IS CRED]'I',

fulercorr"r f-. Lraprs is coNSiDEnEl)ONE OF THE IJINEST FICURE

PAINTERS WORKING TODA\'"

by Lynne Moss Perricelli

alcolm T. Liepke attributes his success

as a figure painter to making art that isboth personal and universal. "I see a

girl with her head a certain way, and I find ittelling, emotional, and I want to communicatethat certain tmth," the Minneapolis-based artistsays. "That tnrth or emotion makes us feel less

alone, more human. Everyone goes through lifewith their own problems, but we live in a prettyuniversal world. I've found that the more personal

the piece, the more people connect with it."Liepke paints only the subjects that interest him,

and he works in the most time-effective manner

possible, maintaining some 20 to 3o paintingsin progress at once. While maximizing hisoutput to the galleries, his approach satis-

fies his desire to work loosely and sponta-neously, making every brushstroke count.

To find his subjects, Liepke simply looks at thepeople around him. He takes photos or makes draw-

ings of the ideas that strike him and then pins themto a large wall in his studio. Occasionally he hires a

model to pose but tends to rely on his photos to save

the time and expense of posing. He tums to hisimagination for the interiors, explaining, "I want to

be free to do what I want." The artist describes thephotos and sketches as merely a starting point fromwhich he can make changes in the hair or dothes ofthe figures to suit the piece. He does, however, retain

the distinctive features of the individual in his refer-

- ences. "You canlt make up fea-Head Studvil'r',ii"[tJ-' tures," he explains, "because the

2002, oil, 12x8. people will look cartoonish."

lll,11y:l"l[:. Usually the artist combinesanrcte counesyArcadia Fine Aits, several ideas from the wall intoU^t"Y Ytl,!^lt* one composition. "It's too time-YOrK, unlessotherwise indicated. consuming to thumb through a

December 2006 25

notebook or make a storyboard, so I just scan the wall andstart combining several ideas," he says. Liepke then makesa thumbnail drawing in graphite to play with the composi-tion, moving elements around to experiment with differentcombinations. Next, he blocks in the sketch with oils oncanvas, creating a full-spectrum layout. The figures arerough at this stage, but he has established the overall feel-ing in terms of both color and composition. To Liepke, thisis the most critical stage of the process: 'After I block in a

painting, sometimes it will paint itself. I've decided the atti-tude of the piece, and I know whether or not it will work. Ifthe painting fails, it does so at this level."

26 American Artist

LEFT

Models WithJapanese Screen1986, oil, 26 x 20.

OPPOSITE PAGE

Fixing the Gown2002, oll,60 x 42.Private collection.

At any given time Liepke could have up to Jo paintings at

this stage scattered around his studio. "lfI get stuck on onepainting, I can go on to another, then I come back to itlater," he explains. When returning to a painting, Liepkefirst lays a glaze ofroughly equal parts oflinseed oil, clove

oil, and poppyseed oil over the color block-in. This process,which he refers to as "oiling up," allows him to work wet-in-wet. (He uses the mediums throughout the painting process

to slow the paint's drying time.) Typically he builds the fleshtones and refines the face and hands. Ifhe again feels inhib-ited in trying to finish the painting, he sets it aside andturns to another using the same process of "oiling up."

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Oil paints from a variety of manufacturers, includ-

ing Grumbacher, Holbein, and Rembrandt, in the

following colors:

a premtxed gray(yellow ochre or raw

sienna with black and

white)

black

whitejaune brilliant

Naples yellowyellow ochre

Venetian red' burnt sienna

Claessens Belgian linen canvas in a variety oftextures

Robert Simmons filberts, Nos. 1 to 22

roughly equal parts of linseed oil, clove oil, and

poppyseed oil

LEFT

Passing the Time1.992, or, 16 x 74.

OPPOSITE PAGE

A Mother's Kiss2000, oi, 14 x 12.

favors Roberl Slmmons filberts in Nos. r to 22. His paints

comprise about a dozen manufacturers, with Grumbacher,Holbein, and Rembrandt dominating. He premixes his

gral s by combining ye11ow ochre or raw sienna with blackand u,hite, and he mi-res all his colors with varying

amorlnts of thls gray He also premixes some flesh colors."My colol choices are pretty instinctlral," Liepke says. "ljr-rst look at the work of arlists I admire and try to learnfrom them. It's about personal taste, but I tend to like a ye1-

louish, gral-lsh green for the flesh tones to play offtheorallges and pinks."

As Liepke's rvork has matured, his palette has shiftedfi'om darker valr-res to a bolder and more dlverse selection

of colors. One explanation is simply that he moved to a

brigliter shrdio. but the artist also wanted to prevent hlm-self from becon-ring formulaic so he modified his colorselectlon accordingll'. His painting process, despite-orperhaps because of-the careful pianning in the begin-

ning, allor,vs intuition to dorninate. "When I'm in thatzone, lt's child's p1a1r although on some deeper 1eve1, Il<now-nhat I'm doing and why," he once said. "The biggest

thing about my art is getting my mind to open to the pointrvhere it comes tumbling out. I can't think about brush-strokes. If I think too consclously, my arm freezes up."

Before he turned to fine art in the mid-r9Sos, Liepkervorked as an illustrator for such clients as Forbes andTime-a career that, despite its success, was touched bydisappointment. "There's no great art by committee," hesays. "l left illustration because I was tired of the com-promise, of being a square peg in a round ho1e. I wouldknow a painting was finished, but the art dlrector woulddecide what was right or wrong with it. It was too muchof a fight, and I knew I was in the wrong profession."

raw sienna

alizarin crimson

deep umber

raw umber

sepia

turquoise blue

indigo blue

lime green

olive green

sap green

30 American Artist

BELOW

First to Arrive1993, oil, 30 x 29.

OPPOSITE PAGE

Two Men Waiting1995, oil, 20 x 16.

Working on a wet canvas is critical to Liepke's approach,which he modeled after the techniques of his heroes, fohnSinger Sargent and Velizquez being chief among them.Liepke especially admires Sargent's virtuosity in paintingwith a loaded brush, wet-in-wet, and Liepke's careful andnearly fully resolved layout of the composition ensures he

will make few revisions whiie painting and retain thedirectness and spontaneity he desires. He works looselyand aims to communicate as much information as possiblein the fewest number of strokes. "Learning to edit, to keeploose, is a lifelong process," the artist says. "ln the begin-ning it's natural to noodle everything to death, but slowlyyou can learn to say more with less, to make sure eachbrushstroke has meaning."

Like Sargent, YeTlzquez employed color and compositionbrilliantly, but more than Sargent, the Spanish master cap-

tured a sense ofthe subject's essential being. Traveling tothe Prado, in Madrid, as pafi of a period of selfeducation heundertook after leaving the Art Center College of Design, in

$-i*g*k*'s Nmw ffi*mk

A new book on Malcolm T.

Liepke's work is now avail-

able from his gallery,

Arcadia Fine Arts, in New

York City. This beautiful

hardcover book, Liepke; A

Retro s p e ctiv e, f eatu res

dozens of full-color repro-

ductions of the artist's paint-

ings. lt also includes essays

on his achievements, influ-

ences, technique, and home

and family life. With the art-

work in full color and large

format, the book offers a

bold and engaging look at

Liepke's accomplishments,past and present. To order a

copy, call: (2121965-1387 .

Pasadena, California, in the mid-r97os, Liepke came to viewVel6zquez's paintings as the embodiment of everything he

admires in ad: the timelessness of the figure achievedthrough an objective and expert rendering ofthe subject'sfeatures, ciothing, and setting. Despite Liepke's close ties topast masters, he insists on painting contemporary people intheir own time. Omitting details that would place a subjectin the zrst cenlury to make the images more universal, theartist often chooses themes of isolation and ambivalence-as relevant now as in the rTth century. "lt comes down towhat your truth is," he said in an interview for a retrospec-tive of his work. "Heroes helped me express my vision ofthe world. I'm a figure painter, and I use figures to expresswhat I want to say, to fit the statements I wish to make. Ichoose the things, large and small, from the artists Iadmire, to help me in the pursuit of human truth."

Liepke's painting surface is Claessens Belgian linen canvas,

which he buys by the ro11 and stretches as needed. He keeps

six varieties on hand, from rough to fine. For brushes, he

December 2006 29

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December 2006 31

BELOW

Beach Scene1980, orl, 22 x 28.

OPPOSITE PAGE

Fitting the Gowni995, oi , 38 x 34.

tt * ti

Clearly the move to fine art has fulfilled Liepke on mali1.levels. He describes himself as emotional and sa1's titat hisstrength comes from the emotional irr-rpact he pulls out of thework. "Although I do think about the things I am erpressing.I try to make it as direct as I can-l try not to get in the rval'ofthe emotions," he once said. "ln essence, I believe that no

matter how alone rve may feel in the rvorld-how n e imaginewe are experiencing things in a vacuum-we all share thesame human experiences. We all have the same basic needsfor connection, iove, and understanding. I try to reach thoseuniversal needs; it's what's primal in ar1. I try to say it throughmood, coior, atmosphere, and terture. Bottom line: it's theemotional, and I just want to get it out. It's difTicult to express

through words things that are so beautiful that they have nowords. I can't explain it. I have to paint it." f

Malcolm T. Liepke is primarily a self-taughtartist, having learned most of his technique by

emulating the style of the American

lmpressionists and other artists. He has partici-pated in numerous group shows, including U.S.

Artists "Re-Presenting Representation" and theInternational Fine Art and Antiques Fair. The

artist's work hangs in several private and pub-

lic collections, including those of the NationalAcademy of Design, in New York City, and theEstate of Armand Hammer. Liepke is represent-

ed by Arcadia Fine Arts, in New York City.

Lynne Moss Perricelli is a freelance witer and editor in New Jersey,

December 2006 33