I’ve always been a fan of Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, their haunting music and their lead singer’s moody, cerebral vibe.
He makes a perfect candidate for an expressive and emotional piece, and I included symbols to represent some of their best songs.
Below is the reference photo I used
I painted this in 2010, using a limited palette of Alizarin Crimson, Prussian Blue, with the darkest areas adding a bit of Burnt Umber, all executed in loose expressive wet-on-wet washes, splattering and glazing, with liquid frisket masking for the typography and for the icons I created in the background to represent some of his major songs.
I ended up giving it to one of my favorite bartenders at New York’s Fish Bar, Jennifer Price.