“The Decorator” - result of a year-long collaboration between
furniture craftsman Jacob Cress and oil painter Mark Young – is a
unique whimsical combination of trompe l’oeil art, mixed media art,
dimensional art and installation art. “The Decorator” combines a
large-scale realist oil painting with hand-crafted furniture –
furniture both inside and outside the painting. The composition and
painting by Young is based on a idea originated by Cress, and
depicts a conspiring trio of animated Chippendale chairs, modeled
after chairs carved in life by Cress, who are adding their own
touches to decorate an elegant room, including flowers in some
unlikely places. The chair (painted) and closest to the front,
reaches out of the painting with its (real) hand-carved mahogany arm
to retrieve a (real) flower from a vase atop a (real) hand-carved
mahogany table that sits in front of the painting; the arm and table
were crafted by Cress. Three vases of flowers, reference books of
flowers, other furniture, statuary, a warm fire, and five paintings
within the painting help complete the elaborate scene.
Technical Description
The painting by Mark
Young is oil on ¾” birch panel, 48”h x 72”w; framed is 57”h x
81”w. A hand-carved mahogany chair arm matching the painted chair is
bolted to the painting from the back and projects 16” from the front
of the painting. Framed weight is 80 lbs. The hanging system,
designed by Jacob Cress, is a pair of dove-tailed support beams, one
anchored to the back of the painting and the other into the wall;
the painting is secured to the frame by a set of wooden turn
buttons. The frame moulding is 4 ½” solid wood and is hung with the
bottom edge 35” off the floor and 2” above the table. A hand-carved
mahogany pier table created by Cress, 33”h x 55”l x 19” w, sits on
the floor in front of the painting.
About the Artists
Jacob Cress is
a master craftsman of traditional and artistic “animated” wood
furniture. His works have been exhibited in numerous museums and
galleries throughout the US, are in many private collections, and
are in the permanent collections of several museums, including The
Smithsonian Institution National Museum of American Art. Cress’ work
has been featured in numerous books and publications, including Art
& Antiques, American Art, Fine Woodworking, The Washington Post,
American Home and many others, and has been featured on The HGTV
cable network.
www.jakecress.com
Mark Young is
an accomplished realist oil painter known for his breadth of subject
matter, convincing detail and dramatic rendering of light. Young’s
award-winning works have been exhibited in numerous one-person
shows, invitational and juried shows, several commercial galleries,
and have been featured in magazines, among them Art Business News.
His works are in private and corporate collections throughout the
US, including the NBC Television Network, SAS Institute, Inc.,
Washington & Lee University and The Virginia-Maryland Regional
College of Veterinary Medicine. |
