Art Chowder September | October, Issue 17 | Page 23

Larry : They all hold special meaning to me . The first is a white or black design that runs through the drawing , entering from one of the outside borders then zigzagging through the drawing , stopping short of exiting the drawing . On the end of the line is my logo , the letters “ LB ” in a shield . The line is significant in that it pulls everything together and is in honor of the one who inspired me , Ron Kurtz . His drawings also have a line but his enters one border and leaves the drawing at another border . My line is a tribute to him and to his superb talent .
Secondly are stars — within some of my drawings they are quite numerous and obvious . In others you have to search for them . They are included in my drawings to honor this great country we live in and the men and women who fought or gave their lives to keep us safe and secure our freedom . things where it ’ s just layering things on top of each other . When I first started drawing , Ron Kurtz told me , “ You will find as people are looking at your drawings , things will come out that they will never see the first time they look at it . They might look at your drawing four or five times , then all of a sudden say , ‘ Whoa , I didn ’ t know that was there !’” Another thing is that at different angles it can appear almost threedimensional , and that ’ s just how your drawing develops .
Art Chowder : Please describe your artistic process . Larry : As you can see , my subject matter is random and is based upon what interests me at that time . It usually develops from my life experiences or things that grab my attention . Once the main subject matter has been decided upon , I usually begin by looking for photographs of the subject showing it from multiple angles if possible . At that point I will sketch the design . Then I begin inking , sometimes one dot at a time , which is extremely time consuming . I use a lot of black in places where there may be dark shadows or dots to show fading or a curvature . I complete the main theme before beginning the graphics that usually surround the subject , attempting to keep a balance of dark and light throughout . People have asked if my art is computer-generated . It is not . It ’ s all done by hand . Occasionally tedious
The third consistent graphic is a checkerboard pattern which represents the good and evil we are faced with in this life on a daily basis throughout the world . It is a reminder that God has a plan for each and every one of us and that we can have peace and joy through faith in His Son , Jesus Christ .
Art Chowder : Your faith is obviously important to you . Have you done many religiously inspired drawings ?
Larry : I ’ ve done a couple . One is a drawing of Jesus on the cross . The surrounding objects and graphics depict the struggle between the Romans and the Israelites during the time of Christ . Many of the names of God are included as well . Another I did is called Creator Redeemer . You have to look at it closely to find Jesus , and the more you look at it the more you ’ ll find in the details .
Art Chowder : Do you purposely hide things in your drawings ?
Larry : Occasionally it ’ s on purpose , but not in every drawing . It ’ s one of those
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