I'd had this image in my reference file for years and years and wanted to do something fun with it. As I have always been working to clarify my particular ever-evolving approach to my art, I had entertained various subject matter based on other artists that I admired at different times. But as any artist who feels inspired, I wished to do the idea in my own distinctive voice.

Now I don't remember exactly where the original image was pulled from, Time or Newsweek, I used to spend late night hours going through magazines to find reference material of which I usually came away with less than .5% of the bulk of paper gleaned through. All tallied, I wound up with about 30 total images that I found interesting at the time. The tearsheets wee tucked away in a file to be used in the future that seemingly was never going to arrive. Years later, I dug the

file out to find that ultimately, I felt inspired by only a few of the images. An inspiring piece of reference should always fit within an artists wheelhouse.
Anyway, this image endured and I actually at one point, started it as a larger painting but with outside demands on my time, I never got father than an underpainting stage.
From the image, and as a musician, I especially loved the gesture of the hands and the concentration from these guys. So when I put together my rough sketch thumbnail I wished to emphasize that.

I canned the bass drum in this composition as it didn't add much to what I wanted to emphasize other than an advertisement for the mission band. I also added the signage and other elements in the background to give a sense of place to the characters involved.

Hanging On to That Old Reference File

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