This past Fall I wandered through Fenway Studios taking in all the sights of some of Boston’s best artists who live and work in this historic building. While meandering along the 3rd floor corridor, I glanced over at an open doorway midstride and took in flashes of rich wooden bannisters, a church pew, a hanging puppet, facial fragments from Michaelangelo’s David, and a sheepish cowardly Lion straight out of Oz rendered in finely detailed oils.
Wait, what is happening here?
My insatiable curiosity led me through the threshold and into the world of David Lowrey.
From the balcony I could see David holding court for a crowd of similarly enchanted visitors. I attempted to take in all the eclectic embellishments of his studio as I walked down the long wooden staircase built by the artist’s own hands.
As a matter of fact, there isn’t much that the unassuming artist can’t do. I later learned he builds his own Dutch-style frames, breathes life into hand made marionettes, chisels intricate moldings, hammers out pieces constructed from bullet casings(trench art) , figurines, book ends, canvas frames, camera obscuras, and that is just scratching at the surface.
Back in the present, there is one unshakable question that comes to mind when entering David’s studio, who is that man in Renaissance garb slumped over a wine glass in the corner?
It turns out that “man” is actually a 19th century mannequin that once belonged to the famous Boston School painter, William McGregor Paxton. The model is a prop for a much larger project which almost whirls to life around the inanimate figure, David is recreating the Dutch master, Johannes Vermeer’s studio piece by piece.
Toiling over the mathematics of angular accuracy, situating every tile into place, furniture height and other spatial considerations, and blanketing the windows of his typically sun drenched space to replicate the amount of natural light streaming through Vermeer’s 17th century studio.
A few years ago, David’s research led him to the Museum of Science in London where they permitted the artist to come take measurements and dismantle their collection of camera obscuras in order to better understand the contraption and assist with replicating the device in his own studio. This visit gave the artisan additional perspective on the tool and led to him tweaking the apertures and construction of his own mock-ups. After much trial and error, he finally devised a camera he was happy with in hopes of seeing just what Vermeer saw while creating some of his most famous works.
The integrity of the artist’s self-initiated research reigns paramount, and David even went through the painstaking task of recreating the lens that Vermeer might have used. He traveled to Holland and studied first-hand 17th century glass bottles and fragments from the geography where Vermeer worked. David wanted every aspect, blemishes(scratches, bubbles, warping) and all, to be as accurate as possible.
In speaking with David, learning about his magnificent stories, and his dedication to his research, I wondered Do people know about this man and his amazing work? Which sputtered out as “Do you have a website?”
To which the modest artist replied, “I do not.”
Much preferring to exist in the 17th century, but understanding the necessity to be in touch with the 21st century, David expressed that his work exists primarily behind closed doors and it is only by Open Studios events such as the one this past Fall, that he is able to share his fantastic work with others.
David is not alone. Understandably, many artists focus their attention on honing their craft as opposed to toiling over the business side of things. Marketing themselves can be a chore in itself let alone setting up a personal homepage to exhibit their works. Luckily, I happened to be attending the event with my better half, a web-guru, and the two of us set off on creating a site for David that he would be able to share his work with the world.
Some months later, a few interviews, studio snapshots, and a dash of beta testing, I am proud to present..
DavidHLowrey.com!
-cue fanfare-
-end fanfare-
A labor of love and the direct result of my beau’s blood, sweat and coding, David’s site enables visitors to easily access information about his fascinating research, view his paintings, keep up to date with the latest news surrounding his craft, and marvel at photos of his amazing live/work space.
It has been such a great experience working with David on making his vision come to life and helping him share his works with the world. We have definitely made a friend for life and look forward to swinging by his studio to talk about things other than HTML code and Tumblr layouts.
Be sure to contact the artist should you be interested in any of his remarkable works, private instruction, or if you need an ark built. If it can be made by hand, there is no doubt in my mind that David can do it.
Computer screen not doing it justice? Check back here on FLUX. this Fall for up-to-date information on how you can attend the next Fenway Open Studios and see David’s incredible studio in person. ♥
