Ron Cole's Big 40x60 Gallery-Wrapped Canvases

The genre' of aviation art is changing dramatically. In my personal opinion it's all for the better. New technologies are opening up new processes that are empowering more artists to share their visions with others. That can only be good. And what fans of our art expect from us is changing, too. Realism, drama, mood and the size of a composition are seeing limits pushed to the edge of what's possible. That's exciting, and challenging as an artist. All good. 

I've always been seen as a bit 'nuts' when it has come to including arguably unnecessary detail in my own creations. I did it as a builder of scale models and it's equally true of my paintings. Can anyone really see the pattern of the dress the woman is wearing inside the open door of my Boeing 314 Clipper? Certainly not when being viewed as a 13x19 or even 24x36 Giclee' print; certainly not on any computer screen short of full-resolution with a zoom feature. But it is there, though rarely appreciated. Details like that are within every one of my 100+ compositions. They're time consuming to include, but they're part of my style. 

It recently became in vogue to make huge prints and wall art a part of modern home decor. Everyone has seen the big online 'art' clearinghouses advertise them. But no photography and virtually no art was ever created with sizes like these in mind. Look at them closely in person, as opposed to those tiny ad images on Facebook, and there is fuzzy pixelation everywhere! They're terrible. And the companies that sell such junk don't care, since by the time it's obvious you've already bought it and unpacked it. 

Only the size is impressive when a composition, meant to be printed as a 20x30, is blown up to twice that size. 

Fortunately, at least in this particular case, I'm nuts. I've always exceeded the need when it came to sharpness and detail. What was probably a waste of time in years past is now a great asset and presents an opportunity. Now there is a popular and usually practical size that I can offer people that really shows off my work and sets it apart from anything else out there on the market: the 40x60 inch gallery-wrapped canvas. 

The rivet detail on my Amelia Earhart Lockheed Electra really pops when seen as a 40x60 

Unlike all of my other offerings that I produce in my own studio, these 40x60s are outsourced to an incredibly reliable and quick-to-ship company that specializes in these pieces. That makes them expensive for me to have made, but I'm happy to make less myself in order to share my work this way. The canvas is gloss, and somewhat to my surprise it creates a beautiful depth to the image - especially with saturated colors. The canvas is wrapped around an extra-thick and solid wooden frame. The thickness of the frame creates a natural stand-off from the wall, giving the piece a three-dimensional look. The edging of the wrap is gloss black, which amplifies that effect even more.

These days folks are much less inclined to want to buy art, wait to receive it, then take it to a framer, pay more money for wrapping or matting, then wait more, and finally receive something that they can hang on their wall. My 40x60s (and indeed all of my work in all of the sizes I offer) come ready to hang with a variety of hardware to accommodate anyone's needs. Take them out of the (admittedly big) box and hang them. That's it. Instant gratification! 

 

All of my 100+ compositions are still available in this size, though a few of my most popular pieces are close to sold out. 

Shop my store, or just enjoy taking a look at what I have to offer: Cole's Aircraft

- Ron Cole