Renaissance Drawing in the Digital Age, SALA 2022


the artwork / the tools / the artist

Humanity against Evil

Study of Gaetano Cellini’s marble sculpture ‘Humanity against Evil’, created with the artist’s digital recreations of the drawing chalks and papers of Leonardo da Vinci

limited archival prints available, contact artist

The Vitruvian Man

Recreation of Leonardo da Vinci’s ‘The Vitruvian Man’ or ‘The proportions of the human body according to Vitruvius’, created with the artist’s digital recreations of the quills, inks and papers of the original artist

limited archival prints available, contact artist
Initial silverpoint underdrawing (digital)

Anatomy Study

After Leonardo da Vinci’s ‘The muscles of the shoulder and arm, and the bones of the foot’, created with the artist’s digital recreations of the quills, inks and papers of the original artist

limited archival prints available, contact artist

Connection

A meditation on inter-generational family connection and separation, created with the artist’s digital recreations of the sanguine chalks and papers of Leonardo da Vinci

limited archival prints available, contact artist

Head of a girl

Recreation of Leonardo da Vinci’s ‘Head of a girl’, created with the artist’s digital recreations of the silverpoints, white chalks and papers of the original artist

limited archival prints available, contact artist

da Vinci’s Spine


After Leonardo da Vinci’s ‘Studies of the spinal column’, created with the artist’s digital recreations of the quills, inks, silverpoints and papers of the original artist

limited archival prints available, contact artist

Skull Study

Study of a human skull, after Leonardo da Vinci’s skull studies. Created with the artist’s digital recreations of the quills, inks and papers of Leonardo da Vinci

limited archival prints available, contact artist

Eye Study

Sketch recreation from Leonardo da Vinci’s ‘Sheet of studies’, created with the artist’s digital recreations of the quills, inks, silverpoints and papers of the original artist

The Abduction of Persephone

Study of Gian Lorenzo Bernini’s marble sculpture ‘The Abduction of Persephone’, created with the artist’s digital recreations of the chalks and papers of Leonardo da Vinci

limited archival prints available, contact artist

The Heads and Hands of Two Apostles

After Raphael’s ‘The Heads and Hands of Two Apostles’, created with the artist’s digital recreations of the chalks and papers of Michelangelo

limited archival prints available, contact artist

Rope Knot

Study of a traditional rope knot, created with the artist’s digital recreations of the chalks and papers of Leonardo da Vinci

limited archival prints available, contact artist

Vine Leaf

South Australian vine leaf, ink pressing detailed using digital recreations of Leonardo da Vinci’s quills & inks developed by the artist

limited archival prints available, contact artist

Studies for the Libyan Sibyl

After Michelangelo’s ‘Studies for the Libyan Sibyl’, created with the artist’s digital recreations of the chalks and papers of the original artist

limited archival prints available, contact artist

the artwork / the tools / the artist

“The future of fine art is forged in the fire of innovation, it is however, only truly tempered by the structured principles of the past; and it is here in these drawings and digital tools, that we can start to see that the modern age is beginning to catch up with the antique.”

– Chris Anthony Wills, New Renaissance Artisan, UK


The artist’s digital tool recreations were crafted over several years to match as closely as possible the tools of Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni, with high resolution scans of their original renaissance pieces generously provided by galleries and collections around the world including the Royal Collection, the Met & the Lourve

Physical recreations of the Old Masters’ drawing tool were also created to gather tool handling data to ensure the digital versions of these tools perform and feel just like the originals, including the effects of varying pressure, angle, smudging, ink pooling etc.

Photo by Brian O’Neill Photography

The new digital tools were then tested back against detailed scans of da Vinci and Michelangelo’s originals to ensure they accurately matched the quality and character of the originals, before the artists recreations and original pieces were created

To create the high resolution digital antique papers, the original artwork was delicately removed to reveal the original parchment or paper beneath, complete with imperfections and age marks

The digital tool and paper recreations developed for the project are being made available for other artists (usable in art programs such as Photoshop or CSP with a drawing tablet or Procreate on iPad). Contact the artist for more information

the artwork / the tools / the artist

Rowan Dodds is a South Australian artist, inspired by the classical masters and intrigued by the ever-evolving potential at the meeting point of modern and traditional art techniques and practices

Rowan Dodds
Photo by Brian O’Neill Photography

He has been the lucky recipient of over a dozen national and international awards for his work, most recently from Artavita (Winning Artwork, 2020, California US) and Circle Foundation for the Arts (Selected Artist, 2020, France) and has studied and developed his skills continually through his 25 year career, most recently through the Los Angeles Academy of Figurative Art

Rowan Dodds works from his studio in the leafy Adelaide foothills accompanied by his furry studio assistant, Shadow


Contact the artist


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South Australian Living Artists Festival 2022