Tuesday, August 18, 2009

Contest! Win a Prize!


As you all know by now, Boris and I often work on the same painting (or drawing) together. When you look at our signatures on the paintings and you just see one signature, you will know that the painting you are looking at has been created entirely by the one who signed it. And whenever you see a painting that has been signed by the two of us, you can be sure that it's one we've done together as a team. We feel that it's a pretty seamless transition and most people don't notice that it's been done by two artists. We like to think of it as a "third artist".

This painting, "Temple", was commissioned by someone who wanted us to paint it together. When we do these paintings together, we often get letters from people who want to guess as to who painted what (Harrison and Jen, you know who you are!). So we decided to make a contest for you to guess!

Whoever comes the closest to guessing how we worked on this painting together will win an 18"x24" print of your choice.
A hint to keep in mind: we never follow any set formula to decide who works on what element. For instance, sometimes one of us works more on the figures and, for the next painting, we switch places. Sometimes we even work on the same figure together. So you can't base your guess on any other paintings! Please post your guesses in this blog by August 25.

41 comments:

Unknown said...

wow this is a tough one. im gonna say that boris worked more on the horses, woman, and left side o the background and julie worked more on the right side of the background and of course the wolf... i think boris did the far background in the middle of the painting... am i close at all? haha

Rich Des Plaines IL said...

hi ...thought i make guess on painting because now a days its hard to tell you both apart...boris painted horses and woman ...julie painted wolf and background and maybe alittle help on horse....goog job

Boris and Julie said...

Oh, you guys are making this so much fun!

Eric Braddock said...

Wow.. yeah this is going to be tough ;)

I'm going to have to say that Julie worked more on the wolf and more of the figure, but Boris helped finish them up.. you both worked on the horses equally, the background too... although I bet Julie did more of the foliage while Boris handled more of the more set back elements and overall block in.. hmm, so tough! I can't wait to hear who did what!

This is such a fun contest, thanks so much for offering up the opportunity :)

Unknown said...

Sweet contest! I think I have it figured out ;).

Boris worked on the background and horses.

Julie worked on the figure and dog.

Anonymous said...

Oookay, I'm going to give this a shot. I'll probably be completely off, but who can resist a contest like this?

So here I go...

Woman was painted by Boris
Clothes on woman by Julie
Horse closest to woman by Julie
Horse furthest away by Boris
Wolf by Boris
Background sky and trees by Boris
Trees on the right Julie
Trees on the left Boris
Sword by Julie
Foreground by boris + Julie

*phew!*

By the way, I want to also mention that this piece is gorgeous. :D

Gregory Becker said...

I hope I get something right. OK here goes...
From left to right.
I think Boris did the trees on the left and the background horse.
I think the foreground horse was done by Julie but the riding gear sword and tail was by Boris.
The color purple was an afterthought by Julie in regards to the purple in the foreground horse's leg muscles as well as the mane and hooves of the background horse.
The figure was painted by Julie the boots wer painted by Boris.
The wolf was painted by Boris and Julie was angry about that.lol
The sword in the ground was painted by Julie as was the background but the forground and the foliage was painted by Boris,
That little line of trees to the right was painted by Boris as well as that little color comp right behind them.
I think those little light circles on the ground up front and to the left are Boris and the background is Julie.
Then it looks like each of you were trying to get the last brush stroke and Boris calmly put his hand around Julies hand and they added the last paint stroke together.
And then when Julie wasn't looking Boris added one more.
And they both smiled at yet another masterpiece.
Alright maybe just maybe my imagination went a little off but at least it was interesting.
I was right about all of it wasn't I. C'mon tell me...:)

Anonymous said...
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Julie Bell said...

Your imaginative guesses are awesome! Keep going!
We should have done a contest like this a long time ago.

Patrick j Jones said...

If I’d heard this question over a crowd I would have rolled my sleeves up and said stand aside... but I’m truely baffled with this one! Here goes…

Boris painted the foreground horse, figure and (sticking my neck out here) wolf.
Julie painted everything else, plus drapery on figure.

Or… just reverse everything I’ve just guessed

Great fun, and great piece of artwork guys!

P.

lazken said...

Ok... I'll take a stab at it. I'm going to say that Julie painted the whole left side and Boris painted the right side. The woman was done by Boris. It looks great!!!!!

Marta Bonfante said...

I am a great fan of your art! I am always studying your jobs, you are amazing! Congratuations and thank you :)

Unknown said...

Regarding the preliminary drawing, I think Boris drew the horses and woman. Julie drew the wolf, worked out the overall composition and placement of elements, and drew the rough of the forest background.

Regarding painting, I think Julie did the initial selection of overall colour scheme, and initial block in. Both of you worked on building up the background.

I imagine you swapped whenever one of you needed a break - rather than splitting the painting into deliberate sections.

Regarding the animals and woman, I think Julie might have focused more on the wolf, but you both worked on the horses and woman. Final detail layers for the horses and woman seem to have been done by Boris.

Anonymous said...

Hmm.I'll keep my guess simple. Boris did the background and horses. Julie did the wolf and the woman.

Best of luck, everyone.

Carol H. said...

This is so fun!

I think Julie did the right side of the background, and Boris did the left. Boris did the horses, and Julie did the woman and the wolf.

Great work! You two are so inspiring!

Boris and Julie said...

Some of you have gotten pretty warm. We hope you're having as much fun with this as we are--it sure seems like you are!
Patrick, your convertible answer is so funny!

A. Jaye Williams said...

Okay, here I go ... Boris did the left side, up to first horse. Julie did second horse. Julie did the woman, with Boris adding his 'touches' or 'polish' to her (can I be vague:) ) The wolf was by Julie. The foreground was by Boris (left) and Julie (right). Background by Boris, up to the trees on the right where Julie finished. Sword on ground by Boris. And yes, you guys should do more of these contests. Thanks!

Peter Tikos said...

I guess Boris painted the woman, and maybe the red on the sky. Everything else is Julie's work.

Anonymous said...

Is there any chance of seeing a higher resolution image? As it is, I'm pretty sure that Boris only painted the horses, with everything else being painted by Julie. Congratulations on your Chesley win, Julie! Very well deserved.

Arnaud said...

Paul -- I'm almost certain the big tree on the left is Boris's. However, a higher resolution image would be fine :)

Mike Nicholson said...

Boris - Major Trees, horses and foreground
Julie - Figure, wolf, and background

And yes its awesome and a real testament to you both.

Black Swan said...

This contest is a really fun idea ! My guess :

- Foreground horse and wolf by Boris
- Face and clothing of the figure by Julie
- Body of the figure by Boris
- Background horse by Julie
- Large tree on the left and foreground by Boris
- Trees on the right and background by julie

Brad M said...

You paint so flawlessly together, therefore this is just a guess:
- The background was worked on by both Boris and Julie. Julie finished the top layer of the foilage on the right and the foreground while Boris completed the distant background and trees on the left.
- The wolf and horse on the left were done majority, or final stages by Julie
- Woman and horse near woman were done by Boris

I hope that's close...
Beautiful painting!

Carlos Alburqueque 'Calbur' said...

Let's guess
For me, Boris drew the horses and woman. Julie drew the wolve. Boris painted horses and the big trees. Both, Boris and Julie painted the woman, the wolve and the trees at the background were painted by Julie. Finally, Boris did the final retouch to everything! lol.

alfredo said...

hula soy de Perú y con respecto a la obra, seguro estoy qye boris pinto el lobo y el paisaje , el detalle del piso tambien y Julie pinto a los caballos y a la chica el dibujo creo que a influido la opinion de Julie, felicidades. Desde la capital del imperio Inca cusco Alfredo Díaz Huaman.
email. mazatls@latinmail.com
soy su admirador

alfredo said...

hula soy de Perú y con respecto a la obra, seguro estoy qye boris pinto el lobo y el paisaje , el detalle del piso tambien y Julie pinto a los caballos y a la chica el dibujo creo que a influido la opinion de Julie, felicidades. Desde la capital del imperio Inca cusco Alfredo Díaz Huaman.
email. mazatls@latinmail.com
soy su admirador

Jennifer G. Oliver said...

Tee-hee! Well, you know I can't resist!

Background, larger horse: Boris

Wolf, figure, smaller horse: Julie

The figure honestly has me thrown. Unless I saw it at a higher resolution I'm just making a wild guess at it.

Beautiful work as always!

Unknown said...

I think that Julie painted the horse in the background, as well as the wolf, the knife, and the upper arm in the woman, the arm thats bathed in light. I also think Julie did some of the trees in the foreground.

I think boris did everything else, especially the orangy- red patch of sky right above the figures head.

Rebecca.Yanovskaya. said...

Boris painted the orangey-reddish far background, Julie the purplish white mist behind the woman. Julie the wolf, Boris the finishing touches. Julie the woman, Boris the woman's arms. Julie the pinkish area immediately in front of the woman, Boris the darker shadows to the left of that. Julie the trees on the left. Boris the clumpier foliage on the right side. Julie the underpainting and highlights on the horses, Boris the rest of the horses.

Jennifer G. Oliver said...

On further reflection I may have the horses backwards. Gah! Now I'm really curious to find out who got it right (or at least close to right). I like how through some of the guesses are here, right down to the preliminary sketches!

Cbreeze said...

Oh wow, let's see! This is a tough one.

Boris painted or worked more on:

The horse on the right
top of the background
the trees on the right in the middle ground
the wolfs face
bottom right of foreground
clothes on woman
sword in the ground

Julie painted or worked more on:

The horse on the left
middle and left of foreground
lower part of background
woman's skin, hair and jewelry
the wolf's body
tree's on the left

And you each signed your own signature! lol ;)

Thanks for doing this, it's a great idea!

-Catherine

Unknown said...

Julie, thank you both for your time.
Boris painted the background trees and the area where the treetops and the sky converge.
Julie painted the large tree on the left just behind the second horse. Julie painted the thinner tree in front of the larger tree on the left.
Boris painted the horse in the background.
Boris drew and painted the horse in the foreground, including the saddle and accoutrement equipment.
Julie painted the sword in the ground and the burial area.
Julie painted the woman(although Boris may have drawn her).
Julie drew and painted the wolf.
Julie painted the row of eight trees to the right of the wolf.
Looking at the painting, the tree hanging behind the woman's left shoulder and that shaded area on the ground from there forward was done by Julie.
The forest area to the far left of the painting, left of the large tree was done by Julie.
The vegetation at the bottom of the large tree was done by Julie.
I think each person who may have a favorite(you or Boris) will look at a painting you have worked on together and think they see more by that person. Some undiscerning areas are an homage to how well your visions match. We all appreciate the accessibility you give your fans and admire the way your pursue your dreams. Enjoy some rice pudding and back to painting! Respectfully, Jason Miller

Boris and Julie said...
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Boris and Julie said...

Hooray for rice pudding! Thanks Jason!
A Note to Everybody--you people are seriously amazing! We're really impressed with the thought you're putting into this. Only a few more days before we reveal the answers!

Mike said...

Ooo fun!

I think Boris painted...
The woman
The horse at the back
The trees on the left
The ground at the front

Ane Julie painted
The front horse
The wolf
the Dagger
The trees on the right
The background
Womands right boot. (dont ask me why I think that!)

That was pretty good fun! Thanks!

the little tea cup said...

ok firstly it is fantastic!!!! mmm i think julie drew it but boris painted it all apart from the wolf, i think julie painted that :)

andre said...

Half & Half., split down the middle.
Boris did the left side of the painting,
Julie did the right side.
also, julie signed her name and boris signed his and 07.
Can I guess twice:)

Joe said...

This is fun!

Julie worked more on the woman and the horse on the far left. Although Boris may have offered some comment, they look like all Julie to me. Boris worked more on the horse close to the woman and the wolf. The wolf look like some of Boris' older work (late 70's, early 80's) It is tough to tell with the background, but they probably shared it ;-).

Joe said...

This is fun!

Julie did the wolf and the woman, I am sure if it. Although I can see some of Boris' influences on the woman, most of the work was done by Julie. Boris did the horse close to the woman. The horse to the far left it tough, so it had to be a joint effort because I can see both Julie's and Boris' styles. It is tough o tell with the background, but they probably shared it ;-).

Тольяттинский бомж said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Тольяттинский бомж said...

unfortunately, did not have time to take part, but very much hope in the future will be more such contests:)