A-Trak


• 2009
• Oil on canvas
• 60 cm. x 80 cm. (23.62 in. x 31.50 in.)
• Unavailable

A-Trak | Oil on canvas

A-Trak
He is probably the best DJ in the world. I have been following his work since the late 90's when he developed a scratch notation system.
Around 2004 he then hooked up with Kanye West and others (Yes, he talks to the people I listen to..) to make even bigger things happen. This Canadian has influenced our music like no one else has - without stepping into the spotlights too much. Always behind the scenes, mostly unknown to the general public.
I have been a fan of his work for about ten years now, and he never ceases to amaze me. His latest albums FabricLive.45 and Infinity +1 are, once again, true gems.

Twitter
It is no secret that I am a Twitter user - a fan even ( @CedricLenaers). So is @atrak. As a fan, I'm following his tweets. He's the star, so he couldn't care less about my existence. So far everything is normal.

If you look at my portfolio you will find some portraits of people I admire, ranging from Jay-Z to Ray Charles. I love doing portraits. They're hard and take a lot of work. But when they succeed the results are well worth the effort.

When painting, I usually start from pictures I find or that have taken myself. A few months ago I came across a very nice shot by Angela Boatwright and had saved it in my 'possible artwork' folder, waiting to be taken to the next level.

The painting process.
Yesterday I had a day off work and the whole house to myself. The ideal environment to start creating..
Being a Twitterer I updated my status accordingly. Pretty soon I noticed that A-Trak had read my message - he retweeted it and added a question.
Now I know what the word 'starstruck' means..I think.

This is the strangest thing I have ever had while painting. It doesn't happen too often that my 'subject' is aware of my painting him/her.
I usually don't show pictures of my work in progress, but this time I couldn't resist and 'twitpicced' it (click to enlarge).

The result.
The painting itself took about 6 hours, which is normal for a 60cm x 80cm (approx. 23" x 31") canvas.
Both A-trak and Angela Boatwright are aware of the existence of this painting - and are apparently liking it.

Referring to A-Trak's own work I titled it:
"A-Trak by Angela Boatwright - Cedric Lenaers Remix"

Just as he takes a perfectly good track and creates his own interpretation, I take a perfectly good picture and adapt it where necessary to get to a painting.

Now what?
Well.. if you read some previous posts on this blog, you will find out that I don't paint to get rich and/or successful. I paint.. just for the fun of it.

The painting is not available for sale. Ever.
For starters I don't own the rights to the original photograph.
But even without the legal issues, I have an artistic take on things.
A portrait only belongs with the subject itself or with the person holding the rights to the original work I based myself on.
At A-Trak's place or with Angela Boatwright are the only locations this painting will ever be if it leaves the studio. 

I had a great experience making it, I had the chance to train my skills and progress just a little more. That's all I ever wanted out of this painting.

Thank you so much, both A-trak and Angela Boatwright for making this happen!!