Inspiring Artist

I caught a show of Pat Steir's paintings in November at the Locks Gallery. I've been aware of work for years but it was a pleasure to see it in person. Her paintings are similar to mine because they are made with thinned down oil paint that is poured.

The scale of some of them alone was impressive.

This one titled Forest in Snow is 127 x 109 inches.

Interestingly her approach is very different from mine in that she sets a course for the painting in the beginning deciding what order the colors will be added and how many layers and then executes it. She says it's removing herself from the role as the grand creator and leaving some things up to chance.

Double White on Black, 84 x 84 inches

I on the other hand try to strike a balance between allowing and controlling in the making of my work. I really struggle with this, wondering how much to force my ideas onto a piece and how much to leave up to chance. It leads me to question how this applies to life. Is it an illusion that we are in control of our destiny? When we are fighting for control is it beneficial to loosen the reigns a little and see where things fall?

New Year, New Work

I have a solo show going up in 3 weeks. So, today I did what any sane, rational person would do, I started a new large painting. My show at the Delaware Center for the Contemporary Arts will be in the Elizabeth Denison Hatch Gallery for the month of February. I'm hoping that crazy winter weather doesn't keep people away for the opening Friday evening February 4th.

Buttermilk Falls, Ithaca, NY

The last week of our vacation we drove an hour and a half in spitting rain and ate our lunch in the car just to see Buttermilk Falls in Ithaca, NY. Luckily it wasn't a perfect day because we could enjoy the place without sharing it with a lot of people. It stopped raining long enough for us to walk up and for the girls to swim. What is it about rushing water? The sound alone was worth the car ride. It was a steep hike, a lot of stairs to traverse but the view kept improving as we went up. I'm back in the studio working on a big project, I'll post details soon. I can say my summer water adventures will be the inspiration for this new project and for more new paintings too. Water seems to be consuming my creative brain. I am a Scorpio after all.