Diptych

The Afterlife of Clouds
2013
36x48
acrylic on canvas




Historically, diptychs were two equal, hinged panels most frequently for Christian imagery.

Royalty  sometimes had portraits of husband and wife painted in this manner.

In contemporary art, the hinge has become optional, and the panels are not always the same size.
What they share with their predecessors is that while there is a thematic and visual relationship, each panel can stand on its own as a painting.

In other words, putting two canvases next to each other and painting one big painting on them does not automatically make a diptych.

This was my first try at this format.  It was a good challenge!

Paper pieces, pieces of paper

Untitled
2013
10x7
mixed media
monotype

Forces at Play
2013
20x16
oil on panel






Everytime I work on a panel I realize how much I prefer them to canvas,

 but to paint panels the size I prefer (larger than this) they are going to get both expensive and heavy!

The solid support does work better from me, though, given how I like to work the surface.

I used a new (to me) medium with this piece:
a gel medium which keeps the body of the oils nice and thick, but has great translucency and is glossier than the cold wax.

The Bather: a skinny-dipper by another name

Skinny-dipper (The Bather)
2013
44x48
oil on canvas

My take on "The Bather".
Here, the figure, the environment and the activity all merge into one visual expression.

As is fairly typical for me, I am more interested in conveying the full sensory experience from my  memory (or imagination) than from observation at the time of painting.

This allows me to be more fully present in the landscape, and therefore keenly aware of it, and equally aware and present as I paint.  This kind of focus works well for me.

Cezanne's masterpiece, The Bather 1885

Interesting note:
Cezanne painted this from a photograph of a model in a studio.

The Found Journal Series Continues

Controlled, Retrolled,
Overtolled, and Patrolled
2013
30x40
Acrylic on canvas

Water Into Wine

Water Into Wine
2013
14x10
Monotype

I Should Be Excited....

For Joan
2013
18x13
mixed media on paper












I should be excited, but I am not.

My painting, Sutured, was accepted by Katherine French into the "Community of Artists" show at the Danforth Museum, but something about the whole experience has left me feeling a little empty.

Maybe I need a break from all these juried shows.

Anywhoooo,
this piece here I did after a wonderful workshop taught by Randy LeSage at the Worcester Art Museum.  We spent a day looking into the life (whooo-ee) and work of Joan Mitchell.

I was previously unaware of her as a printmaker, so that was interesting.

This work is a monotype that I worked into with pastels.