This year's theme has been- 'letting go'.On so many different levels, run the same theme of 'letting go'. Personally and along side in my studio practice, I have really begun to let go. I am no longer trying to foresee how any of the paintings relate, until I see that they do. When they do, you really do know. There's a pull to stop. Choosing to stop is another matter. In fact there are really many 'stopping points' along the way of a deeply layered painting. The lighter the painting, the less layers in I decided to stop and allow it to remain in it's semi completeness. That's rare for me to do. I usually opt to explore and risk what is, to see what that exploration add's to the next layer. I've done that many times to where the painting resembles a monochrome but with layers of color underneath because I have just kept going, layering and layering. They are wonderful viewed with great lighting and also powerful alone in the dark. :) This year though, I have allowed an earlier 'letting go' of a canvas with fewer layers, just occasionally. They are simpler but still carry an energy and a message unique to their making. I have found many of my works are coming out in pairs, Diptychs as they are known. It is exciting to work on two similar or even joined canvases at one time. I often have multiple work underway , due to required drying time for oils, but to work with a vision that runs across 2 or 3 panels at once is rather grande. I am really enjoying it. They are diverse in palette and in style to themselves but carry all the commonalities in my work. They are very distinct vibrations. I'm 'letting go' of trying to articulate what they meant to me as they were my gift in the making, but when they move on to their new homes, they have their own purpose. For me, I had the lusciousness of participating, a real collaboration with my materials. Waiting for drips to run and images to appear in front of my eyes as I watched the interactivity of colors and glaze among each other. Rivulets forming and pools gathering, organically with gravity, watching as they grew. Stemming them, encouraging them. Little mark makings that felt splendid in my wrist and joyous in their burst of expression that gave me such fun. Painting is discovery and patience, trust and impulse, witnessing creation as much as intending it. The paintings are all related in sequence of their making. Literally. It is one extensive series.
Meanwhile here's a photo from the studio of what was happening this week.
