Things that are not really there.
I have been focusing on writing my dissertation for uni recently where I have been focusing on the Sublime in contemporary art. Little did I know before I started just how big this subject is. However, thinking about it in relation to my own studio practice, it was the perfect subject. Complexity, connectedness, fragments, pattern, systems, shifts, and context.
Anyway, dissertation out of the way, I am free to concentrate on my painting. I have a number of works on the go at the moment, all work in progress. They are part of an overall installation I am working on. The paintings have a relationship to each other; a dialogue.
‘Wonderland’ is a fairly big piece – it is deliberately unresolved. – sort of here but not here, almost hallucinatory. Partly empowering, partly fantasy land with an internal brooding.
‘Mischief Maker’ grew out of one small part of ‘Wonderland’ and ‘mutated’ in a way. I spotted these little lacy bits that seem to want to have a life of their own. They were like shadowy imps – definitely up to no good (hence the title of the piece).
Something is happening within ‘Dalliance’ . The dark bit within it seems to be internalising itself. I want to work on this more, focusing on the texture, the dark within dark, the matt versus shine. I was particularly influenced by Tomma Abts exhibition at Greengrassi recently. The subtlety and surface of the line and graduations were amazing. I have always been fussy about how my paintings work close up as well as from a distance. It is important to me that when the viewer gets up close, they will see something else, something quiet but significant. I don’t mean in a ‘oh that’s deep’ kind of way, but more a pause that can’t help but be recognised.
I am investigating playing with the change in surface between photography and painting, particularly when I leave some bits matt and others shiny. There is an ever so slightly raised edge that can be achieved that is so very hard to see, but if you stick your nose up to really close, you can, and it’s worth it.
‘The Proposition’ has promise but has some way to go. It has been staring at me for quite some time from the canvas urging me to start upon it. I liked my original digitally manipulated photograph and wondered whether I should paint on it at all. Its colours and movement have been intriguing me and I am happy with the way it sits (or floats) within space. Yet, that which is pretty and frivilous has a dark and intricate side to it and it is this I would like to explore further.
