“A Durable Segue”
When a person moves houses, they are forced to look at all their belongings and decide if they want to keep them, give them away, sell them, whatever. The point is they have to face it because it’s time to move. This is a situation that happens periodically to everyone, and is usually milestone moments that seem vivid when you look back on them.
It can also happen psychologically when a person is faced with adversity, or a big decision, or something like that. At that time they have to face themselves in a similar way. I was feeling this at the moment I painted this, because I knew from my particular circumstance that I had to be durable and I knew I had to see it as something I could work through. (Hence the title “A Durable Segue”)
I saw that moment as a diagonal shape, with strong linear movement and jewel toned colors representing the intensity of emotion. It is kind of shaped like a bone, or folded fabric, kind of suspended in a vastness. There is a division of space, like a before and after, but you can see both at once and it is not clear which is which because they are interchangeable.
It is a bit like a memory of a dream, meaning a few things can happen at once, or the order doesn’t matter, or it just makes sense in a way that would never make sense to a person who is awake and in the world. This painting evolved on the easel as I painted it, but when it came to it’s natural conclusion it felt as though I had always seen it. (Also reminiscent of dreaming).
The main feeling I was representing was that division of time/space/tangible/intangible,etc. Something in between these things that divides it. It is not static at all, so to show it as a painting is a bit of a fail, but I imagine it as a quick snapshot of what is happening, so it is frozen in time, and on the painting itself.
In some ways, this is how I see all paintings, not just my own creations. It is 2 things: One is a picture of something, meant to be still and seen and remembered as a moment in time. Something depicted by the artist. The other is the moment in time when the artist created it, meaning what of that artist’s opinion, soul, emotion, is actually seen in the artwork.
I am reminded of the time I went to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, a few years back. I walked into one of the rooms and was suddenly flooded with the art. Flooded with whatever the artist was putting into the pieces. There were a few “greats” all lined up in that room, and even though I can’t remember which room it was, or what the artwork was, I remember having the realization that it wasn’t just artwork in a room, it was artists in a room. They were there. Their presence was there. Something about them was there in that room. It was incredible.
A lot happens when I’m faced with a blank canvas…What do I want to contribute to the world? What do I want to discover? When I start with these open ended questions, I feel much more connected with the end result. I think this happened with this painting. Even though I wasn’t able to articulate what it was before I painted it, the image emerged as I let myself follow the process.
