April 9, 2013

It's a snowy day here in Colorado so I decided to write.  I'm wanting to take my interstice work to the next level.  My direct inspriation has been those lovely cracks between rocks, slats in fences, just the spaces in between things.  But now, as the work develops, I'm realizing that the depth needs to be actualized more readily.  The work does dictate to me how it is created and finished which is exciting but I'm wanting to add more to it.  Possibly collage and introducing shapes will bring the necessary changes I am looking for in the work.
I'm also going to begin to work in a larger format - 4 feet, 5 feet - something that I haven't done before with the encaustic.  I'm very excited about the possibilities and scared at the same time for I really don't know what to expect.  I've worked somewhat large with acrylic and oils years ago but not so much with the encaustic so I'm getting ready to be surprised.  Hopefully, not too many frustrations will happen with it!
Along with those changes, I made a new year's resolution to draw one drawing per day in my sketchbook. I was out of the practice of doing that and it's been a revealing challenge.  So far, so good with it but what I'm noticing is that with the graphite explorations, I'm able to work through so many ideas before I get to the wax and acrylic works.   It's not taking away from the intuitive nature of my studio practice, but rather, allows me to delve into more ideas quickly so that I can weed out ones that don't work very well.  The media has been a blast to work with and use for this project.  I've also been experimenting with ink washes and large graphite pieces on handmade paper as well.  It really allows for the ideas to not only present themselves but also to allow the different media to lend their voices to the process.  
There is something very comforting about keeping a daily journal for I'm seeing a chronology to the development of my process which is very affirming and very personal at the same time.  The consistant characteristics of my markmaking and designs keep the work grounded with the idea but the variances really help me explore the possibilities of the interstices.  And it is with those variances that new ideas come forth, especially the happy accidents!  Also, the repetition of the layering of the graphite is very soothing, almost trance-like, very zen if you will.  I'm finding that it not only gives me a record of my musings but relaxes and grounds me in my process. 
I'm hoping that the work not only grows in depth but will evolve into what it should be within the concepts.  One thing I do know is that I can't hold onto those concepts too tightly for the work just might move past them into something new, which I'm open to that.  I'd hate to be in the same place, this time next year.  I don't believe that an artist can continue to grow while staying in the same place.  The work stagnates and becomes reduced to a formula which will kill the work.  As Andy Goldsworthy said, "Total control can be the death of a work".  This statement is so very true!  The more I hold onto an idea and not let it go to be itself, the more it dies.  That's the beauty of working intuitively.  The chance element and surprise are invited to partake in the creative process, bringing  freshness and spontaneity to the work.  Hopefully then the work does not fall into a contrived or trite presentation or creation, but one with vitality that draws the viewer into a new experience. 
So with that I'll take my leave and work on my sketchbook!  Until next time, take care, enjoy, and God bless.

February 21, 2013

Wow.... first blog of the new year and it's almost the end of February!   I'm still learning how to juggle this grandma/artist gig!!!  It's been a blast so far and I wouldn 't change it for the world!!!!

I've been asked many times how come I work abstractly instead of representationally.  It is a good question since I used to work in a more realistic manner.  Simply, I find abstraction more challenging at the moment.  I've always been drawn to abstract/non-objective works and am amazed at the level of authority and boldness artists have when creating such pieces. 

I had a mentor, years ago, that helped me work through the shift from realism to abstraction which was invaluable.  He was an accomplished painter/mixed media artist whose work I gravitated towards and was thrilled that he would take the time to walk me through the process.  As I began to work abstractly in the beginning, I realized that I still was a realist - someone that used the real world as the point of departure for my work.  It was grounded in things tangilble.  The work was inspired, not illustrated, by the world around me which was exciting to be able to see things in a new way.  It opened many doors to be able to discuss the impetus of the pieces as many times they were related to the sacred Scriptures as well as things of the earth.  It also became a teaching moment for people who had not been able to relate to abstraction. 

As I continued working in this manner, the art started having a life of it's own, seperate from the inspiration, thus the medium (the material I was using) started to have influence as to how I worked.  Working with acrylics, inks, mixed media, wax, and encaustic, I found that each medium had its own unique qualities and spoke volumes to me.  I began to include found objects within the work and that suggested a whole other dimension to the pieces for the medium and objects began to have a relationship with each other that gave the work another level of significance.  Meaning thus began to arise from the discarded objects I was using along with the 'fine art' material.  Taking everyday ditritus and putting it with something as revered as fine art materials brought the common thing into a work of beauty and changed the significance of the object.  This was brought to a new level of understanding for me in graduate school.  But even through all of that, I still yearned to create paintings with its own language, without the object so I began to create works without the object. 

Playing with textures, shapes, markmaking, and color, I began to work with encaustic more exclusively realizing that it was a wonderful medium for abstraction/non-objectivism.  The work at this point was still based on things of this world but not so directly representing it.  From grad school I learned the importance of working in series  - large numbered series - and started to work again in that fashion.  Then, from the encouragement of artist friends, I began the Interstice Series with not just encaustic but with other media as well.  Even though the series comprises of bands of black and white which to some if very simple, what intrigues me with it is that there are so many different variations and presentations within them, I cannot reproduce the same painting twice for the encaustic, acrylic, ink, and graphite all work within their individual characteristics - something that I would not want to replicate.  The experience creating them is new and spontaneous every time.  That is something I absolutely love about this work.  Yes, the work is also influenced by the Abstract Expressionists, whose work I adore, but it goes beyond that.  I try to contribute to the language of abstraction that was established before me.  Try to communicate the experience of being human in a non-representational way. 

I wrote a response to an artist who was making a comment on the difficulties of representational work and the viewer's reaction to it compared to the perception that abstraction was easy and anyone, especially a child could do it.  Allow me to share the response:

'It is important to know what to include and what not to include within a work of abstraction.  For how does the artist communicate a feeling or emotion?  How does one break the human experience into a non-literal visual language?  That is the challenge to abstract artists - To express the essence of the human experience.  The language of art is not just about reproduction, it is about the expression of the human condition.' 

We had a good laugh over our banter but I really do believe that abstraction is a language of the emotions and spirit, something that cannot always be represented with observation.   I'm definitely not saying that abstraction is better than realism for I am blown away by the observations and expressions of realist artists and highly respect their works.  For me, I am, at this point, intrigued with the language and expression that is found within abstraction/non-objectivism and will continue to work with it until I am moved to express myself in a different manner.  Who knows, maybe some day I'll go back to realism!!!  That would be fun!

Well, that's it for now...  I hope the New Year brings many blessings and joys to you and yours.  Until next time, take care, enjoy, and God bless!

August 20, 2012

Wow, so much has happened in the last couple of months!  My show at 1400 Dallas was a blast with so many people coming to the opening.  It has been extended through the end of August which is great!  It was interesting to see all of the work up in the gallery. The pieces really created a tempo or cadence through the space which people responded to which was neat to see. I've gotten wonderful and encouraging comments pertaining to the body of work which has been a blessing to have.  I'm so grateful for all who have come and attended my show!  In addition to that, I've become a grandma!!!  Little Logan Jay Gibbons was born August 7, 2012 and is such a blessing.  Juggling this grandma and artist thing is challenging but I realized that if I don't follow my dreams, how can I be an example to him ( and my children) to follow his (theirs)? 
In the meantime, I've been in the studio continuing the Interstice series with encaustic.  The work really has become more about the relationship of the edges to each other with the disintegration of those edges in play.  Edges are an interesting thing...  they define, seperate, create boundaries and limits; they're sharp, blurred, overlapping, and separated.  The encaustic allows the playfulness of the medium with the heat to create a sensuous perimeter between the areas of black and white.  The play of warm and cool colors added to the white and black also give a depth to the work that works. 
I've been using raw umber and prussian blue mixed with the black and various types of white mixed in with titanium white.  It's been fun!  I've allowed the surface to become more of a visual texture rather than a clearly created tactile texture.  Even though the surface is not completely flat, the areas of texture are really visually created where the mind perceives the surface as varied but it is really flatter in reality. 

I'm also playing with the definition of the dimensions as well (taking a cue from Mondrian).  If the surface is square in dimension, then I'm trying to hide or redefine the area to read differently than square.  If it is a rectangle, then the work becomes more about the tempo or rhythm of the interstices.  All the while, the relationship of the edges becomes a focal point of sorts with each edge either clearly defined or diffused.  It's really been an interesting challenge to keep an overall pattern with the work while allowing the eye to either rest on one place or move around the piece in rhythm.  My titles are moving to a musical theme and defining what is happeining within the work as well:  Rhythm, Cadence, Tempo, Movement, In Line.  
The connection between the initial Interstice idea with music has been an interesting development.  Interstice has a natural association with it:  crevices, cracks, rocks, etc.  While music, although evident in nature, has also a human touch to it for we create music through our instruments.  The combination of these two associations I find fascinating.  The rhythms created with natural interstices has a spontenaity that is wonderful.  I try and capture the spontenaity through the creation between the integration and disintegration of the edges.  With those associations, I try and capture within the work, a natural yet conscious and spontaneous creation of rhythm and movement.  I rarely plan my compositions; they develop intuitively, yielding to the natural rhythms I feel as I'm creating.  I'm having so much fun with these!!!  I feel like I can work with this series for a very long time.
Well, that's it for now.  Until next time...  take care, enjoy, and G-d bless!

May 28, 2012

Things have been good here, getting ready for my solo show at my studio, 1400 Dallas in downtown Aurora, CO.  I'm featuring my Interstice pieces in encaustic, acyrlic, and ink wash. My goal is to have the entire room become a place of cadence, echoing the rhythms of breath and tempo.  I'm very excited!  I've been working on these Interstice pieces for awhile now and it's been a blast!  Just so you know what thery're about, I'm including my artist statement for the show:

Interstice: a small opening, crack, or gap between two things; the space in-between.

My work explores the ideas of separation and division, integration and disintegration, rhythm and movement with marks made with encaustic, ink wash, and acrylic paint. Using various supports ranging from the small and intimate to large scale work, bands of black and white called Interstices, investigate the relationships between contrast of value, shape, line, and rhythm. The interstices echo the play of opposites, their symbolic engagement presents: existence and breath, movement and rest, darkness and light, disconnection and unification.

Opposites attract, they reinforce each other, make the other known. The interstices bring about natural rhythms of life. Their relationship with each other marks a passage of time, a moment where emphasis and cadence marks the syncopation of life’s tempo. The sharpness of line, the disintegrating and morphing space resonates with the ebb and flow of divided and integrated areas.

The work is homage to the Abstract Expressionists and the automatism that was embodied within their work. Fueled by their inspiration, my work is a discovery about my past and present, the separations and divisions within my existence, and is a metaphor to fuse seemingly disparate connections and reveal the personal rhythms within my being.

I hope if you're in the Denver/Aurora, CO area you can come out for it!!!  I hope to see you there!!!  It's June 8 from 5-9pm at 1400 Dallas, Aurora, CO 80010.  
 
More to come after the show but until next time, take care, enjoy, and G-d bless!

December 15, 2011

Well, this will probably the last entry of the year but then again, I could be wrong! It has been a demanding semester teaching, great art making semester, and good semester for the family.
All of my girls are home and that's great for Christmas! I'm so thankful for family and friends, especially at this time of year when thoughts turn towards those we love. My husband and I also celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary with a vow renewal which made everyone cry!!! I'm so blessed!!!!
I'm especially thankful for my critique groups (2) whose voices had been invaluable to me and have helped me see the things that I typically overlook. Their encouragement and direction have spurred me onto creating work of excellence. They keep me on track and hold the bar up high!!!
I'm continuing with the bands of black and white (in various shades and tints) calling them my Interstice pieces. I'm really seeing a correlation between the work I've done in the past with what I'm working on at the present. It's exciting to see the development and relationship of the works.
I'm also working in acrylics as well as encaustics, just to explore the possibilities - will probably work in graphite as well!!! I've really been inspired by the work of Clyfford Still (the Clyfford Still Museum just opened here in Denver). His command of the mark and his authority with the paint and shapes is truly amazing. I never realized it before as the reproductions I've seen do not do his work justice. It is wonderful work! His exploration of an idea and the progression of the possibilities has taught me to continue to pursue the direction I'm on right now. I owe a great debt to him as well as to my collegues. And of course... Mark Rothko, Barnett Newman, and the other Abstract Expressionists!!! It's been a wonderful artistic year!
My goal is to create a new body of work worthy of exhibit and representation. I'm trying to find a gallery in Denver but also in Santa Fe and possibly LA. We shall see what the next year brings but until next time... Take care, enjoy, Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, and G-d bless

October 14, 2011

Here is a new work titled, Interstice (bottom) and Interstice II (top) which refers to the movement and spaces of the in between. I've been working on themes of division and seperation more so than hidden and revealed but I think with the texture and depth of the work, it has some fo that in it as well. It's been a fun process, one that has given me much to think about regarding the imagery and concepts.
A few of my friends have suggested that my adoption plays a role in the creating of my artwork to which I must agree. I've been 'divided' bewteen families: my birth family, adopted family, and married family. The loss and grief that adopted children deal with throughout their lives manifests in many different ways and for me, I believe that is through my artwork plus other areas of my life. My work always contains something divided, seperated, or adopted within it. For the found object work, it definitely embodied the redemption of the object which involved 'adopting' it from the streets and placing it within the art. For the straight paintings, my compositions subconsciously (and now consciously) created that division of space like my divisions within my families. The lines that seperate and then are obliterated reflect the integration I have tried to achieve within my life. I'm so appreciative of the insight of my friends - I sometimes can't see the forest from the trees!!!
I want the rhythm of the work that is created by the seperation/division to bring a sense of peace, contemplation, and rest. I want a spirit to spirit communication to occur with the work. That would excite me greatly for it is not necessary for the viewer to know all about the motiviation within my adoption but to have an experience that can remove them, even if it is for a moment, of beauty and rest. That is where the inbetween comes into play for me. That moment that stops the chaos of the world and leaves a feeling of refreshment - that is the inbetween place where I want the work to exist. I had a friend say that art should bring about a moment of awakening. I think that is true - an awakening to a new experience or to become aware of your existence and appreciating it - transcending the moment. That would be a wonderful gift if my work could achieve that. At least that is my goal!!!
Well, that's it for now. Until next time, take care, enjoy, and G-d bless!

August 30, 2011

With a thankful heart I'm posting this image to my blog!!! I have had several critques and have had wonderful encouragement with this new direction. I'm playing with line but obscuring it and hiding it within the wax. Trying to find an expression that reflects the contemplation and meditation that I feel within the studio, I believe that this work is coming close to the vision that I have. The form and structure of the work is rooted within art history - Barnett Newman's 'zips', Mark Rothko's wonderful color and tranparency, Clyfford Still's shapes and colors. My work is trying to continue the language and expression of these masters; to bring about a new contribution, a continued development of the non-objective language. Although the work is sometimes rooted within something tangible, the work itself does not always reflect that point of departure. That is alright with me for the time being. It brings a focus or a structure to the work so I can create from that point.
A couple of my friends have stated that they can breathe within this work and that the work is more contemplative than ever before. This excites me greatly!!! For if another person is responding to the work in a medatative manner, then my experience is translating to the viewer! It reflects my studio time for it is a time of prayer with the Lord and a time of contemplation apart from the prayer. It is my time to be, just be with my creativity and myself, and my G-d. Cares are washed away when I'm there and my hope is that the work transcends the chaos of the everyday and reveals and allows the viewer to have a quiet place, a moment of peace, a place where beauty and the spirit meet. I've always believed that art was and is a spirit to spirit communication and for me at least, the non-objective expression best translates that. It is a translation that is difficult to put into words or realistic depictions. It reflects the intuition and yearnings of my being and hopefully can relate to someone else's as well.
This particular piece actually has collaged elements from Genesis - the chapter where Jacob receives his blessing from Isaac. They are hidden underneath the wax but if the work is seen from up close, some of the writing is visible. The working title is: Jacob's Blessing. I want the work to reflect the hidden as well as the realization of the materials. So I contemplate the title!!! The collaged elements are part of the process, part of the elements and materials, part of the concept. The title will change but they will all be incorporated within it.
I'm excited to see what will transpire with this series. It is feeding my spirit and leaving me intrigued with the process. So, until next time... take care, enjoy, and G-d bless!!!