“If the end result doesn’t hint at the process of making it, it has failed.”
The second piece I worked on as a newly established full time painter in 2020 took some of the organic “cell” shapes from ‘Foment’ ( this term ‘cell’ was from an old friend’s comment on the work. I had no idea what he was talking about at first) and pushed it even further, perhaps too far. I’m still evaluating this even now. “Maelstrom In Blue” nudged me into seriously unknown territory, and I was incorporating stencils, dry bush techniques, wet on wet applications, warm and cool color combinations, and even new mark making ‘signatures’. I titled the painting after it was finished, and I tried to reflect some of the craziness I was trying to inject into this work into the title. I had a hard time knowing when this was finished, and even ended up sharing the piece on Facebook to try to get some of my “friends” input on it.
Each time I tried to hang Maelstrom on my kitchen wall I ended up taking it down and going back into it. This must have taken place at least five times. Apparently I was really eager to get this painting finished, but its completion kept giving me the finger. There is a very intimate relationship/correspondence between an artist and the ongoing process of Art that’s becoming Art. It’s even possible that artists do not make art, but Art chooses the artist to bring it to life.
Finally I felt I could put the brush down, and was pleased by the result, though this contentedness would be relatively short lived. Maelstrom In Blue is still one of my least favorite pieces of early 2020, though I’ve had many comment that it is amongst their favorites. I really am quite a terrible critic of my own work.
Upon hanging the painting on my wall, inspiration happened. While I was ogling the result now staring at me from its kitchenian hallowed space, I asked myself “What would Hans Hofmann think? Would a Helen Frankenthaler give this a thumbs up?”. I then got the idea for a series of works that would be based on my interpretation of Abstract Expressionism, the New York School, during the mid 20th century. I loved those girls-mostly-guys! I would call it my “MOD!’ series, a collection of 36″x36” paintings that basically defined my output for the first half of 2020.
