Tuesday, April 08, 2008

Line after line

Some mornings I come into the studio without a single idea about what I will do next. Today was like that. I was determined to paint something; I just didn't know what that something would be, so rather than start with a fresh scary white canvas I pulled out three 8 x 10 canvases that I started working on last summer. The colors were okay but did little to jog my creativity so I mixed a dab of chromium oxide green acrylic into a dollop of titanium white and brushed that lightly onto each canvas, barely covering the color beneath.

Before the paint had a chance to dry I dragged a palette knife through the paint to draw lines in the wet paint, revealing a bit of what's underneath. The lines in each piece are different, some just straight lines, some grids. I chose to continue on just one today... adding a block of letters front and center and then some bits torn from rice paper which are decidedly Asian but I don't know what country. Then I added a border of blue and some soft highlights around the edges and called it good.



I'll get to the other canvases another day.

2 comments:

  1. Jo, this is just beautiful. I was reading about votive and ex-voto paintings today and thought of you. In 16th century Italy one is a painting offered before a prayer and the other is a painting offered to thank for a answered prayer. Your work reminds me of that. A true offering to Christ.

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  2. Thanks, Randi. A few years ago I saw 2 rooms of Icons in the Russian exhibit at the Seattle Art Museum and couldn't stop the tears as I saw this beautiful work which was done with such love and faith. No one could make such touching work without deep emotional ties with Jesus. The effect was visceral and touched me deeply as it must have generations of worshipers. Prayer has to be an integral part of work like this.

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