New works & the nagging demons of doubt
Lessons learnt & the road ahead
Without doubt this has been a very challenging and informative period; informative both in terms of material handling and my own inner voices questioning the direction that the work is taking. I know the direction I don't want it to take, saying that, I might just take it along that road to see what happens, you never know. It is important on entering the studio to go in with a gut reaction to the results from the previous day- Did I really say that? Did I really say that!?
Along with the inevitable internal struggle/ conflict the weather has impacted on the work, the light has been too dull and despite my preference for taking the work outside to work on, it has been too wet!! It would be fair to say that there have been periods of sheer frustration caused by this mix of desire to restate a point in a painting and the weather making this nigh on impossible. Arghh!!!!!
As before, I have had a number of canvasses on the go at the same time and they all have had differing amounts of time invested, one painting may well have minimal editing and another may be reworked numerous times, all of this is governed by that initial opening of the studio door. The previous days work may well have resulted in a, 'Ahh, yes that's it' moment, only for it to be reworked later in the day as it catches the corner of my eye and demands for something else to be said. Of course, this also leads to the, 'shit,shit,shit' phase, 'why, why could I not leave it alone?' and then the realisation that if it had been left alone it still would be there, nipping away.
The painting below 'La Plage' is an example of multiple re-editing.
As before, I have had a number of canvasses on the go at the same time and they all have had differing amounts of time invested, one painting may well have minimal editing and another may be reworked numerous times, all of this is governed by that initial opening of the studio door. The previous days work may well have resulted in a, 'Ahh, yes that's it' moment, only for it to be reworked later in the day as it catches the corner of my eye and demands for something else to be said. Of course, this also leads to the, 'shit,shit,shit' phase, 'why, why could I not leave it alone?' and then the realisation that if it had been left alone it still would be there, nipping away.
The painting below 'La Plage' is an example of multiple re-editing.
 |
| La plage
The next painting 'Last Rites' is an example of minimal editing.
|
 |
| Last Rites
There is always that stage in a painting's development where the initial marks may imbue the surface with a quality that makes it difficult to restate your opinion and it is this very moment that many artists battle with and it can be the most informative one. You learn about your own shortcomings, and that in itself can be unsettling, there is a moment where you must put your hand up and admit; admit that you out of your comfort zone, admit that you would rather not confront what is staring you in the face and admit that you doubt your own artistic merits. It's the nagging demons of doubt! In this regard, there is an inevitable schizophrenic space that the artist occupies because along with the doubt there is the opposite position. This is the 'I really have something to say and I know that what I have got to say is important.' It is a tightrope, can I get to the other side before I fall off?
Fall of Icarus
|
 | |
Encroachment of Inevitability Nordine's Medley
|
No comments:
Post a Comment