The State of Things Mr. Frank,
oil, acrylic, ink and collaged materials on board,
10w x 8h inches.
I've been cranking out work getting ready for my show at the Lanning Gallery in June. The opening is June 2nd 6-8. I'll have to double check the times - it might run a little later.
The State of Things Mr. Frank (above) is my nod to Robert Frank who is famous for his book The Americans. https://www.lensculture.com/articles/robert-frank-the-americans
His photography has been a huge influence on my work. When creating the piece I couldn't decide between naming it "Ode to Robert Frank" or "State of the Nation" and struck with a balance of the two. The work shows a flag windblown and twisted on it's pole. The extreme graphic quality of strong black elements against a collaged ground of gray speaks to the fact that we try to impose black or white solutions onto a world that is nothing, but shades of gray stained by history of what has come before. The end result is a tangled up country that's fractious state could readily lead to it's demise.
Ultimately, it's not really about one political side or another. In fact, I think the partisan stuff is merely theater to move people to react on way or another. Essentially, manufactured. A means to an end and what that end is deeply concerns me.
Sum of All We Are,
oil, acrylic, ink and collaged materials on board,
12w x 24h inches.
As an artist I can only create work that addresses my feeling and strike for a universality that will let the work speak outside of my times alone. In that I have chosen to really speak about loss. In my case a loss of a way of life and the country I have known. That being said the new work still addresses the universal sense of loss and can be applied to the loss of a loved one, career, or any other kind of loss that one may mourn.
Lesser Days,
oil, acrylic, ink and collaged materials on board,
6w x 12h inches.
This new work is a return to my style of working between 2008-2012. I guess creatives are cyclical creatures by nature. For me a lot of it was simply exploring oils for a while and after a while I really missed the textures and collage elements within my work. I've really come to realize that I don't paint with paint alone.
Gather Yourself,
acrylic, ink and collaged materials on board,
5w x 5h inches.
Painting really isn't just about paint. In fact in my mind an artist could create an entire painting without a brush or without paint for that matter. Of course, I know the dictionary definition would beg to differ with that view.
That Moment of Doubt,
oil, acrylic, ink and collaged materials on board,
12w x 9h inches.
The new body of work as many may have noticed in February at my two person show at Modified Arts is decidedly smaller and more intimate. My goal is to really scale the work down and make the viewer really look closely at all the different elements. I guess in a time of bombastic uproar it's nice to speak to people quietly.
