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Acrylic on box canvas, 36in x 24in
Three Theorems is a painting to link my forthcoming show at the Hive gallery, to the other artists show on at the same time, Adrian Pritchard. His exhibition is called Unstrung Theory and encompasses strings of paint.
I began by researching the String theory, which lead me a merry dance into other theories and equations, and my mind being what it is came up with this ensemble of objects. The Butterfly represents just that, the Butterfly (Chaos) theory and the apple, Newtons theory of Gravity. The sky and dandelion represent time and space, while the violin has close connections with Adrians title of unstrung theory.
I thoroughly enjoyed this painting, it was challenging technically. I am ready for a slight change in direction now and hope to be working on a male nude painting or some surreal type sketches, although I will get around to both in the fullness of time...all being well!
Wallpaper by Phigment
Just a small town girl, living in a lonely world. Took a midnight train, going anywhere....Don't Stop Believing, Journey.
Very Oddly for me, I actually feel like blogging. The image above is not mine, but is gorgeous and sums up visually me and where I am at right now. For those that don't know, my 'tuther name is moon, a name that came about many moons ago through the Internet and I just feel an affinity with, more so my name than my own (given to me by parents).
Right now I am working towards my first solo exhibition....its scary, exciting and allot of hard work. Since Hayden went to full time school in January 2009 I gave myself two years from that point to make a go of the art career. With this I have given myself 'permission' to paint whatever I want, not to a commercial market, but things that make me tick, that feeds the fire in my belly, that make me feel alive...to want to live the dream.
Things are moving at a fast pace, my invitations are winging their way to me, printed on large format postcards. My list keeps growing of who to invite, requests keep coming in, so its all go. I am obsessing about what dress to wear, although thanks to some wonderful Twitter friends, and my best mate Mat, I think that is sorted...it will be a spotty pencils dress, 50s style. Probably not the norm, but I never did that very well anyway!
I try and place myself in the gallery on the night and my stomach takes on a life of its own, I am very excited, but believe it or not can feel very shy and self conscious...although outwardly I seem confident and outgoing (which I feel most of the time). Its a tricky thing having that much attention, and as a note to self I will NOT be making a little speech, and have instructed people on this too, even if after a couple of glasses of tiddlypops I think its a great idea, no no no...don't let me lol. I will save those bits for the celebrations across at the pub afterwards.
Its going to be an amazing experience, having people there that I haven't seen in years, mixing with my current life peeps....like my life flashing before my eyes, I just hope my work doesn't disappoint all those people that have made me who I am today. Thank you by the way, to everyone who has crossed my path in anyway, shape or form...for without you and even the smallest interaction, I would not be doing this :-)
My exhibition is called Journey, due to it being a snap shot into the beginnings of my current one, and also because of the song....Don't Stop Believing, is a great moto to live by.
For now I must go, paint some more, it won't do itself....and if my strange ramblings have you intrigued at all, drop me a line, always nice to Tweet new peeps...so long, farewell, fellow travellers.
acrylic on box canvas 40cm x 50cm
Cradle to Grave was conceived with the idea of entering it into a competition, the only really eligible category was still life, so that's what I set out to do. This painting shows beginnings to endings, ie the egg is representative of the start and the dying tulip a symbol of the end. Loosely in my mind the books describe knowledge gained throughout life, and the wall solid foundations.
I have always been fascinated with tulips, their very surreal dying phase as they wither away. I also love the juxtaposition of very unrelated things being forced together to tell a story. I particularly enjoyed including a Tromp L'Oeil frame on a box canvas, giving the viewer a framed perspective on another world.
I thoroughly enjoyed this painting and it will be featured in my forth coming solo exhibition Journey 27th July 2009, as well as in promotion and literature for the event. I have chosen not to submit this piece to the competition now as I think my show should take priority at this time.
Its also a piece that I would like to continue into a series, to see where this Journey takes me.
Acrylic on box canvas 20in x 30in
Moons Echo was conceived after seeing a picture by another artist in a very different medium. Although my painting bares little resemblance to that picture it was the inspiration and catalyst for this painting. The male nude is bound by chains in an academic world where all his hopes and dreams are floating away. The painting also shows that unseen forces hold the ends of the chains which are not fastened, even though they swaddle the man.
The two faces represent youth and maturity, a life lived by someone elses standards and series of life events. The painting does however offer hope, as the chains remain unbound and the knowledge of a life lived can serve him to find that the world truly is his oyster, and to shoot for the moon.
Acrylic 24in x36in box canvas
Modern man was originally called The Persistence of Memory but throughout the painting, it became more disturbing to me and less about memory and more about the trials of 21st Century life. A fellow Twitterer, Corey Cochran, sent a Tweet stating that the painting evoked in him that its how many people feel right now, so with this the name changed to Modern Man.
I wanted to show the inner turmoil felt by many men being chained to a life they had not envisaged as part of their life plan, a creative step along from Delirium pro tempore. Being bound and trussed on all levels into a roundabout life of confusion, dissatisfaction, with someone else holding the chains that bind. An almost impossible life that is only just tolerable, but keeps us bound by previous life choices like marriage, career, children and all the other social pressures we have heaped upon ourselves.
We all make choices day to day, big ones, small ones, all of which we cannot completely comprehend the full consequences of, two months, or 20 years down the line....Modern Man is my interpretation of this.
Its been a difficult painting to execute, at one point I was ready to give it up. The image as it evolved was disturbing, touching on feelings with in me of vunerability, both personally and in that of showing the piece, and gave way to memories for me of suffering Post Natal Depression, being tied to a life I wasn't ready to live, that of a baby, marriage etc. With support from some wonderful people on Twitter I persevered and this is the result...and as Corey put it 'it strikes emotion, good or bad, that's what art should do'.
Note: a huge thankyou to @anartistexposed, @ronnietucker, @curly768, and @Shifty77 for their support and encouragement doing this painting, without you it would be consigned to file b1N.
Acrylic 10in x14in box canvas
Delirium pro Tempore is a snap shot of the fleeting insanity felt when communications are so misunderstood, especially between men and women. Sometimes I find the opposite sex completely unfathomable, and have seen that I provoke this same sense of impossible~ness of thinking to the men in my life, past and present.
I wanted the piece to scream without screaming, speak without speaking and convey the all consuming frustration that is felt when finding someone elses opinions and thought processes totally impossible to get the head around, or that the language may as well be that of another planet for all the sense it makes. I enjoyed the disturbing nature of this painting, achieving something that shouts from a silent object is something I am proud of.
Acrylic 24in x 24in on box canvas
Encore was a continuation of Curtains up, the theatre of arguments and sometimes the unenviable position of provoking violence, when the argument spirals out of control. The painting illustrates the impending doom of the situation, the grandiosity of the perpetrator and that although its a difficult subject its one many of us have faced or do face in our lives.
As mentioned in previous blog posts I adore men, their beauty, strength and humour, but the flip side can be scary and painful to live with. I have also found from experience that theres a sense of theatre to much of an argument, whether that's the persons involved personalities or an unconscious homage to the violence in the media, I am unsure...I have lived through it, played my part in it, survived it and painted it.
