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artist statement |
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It is a difficult matter to answer the
question, “Why do I paint?” Artists differ in their responses, of course,
but many would say the creative urge just has to find release, or beauty must
be shared, or some message must be communicated. For me, I think, it may just
be a whole lot more basic.
Sitting before a palette of oil paint and a
blank canvas evokes all manner of reactions and, I think, a compelling appeal
to every sense. The smell of oil paint is wonderful and always brings to my
mind memories of art schools, studios or museums. The stimulation to the eye,
of course, is best of all. Seeing delicious colors laid out in an ordered way
makes my heart always beat a little bit faster in anticipation of
‘beginning’. There is even an appeal to the ear. Some say your brush
should make NO sound as you put paint to canvas. Others revel in the scrubbing
sounds a brush or knife can make. I more often associate painting with a lack
of sound, a wonderful quiet, a lack of the noises of the outside world when I
am fully tuned in to my painting. And finally, the sense of touch is often so
compelling that nothing will do but for me to lay aside the brush, or stick of
charcoal, and just use my fingers.
My favorite media are oil, for the appeal to
all those senses, acrylic for fast and looser work, pen and ink for detail,
and charcoal for getting my hands ‘really dirty’.
All of the above are reasons to BEGIN a
painting (or drawing). The reason I KEEP painting is that elusive search for
THE best painting one could ever do. It is a gigantic puzzle to solve and one
never completely ‘gets there’. The real excitement is that painting is
something I can do at 90 or 100 or even 1000 years of age. I absolutely
believe that our Creator, Who started this whole creative endeavor, and Who
made us in His image, will continue to let us, like Him, keep on being
creative-forever.
My inspiration comes from many vague sources
and a few very specific ones, such as sunsets and long open highways that
touch the horizon. But mainly it comes from light-light-light; light striking
objects, or light just hovering in the air. Always it is about the Light.
There are artists who inspire me also.
Rembrandt for his dark and mysterious canvases, Degas for his wonderful
compositions, and Van Gogh for his ability to ‘break out of that box’,
especially in the few years he had to work. ‘Vincent’ is probably a
big inspiration for me right now, as I am coming back to painting again after
twenty years of doing only left-brained stuff. Sometimes I almost feel panicky
that I’m getting such a late start, but then I remember ‘Vincent’ and
all the work he did in only 10 years. Edvard Munch also had encouraging words
to say about "late starts". He once said "My breakthrough came
very late in life, really only starting when I was fifty years old. But at
that time I felt as though I had the strength for new deeds and ideas."
Plus, I feel that God has granted me a gift,
especially for this chapter in my life. My goal is to use this in some way to
help others to see-not just beauty, but surely that, and not just works with
great design, but that too. Mainly I want to communicate to others the
realness of our Creator; Who Alone gives light-- light to paint and Light to
See.
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