Arts Letters & Numbers ~ Wrapping It All Up

As I look back at my time at Arts Letters & Numbers, I needed this week away from normal life to expand my horizons both literally and figuratively. Feeling a bit cooped up in NYC, but being totally unaware of the fact, it was lovely to get into the space of Upstate New York countryside and meet new people and discuss new ideas.

Look how beautiful these organic eggs are ~ I've never seen naturally green, blue and pink ones before!

While it took me a while to find a groove with the outcomes of my paintings, the Arts Letters & Numbers residency allowed me the room to follow my circling trains of thought, explore painting processes and stretch my expectations for myself.

I've come away a bit calmer and assured that if I follow my instinct, it doesn't really matter what the outcome is because the larger connection between seemingly dissonant ideas is me.

On Sunday, I revealed my paintings for my fellow residents for their feedback and critique. And here's what I learned:

1. It's scary to put yourself out there to be judged. I was shaky trying to express my thoughts.

2. What people see in my work is how it makes them feel first and my messaging second. This was good news because it's what I'm going for!

3. They helped me to crystalize the words to say that this collection is about my emotions as they relate to the changing world as modeled through landscape. They are introspective, but not serene.

4. I've finalized the idea that this collection is "Nature, Muted" not the other way around. Because it's more than just neutral abstract landscapes. These paintings encapsulate my anxiety around not being able to fully see the landscape as societal trends are indifferent to its destruction. In this way, nature is itself muted, in that we can't hear it; and some don't want to hear it and are't interested in its preservation.

But while all of that seems heavy, the paintings themselves can be seen as sending that emotional message, or they can be something benign to behold. As always, I invite others' interpretations and emotions to surface about my work.

"Nature, Muted" paintings will be for sale on Wednesday June 14th (Flag Day!)

Dispatches From Arts Letters & Numbers ~ Friday & Saturday

If Thursday was paint paint paint, Friday was no painting whatsoever. Still feeling unsure of my themes and how my disparate painting styles would form a cohesive idea, I napped on it a bit and then jumped into helping out in the kitchen in preparation for a swing concert being held at the house Friday evening.

Frida and I made potato birds nests (easier said than done...peel and spiralize potatoes and sweet potatoes, saute in olive oil, form into tiny "nests" on parchment lined muffin tins, take out when just crispy but not burnt) with mushroom compote and homemade pesto topping. They turned out really yummy, and with a spiralizer, would be easy to replicate (although not quickly).

The swing/jazz band that came to play was really fun and brought a following of swing dancers with them. A true party atmosphere with at least 30 people at any given time. I listened and hung out for a while but when I headed up to bed at 11pm, the party was still going strong!

Saturday morning saw a house so full of people that all three bathrooms seemed to be continually occupied. Some of the band members and friends of the other residents had spent the night (have no idea where!) and we were bursting at the seams with friendly morning chatter over bacon and coffee.

As people started to dissipate throughout the morning, I set up my painting camp in the kitchen. My plan was to lay down some neutral base tones of grey and white with a palette knife, on which I would layer my landscape paintings (assuming it might be warm enough to paint outside, which it was not).

With the first pass though, I liked the base layer so much that I forced myself to stop there (sometimes knowing when to stop is so difficult; Should I keep going? I don't know, I like it now. But maybe it could be better? But what if you mess it up? etc etc etc).

So as I created base after base, they each became slightly more of their own abstract landscape painting with added details and more neutral colors (think tan, black and olive). Finally something was resonating!!

I came into the week thinking about muted landscapes...and that's exactly where I ended up. But not in the way I thought I would get there. I had a vision of painting outdoors, creating detailed landscapes and then covering them up with soft thin layers of watery whites and greys to create a misty abstraction. When in fact, I needed a more direct approach: start with a limited color palette, the broad sweeps of a palette knife (as opposed to tiny brushstrokes), and a freedom of form to push the paint around with the movement of my hand, arm and whole body.

So is there where I end up? Not quite....

Dispatches From Arts Letters & Numbers ~ Tuesday & Wednesday

My first night at Arts Letters & Numbers, we had partaken in a lively evening of discussion and tequila chez Robert and Diane.

Tuesday was a sunny if not windy day, and after an early breakfast al fresco, I made my way down to Burden Lake 3 for some lakeside en plein air painting.

The light was bright and warm and without a cloud in the sky, the blues were deep and vibrant. The water moved smoothly across the lake's surface, and one of the neighbors pointed out an eagle soaring above the tree line.

As I considered this idea I've had about muting out the landscape to create abstraction, I chose two different compositions to work with ~ a point blank horizontal horizon to abstract into color blocks, and a shoreline view, offering leaning birch as well as a rocky foreground, watery middle-ground and hilly tree-lined background.

I didn't love either of the paintings I created to be frank. They felt blah. But okay, only day one of painting. Maybe something would come of them.

Returning home in the afternoon, we prepared to depart for a community potluck dinner and weekly ping pong game at a neighbor's home. As in the evening before, we were welcomed warmly with interest in our art and friendly conversation. After squeaking out a doubles ping pong win (it has been a while since I've played), we headed home for bed.

Wednesday was an ultra productive painting day, as overnight I had somehow been inspired turn my insipid landscapes of the day before into a statement about the obscuration and obliteration of nature that seems to be gaining momentum with the country's leadership (and let's be honest, a lot of society too....very scary).

work in process

Setting to work abstracting the landscapes, I considered the larger scope of my recent work which seems to me to be all about transition ~ in the personal, societal and natural realms. More of that thread to pull and art to share...