from HAVE I TOLD YOU TODAY THAT I LOVE YOU

LOVE-MARRIAGE-FAMILY

Love between a man and a woman is an illogical, irrational phenomenon that is far beyond my ability to describe or explain. I would strongly recommend the seventh letter in Rilke’s Letters to a Young Poet. (I recommend that you read all of those letters.) Having said this let me off er just a few observations on the subject.

Love is hard work. Falling in love can be quite easy; it is maintaining that love that demands our time and energies. Don’t expect it just to happen; people can change in significant ways over the years, and if left unattended, love can be victimized by these changes.

Love should be gracious and spacious, allowing ample room for individual growth. One of the most important responsibilities in a loving relationship is to enable one another to become the person they are intended to be. Love exists for us to serve others, not for us to be served.

This is not without some risk. One partner may out grow the other, but there is a greater risk both to the person and the marriage if growth is stifled.

There is absolutely no place in love for oppression, and restriction. To love someone is not to possess them.

Apply these same principles to your relationship with your children. Respect and trust your child for the individual person that he or she is. Drench them with love, guide them with a consistent but light hand, allowing them to make mistakes. They will anyway, and it is always easier for them if they can count on your love, understanding, and forgiveness. Love does not preclude other signifi cant relationships. One person cannot be expected to be everything to the other. A strong, loving relationship is not threatened by other relationships.

You can never say, “I love you” too often or too loud.

OBJECTIVITY SURROUNDED BY NON-OBJECTIVITY

In recent days I have been struggling (unsuccessfully) with an abstract painting on a 36x36” canvas. Working on series of black, white, and red paintings my goal was to move from landscapes to total abstraction. For some reason I have been weighed down with the notion that this was necessary for me to really be an accomplished contemporary artist. This was not my first attempt at abstraction. Of course none of my abstract paintings ever succeeded, but I worked on, undeterred by my failures even as I grew suspicious of my motives. Yesterday'
s failure changed everything.

Why it has taken me so long is beyond my understanding, but today it is clear to me that I have been trying to be something that I am not. I am not an abstract painter. I want, need, desire, crave, (take your pick of words) at least one thing to keep me grounded in realism. For most of my work it has been the horizon or something of the built environment. What I really want to paint are landscapes, either rural or urban, where I can stretch reality and objectivity to any degree I choose, as in this last of the series of tree lines


White Tree line acrylic on canvas 12x48 sold

Regarding that 36x36" canvas...consider it a work in progress to be posted soon.

THE SURVIVOR

A few weeks ago I came across an old painting, a small, unsuccessful attempt at a collage, and immediately covered it with gesso. Afterwards I applied and blotted multiple layers of acrylic washes until I had a "background" that satisfied me. Then once again I began the mental search for a subject, and once again I settled upon a tree. The first rendering with charcoal and one color pastel was OK, but lacked oomph. It was improved with a lighter color on the foliage but still fell short, so I tried some oil pastels that resulted in disaster. My last act was to apply a turpentine wash which to my great surprise and satisfaction produced the image I was seeking.

This modest mixed media painting affirms for me that making art is as much fun as it is stressful.


mixed media 11x14 $275

ANOTHER TREELINE

Black at sunset acrylic on canvas 10x30" $600

After creating the red-orange background I spent the next several months staring at this canvas not knowing what to do next. Then, as soon as I completed the treeline I posted on yesterday's blog I had my answer. Once again my goal was to create interest with bold colors. Keeping the composition simple allows the viewers to create their own impressions.

I have one more canvas with a similar bright red background (12x48) sitting in a corner of the studio so maybe there will one more "treeline" in my future.

TREE LINES

For the past week I have had several canvases "in play", one of which I posted yesterday. The painting today began with a textured white-gray background, waiting for an idea for the foreground which eventually materialized as a black treeline with bits of warm color coming through. I've used this approach in previous paintings, but in this case was striving for a stark B&W impression.


B&W plus acrylic on canvas 24x36 $1500

SKYSCAPE V

This is the fifth and largest in a series of "skyscapes" I'm planning to show in the gallery next month. like the others, I started by filling the canvas with sky. Only after this stage was complete did I think about what I would be adding to the foreground.


first stage


Skyscape V acrylic 30x24 $1500

THE CANVAS ROOM

My studio and gallery are 3 houses to the left.

Until yesterday, the only place to buy art supplies in Paducah has been Michaels, hobby Lobby, and the various online catalog stores. Jonathan and Cindy Hobson have changed that with the opening of the Canvas Room, a art supply store located in their home just 3 houses away from me here in Lowertown. Jonathan, also an artist, has taken the time to carefully inquire of each Lowertown artist what his or her needs are in an effort to serve our community as well succeed in a tough retail environment.

Whether the Canvas Room can meet the discount prices of the major art supply catalogs is a moot point. Being able to walk a half a block away for my canvases, paints, or whatever trumps any price differences. This is Lowertown at its best. Did I mention that just one block away is an artist-picture framer?