Deepen the Mystery

Painting in a makeshift studio while in Italy has become a summer tradition. It’s so interesting to make the transition from one of two studios at home (one an old attic and the other a converted industrial space) to a table or desk. I have now lived in four different apartments while teaching at Santa Reparata in Italy, but in each case the studio was not much bigger than a  22 x 30 sheet of paper, quite literally. I am not only working on a table, but in a pristine room where one false move involving paint or a bag of dry pigments could prove disastrous. I can’t let it fly, so to speak.

Somehow within this so-called limitation there is a new freedom and this miniscule studio seems to ‘disappear’ anyway as the process takes over. Painting while in Italy is exhilarating. Florence exudes art from every corner and is an inspiration in itself.  Once I have made the decision to forego an afternoon of museum visits, I relish the time painting.

A temporary studio space shares something with the experience of travel in the thrill of unfamiliarity. It is unrealistic to use my beloved oil and wax in this environment. So, this year for the first time, I experimented with water based media and abstraction. I quickly lost all preconceived notions as I tried to figure out what ink, watercolor, powdered marble, dry pigments, and homemade egg tempera could do in this genre. Here are a few pieces that I made over one weekend in late July from a small jerry rigged studio in the middle of Florence.  These mixed media works are approximately 12” x 9” on archival paper.

The painter Francis Bacon said… “The job of an artist is to always to deepen the mystery.”  I greatly relate to that sphere of thought and find endless pleasure in the experience of painting from and into the unknown.

Detail  – Eternal Loop       12″ x 9″    egg tempera/mixed media

Eternal Loop

Opening

Sky Ships

Via Guelfa Mystery

Detail – Via Guelfa Mystery

Detail – Sky Ships

Rolling

Boundless