A couple of new works

Container Twisting, 24" by 30", Latex paint on canvas, 2011

Contained with Hands Behind Back, 22" by 28", Latex paint on canvas, 2011

These paintings make reference to Franz Kline's work, but they represent the figure, more specifically, the boundaries of the body in space. Torso and air.

Still flat because the illusion of a body in 3-D is evoked with thick paint instead of light and shadow. Mass is presented as fluid and moving. Weight is illustrated by repeated strokes in an area. Less strokes = lighter.

Gravity is present. A reminder of the easel.

Our bodies are containers. We are vessels of blood, bones, fluids, etc., that exist in a less dense material; gas form of oxygen etc. But air contains us . . . and also permeates through our breathing . . . oxygen elements absorbed in our lungs throughout our bodies.

I am using Kline's methods superficially because I enjoy the harsh division of positive and negative (which my lead to another thought about continuity of space).

I like energetic strokes. Gesture and movement engage a viewer. The act of making marks recalls the hand of the artist.

Big brushes fill up the canvas quickly and there is no time for "precious" strokes.

Cheap house paint reflects the notion of the vernacular: the everyday. (Painting using coffee?)