The Complexities of Painting

My last blog left me wondering when I developed my love for painting. I have always had a passion for the wild abandon of sculpture and a fascination with the control and detail of drawing but for the longest time, I was unable to wrap my brain around the complexities of painting.

I believe at some point I started painting with more of a wild abandon similar to my sculptural process. It is almost as if I am working on a relief sculpture only the carving tool is an opposing color that either adds or subtracts depth. I find myself adding up only to carve it away later (metaphorically speaking). The interesting thing about this process is that, unlike sculpture, the depth of the paint build-up does not necessarily correspond with where an object is suppose to visually appear in the composition. I find that my utility wires are often at a shallower paint depth than the clouds that recede behind them. It is the complexities and power of color that allows this to happen.

I don't know when it happened but somewhere along the line my sculptural process enmeshed with my painting process. It is this enmeshment that allows me to get lost in the emotional story of color while still enjoying the texture and movement of sculpture. This has become my love for painting.