notes on the three paintings

I am obliged to produce a note explaining the relationship of my three paintings to the subject. Here are my notes with the three paintings (as drafted 13 April).
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My three paintings regarding ‘out of the darkness into the light’ are derived in part from personal experience of chronic illness, in part from observation of others. 

[1] THE DREAM OF SUNSHINE IN THE MORNING

Artist statement on side of painting:

In long-term invisible illness, 

you remain sentient, head full of ideas, 

and you remain sensual, heart needing love, flesh needing flesh. 

You reach out ... to touch or fend off? 

You turn away in loneliness.

Your totem becomes the echidna:

small, prickly, determined, defensive, hard to grasp.

Your carer, your lover,

tries to see the incomprehensible invisible,

tries to embrace your elusive mind.

[2] THE GET-AWAY

I want to get out of my dark space, but my dark spirits holds me back. They reason and mumble; they make me doubt. They grasp and bite; they cause me pain.

[3] RISK ASSESSMENT

I don't know if this is darkness in here, it's certainly not black. But it's without contrast. I am dulled by medication, away from risk, away from excitement and motivation, without orgasm or pain. Away from personality too... 

Out there? Is it time to go out there? It is a risk. There is light and there is shadow. There is freedom, adventure and pain and passion and... 

So who makes the decision? And what are the consequences? What if I fail? ... I mean, what if I fail again?

Dennis Argall, April 2012

Third painting for exhibition

This is my third painting for the mental health fellowship sponsored exhibition in May, with the subject 'out of the darkness into the light'.

It has been an interesting subject to explore.

The title for this is 'Risk Assessment'. A label we stumble over even in hospital toilets.

The musings of the protagonist are such as these.

I don't know if this is darkness in here, it's certainly not black. But it's without contrast. I am dulled by medication, away from risk, away from excitement and motivation, away from orgasm and pain. Away from personality too... 

Out there? Is it time to go out there? It is a risk. There is light and there is shadow. There is freedom, adventure and pain and passion and... 

So who makes the decision? And what are the consequences? What if I fail? ... I mean, what if I fail again?

'draft' as at Friday 13 April

Day 2: second new painting

The cogitations of yesterday bear no relationship to where the painting has gone today.

The title Awake to a Blue Sky 

seems to be going away in favour of 

Chiara and her Scuri.

Alluding of course to the artistic expression for paintings emphasing light and dark.

But this is not painted in that manner, rather drawing on the literal Italian

chiaro = light or clear 

scuro = dark

or chiara and scura [feminine]

and with the additional level here also, 

taking Chiara as a woman's name (as Clara or Clare in English)

and her Scuri — her grasping dark creatures, her demons,
holding her from her nature of light
... creatures on the one hand seemingly conventional
and on the other savage.
The belt not an adornment but a restraint.

and then to revise the left side of the work,
the bemused dark side on the left, the fury on the right

beginning another painting

Laying the ground for "Awake to a Blue Sky" - a figure leaning way over backwards, looking to the sky.

More later... am wanting very different texture from past painting, glossy, sharp. We shall see whether the painting will allow it!

Again for the May open exhibition of the Shoalhaven Mental Health Fellowship on the theme, Out of Darkness into the Light. On masonite, incorporating frame in picture, masonite 65 x 125 cm.

..... contemplating the dark lower scene, my mind went to Blake's 'dark satanic mills'... a google images search for 'william blake satanic mills' brought much food for thought, including these pages:

link 1 - link 2 - link 3 - link 4

This was first work this morning

and at the end of Day 1, 

I did some work with oil pastel (over acrylic over black gesso, over old painting)

... don't know where it goesstomorrow, but will try not to overcomplicate the background 

— or make the figure too realistic.


The small images from the camera are very helpful, compared with working on a large surface,
in identifying colour and light/dark imbalances, as well as errors of line.

click here for the gallery

4 May > 30 Jun

Launch: Fri 4 May 5 - 7pm

OPEN ANNUAL ART COMPETITION 2012: OUT OF THE DARKNESS INTO THE LIGHT

SHOALHAVEN MENTAL HEALTH FELLOWSHIP

GREY GALLERY

An annual exhibition relating to recovery and mental health that seeks to promote an understanding of mental health within the broader community. It is open to all artists and encourages them to explore differing and diverse perspectives. 

back to painting

Returning to painting... with the benefit of Tracy Verdugo's workshop and its participants, see previous blog entry.

I had not arrived with a particular painting in mind, wanting to work freely. My painting began as some do with the view to Jervis Bay, influenced in the past, as many, by Glenda Borchard's eye... though certainly already vanished in my own direction. [links open in new tabs or windows, close the new tab to return here]

Then as the picture built the landscape was subsumed into a nude form. Here began the serious laying down of base. I wanted blue depth under skin tones, something that stuck with me from my privileged access to the restoration work after the Florence flood of 1966, to which access for this young person in the Rome embassy because the Mitchell Library in Sydney had lent a world expert on print restoration. One of the major figurative paintings which needed its wood base removed was found to have an under-base of blue below the flesh tones of the surface to give them depth ... so I started with a blue colour for the flesh. (I have been unable to find that painting, but google being the serendipitous adventure it can be, it led me to discover the blog of Antonella Colaninno)

[clicking on any image provides a gallery of all images, press return to get back to the blog]

By the time I took that photo [click to enlarge] I had added story — I planned a yowie figure watching over her, with her thoughts streaming, her arm ambiguously seeking connection or fending off, also (we had begun discussing symbols in paintings) an echidna in the corner: singleminded, prickly, not easily picked up. 

At the end of the first day I had applied some skin tone and was so appalled by its state I turned it to the wall to hide its nakedness and clumsiness overnight.

I had no idea overnight if I would go on or paint it out and start again....

I did go on. Then late in the morning my female protagonist died and it became a tale of mourning. No photo of that state. Then I remembered I had been wondering what I might paint for the 2012 exhibition sponsored by the Shoalhaven Mental Health Fellowship, for which the subject was to be 'out of the darkness and into the light'. And so the idea dawned and the painting became "The Dream of Sunshine in the Morning". As it also remained for me to place a light cloth over herself. We shall see if it is finished... entries to be submitted 1 May.

I recognise this, having painted it, as in my style. I do not command my style. Do I like my style? Hard question. It happens.

I remain a story teller, the story evolved beyond my command, the painting changed a lot. The story it tells now is in my 'artist's statement' below. [click on images to enlarge]

THE DREAM OF SUNSHINE IN THE MORNING

In long-term invisible illness, 

you remain sentient, head full of ideas, 

and you remain sensual, heart needing love, flesh needing flesh. 

You reach out ... to touch or fend off? 

You turn away in loneliness.

Your totem becomes the echidna: small, prickly, determined, defensive, hard to grasp.

Your carer, your lover, tries to see but it's not visible; 

tries to embrace your elusive mind.

[mood change]

Oh, and!  We were given 30cm x 30cm (one foot square) ply, on which to multimedia experiment, with collage, paint, whatever. Exhausted by the major work, I produced a work which caused a primary school principal in the room to say she wondered seriously about the workings of my mind. I said I did that too.

Here is "Hey Babe"...

Art by the Sea

I have four paintings and the three panelled screen in the Art by the Sea group show at the Lady Denman Museum in Huskisson, 18 December-16 January. In a note hung with the screen, I said I had put a catalogue of other work at aplaceof.info - So I've done an artist's statement with some works for sale, here.

There is a great variety of work in the exhibition, wonderfully arranged on the walls at the Denman art space by Judy and John Brown. This a smudgy iphone photo from the opening by Helen Nugent.

This photo taken at home shows how the screen is set up in boudoir mode...

three panel wood screen

I have carved relief images on one side of three panels and fitted the panels together with brass hinges. The other side without images, still rough-sawn with some sanding and polishing. My own sense at this moment is taken up entirely by the difficulty of working the Paulownia, which is a bit like carving the inside of a pineapple skin, with some cheddar on the sides. Sort of, not entirely but... Anyway, not time yet to judge whether the screen is merchantable, it should do for hanging photos at the December-January exhibition at the Denman.

If placed as an item for sale, I will put an oval gilt mirror on the centre panel of the blank side (see third photo), also offer a photo shoot and framed photo portrait to decorate it.

Here are two photos of relief-carved side of panels, one of the plain side. Yes, there is a small brassy decoration on that hand, a string of beady things on a top corner. Note that the sides of the heavier, higher central panel have been trimmed straight and vertical, while the side panels (legs on the left, Labrador on right) have not been trimmed at all, the hinges are slightly away from the margin.

photos, wood panels

I asked Jervis Bay and Basin Arts if I could submit a bunch of photos for December-January exhibition and they said thanks for checking early, we can't accommodate that many. So I said what if I provided a wood panel to put them on in the middle of the gallery. And we have agreed on some such ... So gosh I have to work on a screen of three panels, zigzag form such as famous theatrical beauties used to change behind in their dressing rooms before people began undressing in front of the camera.

No photos of the photos in question, nor the beauties mentioned, nor photos of the wood panels, but they will be from 20mm x 1700mm x 4-500mm slices of Paulownia, as in photo.

Jervis Bay Arts Silent Auction

Woo hoo, someone has bid already on my entry in the Silent Auction, see Loose Woman.

It looks pretty good in the gallery under a spectacular photo by Richard Morecroft (click on the image of Fire Trail to get a better glimpse.)

Bidding continues till 28 November. You can bid online.

item for silent auction to support Jervis Bay Arts

Jervis Bay Arts are holding a silent auction at Huskisson Picture Framing 1- 28 November, as a fundraiser for next years SeeChange Festival.

Click here for information.

I have loosely lined the drawers of the Loose Woman and am entering her in the auction.

AND when I delivered it, they said, oh wow, she looks much better in the flesh!

Happy bidding! :-)