In The Mouth Of The Wolf

In The Mouth Of The Wolf (2016) 18 x 24″ acrylic on wood panel

The title of this piece comes from an Italian phrase, “Nella boca dell’ lupo” (this is a poetic corruption that I prefer to the exact translation)

“In the mouth of the wolf” is a saying familiar to theatre performers and musicians, it’s roughly equivalent to when people say “break a leg!” to wish someone success on stage

And it speaks to the intensity of pressure we all feel in trying to “perform” some kind of emergent transformation

So I see this piece as a very concentrated, focused and intentional yet spontaneous act of creation, one of the most successful expressions of this concept and one that visually conveys the intensity of trying to be centered and grounded while simultaneously liberating oneself to fly to freedom.

Seismic Splashdown

Seismic Splashdown (2016) 20 x 16″ acrylic on wood panel

Another involved architectural painting with compositional focus way off center, some labyrinthine constructivist central elements floating above an intricate, organic underpainting

I feel there is a strong dualistic poetry there, and the intersubjective transference characteristic of our current times and emergence into spring, chaotic world news, urban dynamics, so many powerful social forces of upheaval

Perhaps being immersed in journalism also plays a role, as Arts & Culture Editor for What Weekly, I’ve been meeting a dozen or more new artists and writers each month since last October, assigning, writing and photographing new developments in Baltimore theatre, literature, architecture, visual art and other areas, so coming off of a hiatus from painting after the Aquasphere series, I have a lot to express through these new paintings.

 

Lexicon Of Alignment

Lexicon Of Alignment (2016) 18 x 18″ acrylic on wood panel

My paintings are often intended to explore dualistic themes such as entropy and sustainability, alignment and chaos, geometric and organic forms, and designed to expand the visual lexicon of pattern recognition in a surrealistic, technological theme of prosthetic telepathy, the assimilation of consciousness into technology.

This is my first new painting for 2016, the beginning of a new series of free-style studies delving into the above ideas, thinking abstractly, picking up where I left off and mixing techniques and ideas old and new.

Streets Of San Francisco

Streets Of San Francisco [2014] – 16 x 20″ – spraypaint on wood panel

Intersubjective transference combines image memory with patterned abstraction to yield a dream image of fish in flight, I can paint something I see only after painting it.

Salsa Night

Salsa Night [2014] – 18 x 24″ – spray paint on wood panel

I look for patterns of movement within the painted surface, to bring out the silhouettes of fish I can see there as if they were already swimming in that space, and use color to enhance those patterns and establish a sense of natural movement, in this process of composition is the wabi-sabi of technical inclinations and gestural intuition, and it makes me want to swim with the fish.

Too Many Cooks In The Kitchen

Too Many Cooks In The Kitchen [2014] – 20 x 30″ – spray paint on wood panel

Stardust Memories

Stardust Memories [2014] – 20 x 30″ – spray paint on wood panel

A Glimmer Of Hope

A Glimmer Of Hope – 24 x 36″ – spray paint on wood panel

Remnants Of The Media Circus

Remnants Of The Media Circus – 2014 – 20″ diameter – spray paint and ink on wood panel

 

We Just Have To Narrow It Down

We Just Have To Narrow It Down – 15 x 19″ – watercolor, spraypaint and collage on paper

 

AQUASPHERE exhibition at the Charles Theatre, Baltimore