39 panels October 2016

I've just spent the last three days prepping panels, 39 all told.  Most are panels that had images on them from before that weren't good enough to "live".  I cover them with drywall mud to make the surfaces smooth and to bury the previous paintings, although with most, traces are left, which I like. Once they dry, I sand them with a small hand sander, which as busy work, is pretty fantastic.  Who doesn't like sanding?  So many beautiful results, so quickly, with so little effort.

Now I'm faced with the 39 panels, pretending to lie quietly, complacently.  But I know that once I start painting, they will take on a life of their own and I will be but a servant, a slave to their whims, demanding that they will be what they want to be.  And, as finished paintings, they will insist that I find the perfect mates for them--bits of photos, collaged paper, more paint, transferred images, plain and extraordinary papers(the list goes on and on)-- that will make them whole and complete.  It's terrifying.  The responsibility, the pressure--what have I done?

Horse with Rain 2016

Since the spring, I have been working with my older black and white photographs, trying to make strong images that have something more to them than just putting a transparent photo onto a painted ground.  It's been difficult, not just because of technical problems, but because I'm not sure how to see these images.  They are new to me, quieter and more minimal than my older pieces, truer to the photograph than ever before.