little wonderings

I've been getting ready for a little art show at our local library and haven't made time to share any crafts lately. Here are some of the images and the "statement" I wrote to go with them.

Artist Statement:

“My kid could've painted that.”

Children create art without judgment. They play, they experiment with materials, everything is new and they completely involve themselves in the process of discovery. They have joy in the process. It's only as children get older that judgment sets in:

“It's not good enough.”

“It doesn't look like so-and-so's”

“I can't make it look right”

After a career of teaching, making sculpture, and creating crafts professionally I started painting last year and, as difficult as it has been, I've tried to suspend judgment. I found it freeing to make things that weren't supposed to look like anything, to grab a hold of a color and press it onto the paper. And if it didn't look “good” or “right”--so what! I was just “playing.”  Gradually, I’ve refined my focus to creating paintings that imply layers – like looking down into a frozen pond - while still maintaining a sense of joyful exploration.

These studies are the “residue” of my experimentation.  They’re pieces that have come out of the process of looking and wondering “what would happen if: I put a line here? I make a shape just barely touch there? How can I connect the shapes? These are my “little wonderings.”

It is a new path for me and I’m excited to share it with you.