Fort, Keep acrylic ink on translucent Yupo (synthetic paper), 2020-2021
I began this work in Marseille, France, in January-February, 2020, as the pandemic started to affect Europe. Acrylic ink on translucent Yupo was suitable for a response to the light of southern France. I continued the series on returning, and the making of this work has become an essential part of each day. During the pandemic, it has been a way to measure the time that paradoxically feels slow in the moment yet is simultaneously passing too fast. The repetitive act of filling a grid using a circle template means hours or days are required to realize a shift in color, the completion of a shape. The titles (Fort, Keep) refer to the massive Fort St. Jean at Marseille’s port. Constructed over centuries, its surface reflects sky and sea. Having served as church, fortress, prison, museum, the complex has survived wars, storms, and plagues.
Niqqudot
These small paintings on wood panels playfully reflect on both nature and art. The system I use to apply the paint involves a circle template and a drawn grid, tools and techniques once used to make "mechanical art." The abstract forms are found in the patterns of grain, on the surface of the wooden panels. Selecting and following the grain reveals imagery reminiscent of other forms in nature, as well as suggesting gestural abstract art.
Smoke Rises...
The graphite drawings in this series, based on news images of war-related explosions, are made up of slowly accumulated lines. This is a meticulous process to describe a sudden and ephemeral event. The photographic images, found on the internet, are ubiquitous and, despite the specificity of each plume of smoke, convey a sense of anonymity. I follow the details of form and light with as much accuracy as possible, eliminating any elements that indicate the location and scale of the actual event.
I began this work in Marseille, France, in January-February, 2020, as the pandemic started to affect Europe. Acrylic ink on translucent Yupo was suitable for a response to the light of southern France. I continued the series on returning, and the making of this work has become an essential part of each day. During the pandemic, it has been a way to measure the time that paradoxically feels slow in the moment yet is simultaneously passing too fast. The repetitive act of filling a grid using a circle template means hours or days are required to realize a shift in color, the completion of a shape. The titles (Fort, Keep) refer to the massive Fort St. Jean at Marseille’s port. Constructed over centuries, its surface reflects sky and sea. Having served as church, fortress, prison, museum, the complex has survived wars, storms, and plagues.
Niqqudot
These small paintings on wood panels playfully reflect on both nature and art. The system I use to apply the paint involves a circle template and a drawn grid, tools and techniques once used to make "mechanical art." The abstract forms are found in the patterns of grain, on the surface of the wooden panels. Selecting and following the grain reveals imagery reminiscent of other forms in nature, as well as suggesting gestural abstract art.
Smoke Rises...
The graphite drawings in this series, based on news images of war-related explosions, are made up of slowly accumulated lines. This is a meticulous process to describe a sudden and ephemeral event. The photographic images, found on the internet, are ubiquitous and, despite the specificity of each plume of smoke, convey a sense of anonymity. I follow the details of form and light with as much accuracy as possible, eliminating any elements that indicate the location and scale of the actual event.