Coping with Covid

Untitled, 2020, drawing/collage on paper, 30" x 22"

Studio view, May 2020

A few years ago, I had to move my studio into my apartment to keep my art practice sustainable. After some adjustments, I'm more comfortable working at home in a much smaller space. Just in time, it seems, because when the stay-at-home orders came, I was ready. With everything going on; the sicknesses, deaths and myriad socio-economic issues coming to the fore, the best thing I thought I could do was to continue with painting. It’s one of the main stabilizing forces for me.

Life right now is a difficult roller coaster ride. One day, I can work for hours at a time, the next, because of mental fatigue at everything happening at once, all I can do is have a nap, hang out with my cats and watch movies and videos. However, amid all of this, I’ve made new paintings, updated my website and dealt with with other admin tasks that I normally don’t feel that I have time for.

I also cherish those days when I’m not physically productive. The time to just think, daydream and contemplate has made living through the pandemic a bit easier. Another side affect is that quarantine orders came during the transition from winter to spring. Experiencing the renewal of nature gives me hope for renewal of life beyond (or with?) Covid-19.

60815bb

60815bb, 2015, iphone collage

Tulips (IP)

Tulips (indeterminate passage), 2012, acrylic and collage on paper, 22 x 30 inches

Star 69

Star 69, 2012, acrylic and collage on paper, 38 x 50 inches

Studio: 6.06.12

 Above: Views of new collages using dried paint and tape. It's an ongoing project making use of what would be cast-off bits from other art making in the studio. 

A couple of new large works on paper. 

It's really exciting to keep discovering new things about how materials work under different conditions. Sometimes the simplest of tweaks can result in the opening of huge possibilities for the work. This is one of the reasons why I keep working. There's an almost head-spinning giddy feeling that I get when I do something and recognize in the moment the potential that lies in whatever action(s) I took, regardless of if it's useful now or not. I know that its there and I can't wait to get to the next piece where I can explore that thing more fully. 

3rd Street artist residency, day 3 (4.18.12)

Same panels from yesterday being worked on.

The blue painting on on the right in the above photo didn't make it after I'd spent some time on it. The strong pattern combined with the painting I did on top simply did not work at all. The painted areas were clumsy at best and everything was off. Sometimes, you just have to start again. After letting this coat of paint dry, I spent the better part of an hour sanding it down to allow some of what is now under painting to show through. I'm much happier with it now

Large paper piece ready for more work. 

Two new collages I did after putting the paintings aside for the day.