A View From The Quagmire
on the Connecticut River
Not much has changed since my confession last week when I admitted to being stuck in a non-productive mode. I should add here that I’m not the type to sit around and wait for inspiration to hit. Relying on something else to move me into action feels like a pathetic cop out. However, I also refuse to waste paint on a massive scale, and I’m pretty good at recognizing when that’s starting to happen. So while I’m still not ready to jump back in and tackle the three new panels that are waiting patiently in my studio, I have continued to work slowly and mostly ineffectively on “the old six” and to get out and look at things and stuff.
One way I get out and look at things on nice days is to ride my bike out to a lovely little spot by the river where there are a bunch of fossilized dinosaur footprints. When I remember to take my camera, I snap photos of various stuff that catches my eye. I mentioned last week that I do this and that the photos function as source material for my work–not specific references, but they help inform my aesthetic in a more general way. Anyway, here’s some of the stuff I’ve been looking at. Please keep in mind I’m a mediocre to poor photographer.
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4 more photos after the jump!
I know this next one is super blurry, but it’s a really good example of the sort of imagery that really has an impact on my work–blur and all.
Whelp, that’s all I’ve got! OK technically, I have more. In fact, I have assloads of photos I could upload and post but you’re being spared because A. I know when to say when and B. my impatient orange feline friend has decided that it’s time to hop up and strike a pose in front of the monitor which, translated loosely, means IT’S TIME TO FEED THE KITTIES!!!
that’s all she wrote,
-Steph
October 11, 2009 at 10:55 am
i love seeing such a direct connection between these surfaces and the ones you make with paint and wax. it’s going to make me look at things outside in a different way.
October 17, 2009 at 9:58 am
thanks, Toni. i’m glad you can see the connection, too. the stuff i look at has a strong impact on what i make. i’m always noticing and photographing what to me are interesting textures and patterns, but sometimes i feel like my art falls so short of the found surfaces that i shouldn’t bother mentioning it.
October 17, 2009 at 9:53 am
[...] Most mornings we sit outside on the front stoop and watch the neighborhood wake up. We usually manage to drag ourselves outside between 7:30 and 8. M pours himself a giant cup of coffee, I squeeze half a lemon into a mug of hot water and we head out to sip our respective beverages and let the sleepiness wear off. This morning was no different. As soon as we opened the door, our feline pal Stumpy, a sweet-natured stray who adopted us years ago, scampered up the steps to greet us with his usual one-eyed, bob-tailed enthusiasm. He’s built like a wrestler–solid muscle, no neck, a tiny little butt–and he has the voice of a munchkin. He hopped onto my lap and we watched the a.m. goings on. Today was a really pretty fall morning–brisk but not too cold and the light was nice. So I took some photos to add to my expanding cache of reference-type images and stuff. [...]