The Exile’s Wilderness– Now at the West End Gallery
For the first time in years, he felt the deep sadness of exile, knowing that he was alone here, an outsider, and too alert to the ironies, the niceties, the manners, and indeed, the morals to be able to participate.
― Colm Tóibín, The Master
The painting above, The Exile’s Wilderness, is currently at the West End Gallery as part of my current show there. It was originally painted in early 2020 but without the actual figure that represents the Exile, as seen in the bottom right of the image above. I thought that the painting as it was, sans the Exile figure, was really strong and it quickly became one of my favorite pieces from that period in the early days of the pandemic.
I felt then that the painting didn’t need the figure, that it represented a view seen from the eyes of the exile.
But over the past year or so, as much as I liked this painting without the figure, I began to recognize that it actually needed the Exile in order to provide context. After all, not every person who looks at this will see themselves as an Exile.
So, the Exile entered the picture. And, though I was apprehensive as I proceeded, I was pleased by its effect. It’s contrast to the emptiness of the streets and windows made the figure seem even more alone. More apart. It heightened the overall effect for me.
It completed the circle of feeling that I was seeking in it.
Here’s a poem from Robert Frost, read by Tom O’Bedlam, that fits well with the Exile here. It’s his Acquainted With the Night.
Redtree Times 