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Archive for the ‘Painting’ Category

Cornucopia

Posted in Painting, Recent Paintings, tagged , , , on November 4, 2013| 4 Comments »

GC Myers- Cornucopia smThe cornucopia or horn of plenty, with profuse amounts of fruits and vegetables spilling from its end, is a pretty well known and well worn symbol of abundance and nourishment, seen often at this time of the year when the traditional harvest has taken place and we near our holiday of Thanksgiving here in the States.  The cornucopia has been around for ages, going back into the classical mythology of the Greeks and Romans , but  has been ingrained in the psyche of our culture and still resonates as a symbol.

Perhaps that is why the image of the cornucopia came to mind when I had finished this new painting,  an 18″ by 36″ canvas that fittingly carries the title Cornucopia.  When I looked at it it seemed that the landscape sat at the end of a spiralling cone that emerged from the sun here and the multicolored fields represented the bounty of the land that you see in a horn of plenty.  The orchard on the lower left could be a group of apples spraying from the horn.  The sky and sea shapes coming down to the saddle shape of the landscape reinforce  this image, forming a horn-like shape.  The Red Tree could be a bunch of grapes or simply the recipient of this abundance, serving itself up in gratitude to the sky.

I think this is a piece about gratitude, recognizing what the world has given you.  We all too often focus on striving for more without seeing the gift  before us that  we have been given in the preciousness of the moment.   Every day has a gift for us.  Whether we recognize it is our own choice.  That’s what I see here in the warmth and generous spirit of this painting.

This painting is also part of Alchemy, my solo show at Erie’s Kada Gallery which opens November 16th.

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The Furthest Reach

Posted in Motivation, Painting, Quote, Recent Paintings, tagged , , , , , on October 27, 2013| 6 Comments »

GC Myers- The Furthest Reach smNone of us will ever accomplish anything excellent or commanding except when he listens to this whisper which is heard by him alone.

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

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This painting is called The Furthest Reach, a 20″ by 24″ canvas headed to the Kada Gallery for my November show.  This has been done for a few weeks now and has been at the edge of my sight as I have been prepping for this show.  There is something quite reassuring about having it there, serving as a reminder of the trust I have placed in that inner voice that Emerson references in the quote above.

 It has taken a number of years and many thousands of hours spent in the relative isolation of the studio to truly trust that voice, to feel as though I have separated my work from all  external noise and distraction, including the subjective criticism and opinion of others.   It has allowed me to use this  trust as the sole criteria for my work, to no longer judge it against the work or opinion of others.

With this trust the work becomes self-sovereign and, as I have written here earlier this year, the  island serves as a symbol of  this self-sovereignty while the stance of the Red Tree, a symbol of the work for me here,  represents the liberated feeling attained in the realization of this trust.  I see the dock as the gateway to outer world, meaning that while there is trust in the work spawned from this inner voice there is also a willingness to share it  with this outer world.

Again, that’s how I have come to see it in the last few weeks here in the studio.  Perhaps you will see something quite different.  Maybe you will see a confidence and  tranquility in it that meshes with your own experience or perhaps  simply a pleasant scene with a quiet warmth.  Or maybe you won’t see anything in at all.

Whatever your inner voice whispers to you, place some trust in it…

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Under the Yoke- Jarnefelt

Posted in Painting, tagged , , , on October 22, 2013| 4 Comments »

Jarnefelt- under-the-yoke-burning-the-brushwoodI had come across some work from a Finnish artist, Eero Jarnefelt (1863-1937),  whose work  I had not seen before,  It was being shown in a list and as I scrolled down the group I was impressed with his style and the quality of the colors and light in his work.  It was beautiful work, thoughtful and filled with a tranquil quality.  But the final image was a hard veer away from the rest of the body of his work, a smoke and fire filled image of people beating the ground with sticks and in the midst of it , a young girl standing still among the smoldering ashes, staring into the eyes of the viewer as the fire blazes over her left shoulder.

It was a striking image and the girl’s face was haunting with her cheeks and brow smudged with ash.  She looks exhausted and mournful which is obviously the look that struck the artist Jarnefelt in 1893 when this was painted and prompted him to title this painting Under the Yoke.  These words are taken from the Kalevala, the Finnish national epic which is said to have been the main inspiration for much of JRR Tolkien‘s work.  Finland had long been under yoke of Swedish and Russian domination and the mood from it is captured in this little girl’s forlorn look.

It’s became jarnefelt’s most famous work, understandably.  It only serves to underscore the impression his other work made on me.

Jarenfelt- Kesäyön Kuu 1889 Jarnefelt- Saimi in the Meadow 1892 Jarneflet- Vesileinikki 1895

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The Upward Gaze

Posted in Painting, Quote, Recent Paintings, tagged , , , , , on October 17, 2013| Leave a Comment »

GC Myers- The Upward Gaze smAstronomy compels the soul to look upwards and leads us from this world to another.
–Plato

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I have painted a couple of paintings this past year that have featured an observatory propped upon a hill.   I like the idea that this building has a shape and a location that instantly defines it, making it almost symbolic of the desire to transcend this world that it contains.  This desire to transcend, to know more, is built within us and we  seek these existential answers in many ways, sometimes in the stars and sometimes in the spiritual.  Others seek these answers in other worldly ways, either through love , pleasure or labor, among many other things.

These different ways of searching  are what I think is the central theme of this new new painting, The Upward Gaze, a 20″by 24″ canvas that is part of my November show, Alchemy, at the Kada Gallery.  The observatory is there resting high above the other buildings as it looks for the celestial answer: where have we come from?  Then there is the a church with a steeple that is pointing upward seeking an response from above to its question: where are we going?  On the lower left there is a barn among the fields which for me symbolizes the question: what is our purpose here?  The Red Roofs of all of the buildings here act as indicators, each pointing upward.

The road heads outward from this group of building, moving  toward and disappearing before  the horizon, over which an all-knowing  sun/moon hovers among a mosaic sky.  The soft,broken colors of the sky feel like light particles to me, the energy that propels this whole thing.

It’s a seemingly simple painting but I think there is much more to it…

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Hub

Posted in Painting, Technique/History, tagged , on October 11, 2013| 6 Comments »

GC Myers- Hub sm

This is a new painting, a 24″ by 36″ canvas, that is going to the Kada Gallery as part of my upcoming show, Alchemy.  Actually, it’s not a new painting.  Most of it was painted in 2009 and was shown for a short time before coming back to the studio, where it has been for the last three years.  It has been an enigma to me hanging on the wall there.  It has a real oomph to it, a visual wallop in the color and form,  but there was always something lacking.  I finally determined that it was just too dark through the center.  I had decided when I originally painted it that the darkness was where the piece was going and was integral to the painting.  So I stopped at a point when I should have been forging onward.

It was one of those cases where I misread the painting and what it was telling me.

So this week I finally took it down and went back in, bringing light to the central swath of the painting.  It created a huge change in the mood and impact of the painting, the Red Tree stepping forward from the shadow in which it was trapped for these years.  It finally became the painting I was thinking it was when I cut short its creation back in 2009.  It still has the darkness, mainly in the foreground, that I felt was integral to the painting’s impact but now, through the added light, it had greater depth into the scene.  Everything just stands out so much better.  The dynamism that I felt was there is now fully visible.

I’ve been fortunate that this doesn’t happen all too often, this misreading of one of my pieces.  But if it has to happen, it is so gratifying to be able to revisit the painting to rectify the situation and reveal the truth of the painting that I had overlooked.

Here is the “before” image:

GC Myers- Huboriginal

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Alchemy

Posted in Painting, Quote, tagged , , , , on October 8, 2013| 2 Comments »

GC Myers--Alchemy

“This is why alchemy exists,” the boy said. “So that everyone will search for his treasure, find it, and then want to be better than he was in his former life. Lead will play its role until the world has no further need for lead; and then lead will have to turn itself into gold.

That’s what alchemists do. They show that, when we strive to become better than we are, everything around us becomes better, too.”

— Paulo Coelho, The Alchemist

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I am currently getting ready for my final solo show of the year, this one at the Kada Gallery in Erie, PA, opening November 16th.  I am calling this show Alchemy, from the ancient and mysterious practice ( I use the word practice to describe it because I am not sure how to categorize it as it is not really a science as we know it) that is defined by its stated goals of turning base metals into gold or silver and creating an elixir that would give man’s life great longevity, possibly immortality.  Most of  us  likely think of it in terms of some wild-eyed scientist trying to find a way to transform lead into gold.

But at the heart of alchemy is the simple concept of the transformation of something ordinary into something more than it initially appears to be.  That really strikes home for me.  I have often written of  sometimes feeling surprised when I finish a piece, as though the end result, the sum of my painting, is often far more than what I have to personally offer in terms of talent or knowledge.  Like there is a force beyond me that is arranging these simple elements of this work into something that transcends the ordinariness of the subject or materials or the creator.  This feeling has remained a mystery to me for almost twenty years, driving me to write here in hopes of stumbling across words that would adequately describe this transformation of simple paint and paper into something that I sometimes barely recognize as being my own creation, so marked is the difference between the truth of the resulting work and my own truth.

Even as I write this, I can see that my words are inadequate to describe this vaporous process.  So I will stop here but will  attempt to better capture the mystery of this in the next several weeks in this blog.

The painting at the top is the title piece, Alchemy,  for the upcoming show.  It is 18″ by 48″ on canvas.  I wanted the painting that carried this title to have the things that I think make up this curious transformation– simplicity and symmetry and depth.  I think this painting captures these elements and even as I painted it, it started a transformation that continually surprised me.  I sit now  writing this and this painting sits on an easel in my studio and I am still surprised, even after all of these years, at what has emerged.

It must be alchemy…

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Greener Pastures: 42

Posted in Favorite Things, Painting, Recent Paintings, Television, tagged , , , , on September 29, 2013| 5 Comments »

GC Myers- "Greener Pastures: 42"It’s kind of a sad Sunday.  For one thing, our favorite ice cream place, Mindy Moo’s,  is closing for the season.  Actually, that’s probably a good thing as we have been indulging way too often but I still hate to see it close.

Secondly, tonight is the finale to what may be the finest show to ever come across a television screen, Breaking Bad.  I have been addicted since it first  exposed us to the moral gymnastics of high school chemistry teacher Walter White as he found his way into the world of meth, hoping to make enough cash to support his family after his imminent death from the cancer that had recently emerged.   His moral dilemma and the subsequent downward spiral has been a wild ride, supported by incredible writing, storylines and performances, often leaving me gasping at the end of an episode.  I will sorely miss it and have a feeling that almost everything else on TV will pale in comparison for some time to come.

Mariano Rivera Entering the FieldAnd finally, today is the end of era in baseball as Mariano Rivera rides off into the sunset, retiring from the New York Yankees as unquestionably the greatest closer ever and perhaps the most respected and beloved player to come around in a long, long time. Even Red Sox fans give Mariano, he of the hated Yanks, a standing ovation.  He has been nothing but class since day one, never pounding his chest or belittling his opponents and always showing the utmost respect for the game that has given a poor, skinny boy from Panama so much over the years .  His stoic demeanor on the mound is almost Zen in its nature and has long comforted Yankee fans when games are in a tight spot, even on those rare occasions when he has failed.

The painting at the top of the post,  a 12″ by 12″ canvas,  is titled Greener Pastures: 42.  The number 42 on the outfield wall is meant to honor both Mariano and the man who wore it most famously before him,  the barrier breaking Jackie Robinson.  Mariano is the last player to wear this hallowed number after it was retired by Major League Baseball to honor Robinson and has done so with  a fitting grace and character.  On the day honoring Mariano at Yankee Stadium last Sunday, one of my favorite moments was when  Rachel Robinson, Jackie’s widow now aged 91, was on the field and she cupped Mariano’s face in both hands, staring hard into his face with such a wonderful look on her face.  I don’t know what she was thinking or conveying but it looked like she was letting Mo know that Jackie would have approved of the way Mariano has honored his number and his memory.

Hard to believe that after today, there is no more ice cream (well, for a while) or Breaking Bad or Mariano.  Like I said, it’s a sad Sunday with a few glorious endings…

 

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Soft Dream of Night

Posted in Favorite Things, Painting, Quote, tagged , , , on September 25, 2013| 4 Comments »

GC Myers- Soft Dream of Night smIf one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with success unexpected in common hours.

–Henry David Thoreau

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This has long been one of my favorite pieces in the studio, a  14″ by 24″ painting on paper from 2002 called Soft Dream of Night.  It was part of the work that I completed in early 2002 in the aftermath of  9/11 .  It is considered part of what has been  referred to as my Dark Work.  It was work that I feel was very reflective of the feeling of that time and, as a result, was not as deeply embraced as my  typical work that has a more optimistic and forward-looking tone.  As a result, I was able to hold on to several pieces from that group which pleased me because they just felt so emotionally wrought to me that I liked the idea that they stayed in place.

This piece has evolved in feeling over the years for me, from a feeling of regretful, mournful retrospection to one that offers  the promise of a road forward, one that climbs through rich fields with the brightness  of  the moon to light the way.  Though it has a darkness beneath its surface, it no longer feels dark in tone.  It has a confidence and positive feel that would not have come to mind eleven years ago.

Time often changes our perceptions on many things.  I like that this piece has evolved for me and was not forever mired in the memory and tragedy of that time.  Perhaps the darkness underneath this painting is that memory, always present.  But above, life moves forward and dreams are still lived out.

As it should be…

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Arcimboldo

Posted in Favorite Things, Neat Stuff, Painting, tagged , , , , , on September 19, 2013| 4 Comments »

Arcimboldo- Rudolf II of the Hapsburgs as VertumnusYou don’t often think of work of art from an Italian Renaissance painter as being whimsical. Generally, they seem to focus on themes of religion and myth or on portraiture of wealthy patrons of the time, most beautifully painted.  Then there is the work of Guiseppe Arcimboldo, who was born in Milan in 1527 and died there in 1593, although much of life was spent in the service of  the Hapsburg courts of Vienna and Prague.

Arcimboldo was trained as stained glass designer and painter and initially worked in these fields in a traditional manner.  Much of the work from this time has faded into oblivion, although there are examples of his windows and a fresco or two.  However, it was his other work that gained him fame in his time and which has came through the ages as a constant source of fascination.

Arcimboldo-Winter 1573The other work was creating portraits, sometimes of his patrons such as the portrait at the top of Rudolf II ,  that are composed using all sorts of objects to create the figure and features of the subject.  He used fruits, vegetables, birds, books, fish and many other objects in creating these unusual figures.  The final result was always striking, colorful and whimsically imaginative.  And sometimes grotesque, even a bit spooky– I’m thinking here of a series of pieces that Arcimboldo created portraying the Winter season as a person., such as this example on the right, painted in 1573.

Arcimboldo’s work always brings a smile to my face while also stirring my interest in how he must have worked at the time and how he was perceived in that era.  I am sure he was both admired and disliked for his unique work.  Whatever the case, the work remains a fascination.  I am showing several example here but you can go  a site– Guiseppe Arcimboldo: The Complete Works— that features a broader view of his work.  Very interesting.

Arcimboldo-TierraArcimboldo-The Waiter Arcimboldo-Air Arcimboldo- The Librarian Arcimboldo- The Admiral arcimboldo-winter_1563

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Wish I Was a River

Posted in Favorite Things, Music, Painting, Personal Mythology, tagged , , on September 18, 2013| 4 Comments »

GC Myers- Wish I Was a River smThere are some pieces in  my studio that will always be with me , some because they are very personal pieces, virtual parts of my memory.  Others because they are somewhat lacking and I wouldn’t want them out in the world.  Then there are some that stay simply because I want them here.  This piece is one of those.

It is painted on a piece of our old upright piano , the lid that opened on its top.  It’s about 8″ tall by 62″ long.  You might think that this painting is about the  heavy clusters of Red Roofs but for me this is a piece of escape.  That cool blue ribbon of water that cuts through this painting, shown only in snips, is freedom to me, a rushing current to carry me away from the noise and chaos of the gathered village.  Or better yet, I could become the river and move easily and forever– hopefully– through the land, joined with the other waters of the world.

I find myself thinking a lot when I look at this piece, which I do most everyday as it is mounted above the large window in my studio.  It gives me pause and makes me think about being quiet internally, stilling the spinning wheels.  But most of all, it makes me wish I was that river.

I call this piece Wish I Was a River, sort of after the Joni Mitchell song, River.  However, her chorus goes “ I wish I had a river…”  Maybe I’m being greedy here but I want to be the river.  Maybe I’d let her skate away on me.  I don’t know.

Here’s the song from Joni Mitchell.

 

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