Human beings are works in progress that mistakenly think they’re finished.
–Daniel Gilbert
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The statement at the top from Harvard psychologist Daniel Gilbert is one that I have found very true for myself and many of those I know, although sometimes we tend to see folks captured at certain steps in their changing lives through our memories of single moments. His words also has a certain truth for some of my work, as well.
One of the paintings that went to my current Kada Gallery show was the painting shown above, Sovereign Solitude. It’s a painting that has been with me for a couple of years now, one that somehow hasn’t yet found a home. It was a piece that really resonated for me and I found myself surprised when it came back from showing in a couple of galleries. It was in my studio for some time and I began to try to look at it with the imagined eyes of someone else. For me, it was complete but looking longer at it, I discovered that I was only seeing it as complete. I was filling in its blank areas with the knowledge of what needed to be done. Without actually doing those things.
So I went back into it. The clouds had been dark masses of red and they changed to have more lightness in them. The white side of the structure became much whiter and the tree, which had been barren, gained some light foliage along with a few falling leaves. The mass of color that was the sky was darkened at the upper and outer edges. Finishing, it still held that same satisfying sensation for me but now seemed to be complete, to not hold the blanks spaces that I saw as being filled in my mind.
I guess you can’t be afraid to change.
Here’s what I wrote about this piece a few years back. I think it still applies after the change. Maybe more so.
The word sovereignty often comes to mind often when I scan through the body of my work. The idea of the individual standing apart, self-reliant and strong, is an appealing notion to me, as it is to many others. This sovereign individual is still part of this world yet self-contained, it alone being responsible for its actions and reactions. It has made its choice and it has chosen solitude.
This is a scary concept for some, a life where we must take responsibility for our actions and decisions, where we relish our time alone in solitude. It is a freedom which we profess to desire but are often hesitant in pursuing. It may not be a freedom which suits everybody but for those who seek this sovereignty of self, there is no greater reward than living by your own decisions and beliefs. We may not seem significant in the greater world but we have the power to rule our own lives.
And that should always be remembered.
This painting is a good example of this thought. It has a warmth and calmness in it that I myself find appealing. It is like taking a deep breath then slowly releasing it, allowing the effects of this action to be felt fully. The pulse slows and breathing levels off.
Solitude found.
Redtree Times 