meditations

Simply, in terms of sport, especially the artistic forms of sport/dance; the boarder launches into the vert(ical)-skate pool and goes to the edge of thought where action is a form of muscular/neurological reaction to senses which short circuits the brain with the responses of trained muscles and nerves. The outcome of the instantly choreographed moves is unpredictable and can result in wipe-out.

The skateboard pro understands general relativity and gravitation with his senses. The viewer of the painting might experience a relative of quantum physics in the light emanating from interference pigments and metallic flakes. These effects cannot be photographed because they exist in both time and space which requires viewing the live painting or a boring video pan of the surface.

Transcending craft and making art, the artist cannot predict an outcome. To him, even in a long and drawn out production, it seems to happen, as a painting viewed; all at once. Art is experimental and cannot be confused with craft or limitations of concept and planned execution but; art contains both craftsmanship and thought as well as planning, chance and faith. This is a condition that the craftsman, naive painter, and conceptualist cannot accept or understand. It requires training with a master painter.

The "Meditations" catalogue is contiguous with the "Boundless" one. The statement of that catalogue of paintings can also be applied to this publication - click. I have not changed my approach. I no longer state the mixed media because after gently spraying the final acrylic clear coats the graphite, and all, are, essentially - pigmented acrylic.

Meditations and boundless are not joined in one file folder because the chronological order and my belief that viewing the 31 images of boundless (August 2016 - January 2017) and the 19 images of meditations (January 2017 - August 2017) would be too much for you comfortably comprehend and not least of all the digital download bandwidth required to load the "menu".

Beginnings and endings and themes have become difficult to assess. Artist's Statements are a problem. It is nearly impossible to be one's own critic and curator. Artist's Statements are problematic to a studio artist. In the studio an artist does not lecture. Oratory being the basis of essays and lecture is operating in opposition and, culturally, doing damage to the master/journeyman/apprentice relationship. The master is aided by the journeymen and if they do not understand the goals and processes they ask questions. The master answers and performs the task as an example. The apprentices observe an illustrated dialog. You can't ask questions and indulge in dialog. I haven't set up my shop as a teaching studio and this website doesn't contain a chat modal. I cannot take a break in my work to video chat with you. You cannot observe me.

You must forgive my writing. I paint outside the institutions of learning and cannot afford to hire help. Perhaps: "Those who can, can't teach"?

I have scaled the thumbnail reproductions in the menu with a ratio to the actual sizes of the panels and canvas. Clicking on the catalogue menu images will load a larger reproduction with the actual sizes in inches and centimeters.

All I can honestly attempt to write is: I am searching for a new objective aesthetic with acrylic in a new subjective, post-modern/digital, 21st century cultural fashion era. People are not wearing the same cloths, driving the same cars, even eating the same foods as they did for the majority of the 20th century. In doing this "work" I am exploring the acrylic medium without loosing connection to the deep history of painted art imparted by my famous teachers, fellow students and artists and their studio training. All the while I am curiously mesmerized by the amazing MassAge Cultural Evolution (popular video/cinema, recorded music, visual novels, digital art/gaming, electric cars, power toothbrushes). I presume that there is no actual break in the history of art which could indicate a date when there was an end of an old way and the beginning of a new. Art and culture are fluids. Nothing in art is disallowed - even (what is) not-art. It is all one to me and nicely separated grains from wind blown chaff ready for milling thanks to the greatest critics of all... time, natural selection, and conservation. In this way I am a Not Artist, not a part of the contemporary academic and commercial art scenes; on the street with the alienated masses, excluded. I don't mind because the perfect viewing point, the best place to set up an easel; is outside the scene in the scope of it.

Digital Mechanics:

I've coded this catalogue remotely homeless, without studio, wandering in various geographical locations in our trailer with my laptop. It occurred to me in the last century that all screens are not the same; the colours and luminosity are all set differently, the sizes and relative height to width are unpredictable. I am relying upon you to set your screen (I use 80% on my laptop). Colours? I have never seen a visual tuning fork. If you see a vertical scroll bar on the right, goto your browser options and reduce the percentage size until the bar disappears. I prefer to view in full screen mode but, your back button disappears. To goto the last HTML page in full screen press alt and left arrow key. To page forward to a previously viewed page press alt right arrow.

This code automatically sizes for cell phone and pad screens. Pinch zooming in and out is allowed.

Coding? Yeah, I enjoy doing it.

Hope you enjoy this too,

: b.smylie