RADICAL EYES

Just for the hell of it - and to purge the experience of that last abstract from my system - I'm going to do an homage to one of my art heroes. It's totally against the grain, but I don't care. And I have a deadline of approximately two weeks. After that, I'm hoping I can approach painting again without wanting to launch the canvas from my 4th floor studio...

Sketch, pencil on A3 paper, 2014 ( work in progress )

THE END..?

...Maybe.

'SUBTEXT' > VERSION VIII > UNTITLED WORK IN PROGRESS

This morning, bright sunshine shone into the studio for the first time in weeks. I was able to angle the painting in such a way as to easily see all the different areas of the composition in sharp relief. It revealed just how many versions of the piece exist, buried under the layers of paint. This is what I call 'subtext', because it provides the viewer with the backstory - or history - of the piece. If the viewer so wishes, he can 'read' the development of the painting from what is revealed both in the lines, and the partially-exposed areas of 'subcutaneous' colour. 

Here is the painting as it is now, Saturday 8th March 2014, noon.

Acrylic on canvas, 101cm x 76cm

Close-ups of the same piece, below.

The three extreme close-ups below, reveal to me how I would like the painting to look. I'm always reaching for a simplicity, but never seem to be able to get there. These photographs look like the beautiful finished pieces that I keep seeing in my mind's eye. So, far from being a failure, perhaps this current piece has taught me what to aim for in future..? 

PORTRAIT OF MINTY

Thought I'd give you a break from all that angular abstraction that I've been doing. I don't think I've ever shown this pic on this particular blog, although it is on my Facebook page. I drew it about five years ago, at my old studio. My cousin Minty is a model in Ireland. Not sure I got the likeness exactly right, but the two halves look great - the eyes have a real glint in them.

Alexi K, Pencil on Paper, 2009