Behind-The-Piece #2: High & Low

Today I wanted to talk about a series of (2) pieces I completed during Winter 2018; let’s begin with High, and Low will follow.

I struggle with time. I struggle with keeping it; with making it; with giving it. I struggle with time the most when the hours have run out and the clock resets. When it feels like the whole world is asleep, and I’m alone, is when it hits me. When I realize the time, day, and world will go on; no matter how late I stay awake;

This is a passage I documented while in the creative moment of conceptualizing the first of these pieces. The writing was initially inspired by the the prompt of: time. That one word was all it took; it was definitely a crippling thing during that period in my life. With those words came these paintings, that speak volumes more.
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This first piece is titled High [shown above] for reasons that might not be the obvious; it was developed from a far more technical approach that I was used to at the time as well as a reflection of myself in that moment. You could say, it’s a self-portrait of sorts. 

Yellow is a very conflicting colour for me; If you observe psychological colour theory charts and basic research online, yellow is universally perceived as a happy, or at least a positive colour. But whenever I see yellow, I always think of Van Gough and his desire for lead poisoning. The colour is  very bittersweet, soft and sad. It felt satisfying already, smoothly spreading the yellow (lead-less) paint over the canvas, using my palette knife to frost it like a cake.

My chosen colour combination, yellow on blue-white, was a very new experiment for me; it challenged me in a way that definitely improved the piece. Then the first strokes of black, my favourite part. The tension it creates, and as it builds while trying to paint a circle in one fowl swoop directly translates that in my lines and strokes using drybrushing.

This piece has currently won a Special merit award from the Light Space & Time Art Galley, where it was exhibited for the month of March 2019.

Low

During this period in my life I was having a huge struggle with my mental and physical health. It was right after college; I was recovering from six-week-long heat stroke and still living off of Gatorade and Mr. Noodles, so not the epitome of health. As obvious as it may be, it’s easy to forget how much our physical health can effect our mental health, and vice versa. I was somehow able to focus all of my extra energy on my art and business. And I’m still proud of my work, even though their origins aren’t so bright.

Because of my poor physical health, manic periods were a frequency and that mania fuelled these pieces. High, was a three day project, whereas Low was about half that time. I find nothing more motivating about a project than the thought of what I’ll create by the end! I feel that energy went into the next and immersed me in the work before I began.

I hope you enjoyed this more personal perspective in this Behind-The-Piece,

-JD.

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