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Monday, June 1, 2009

Now you see it...now you don't

Hidden Symmetry   oil/canvas   48 x 24 x 1.5
Illusion is what painters do....the illusion of a 3-dimensional object on a 2-dimensional ground. My community of Brimfield is probably like many semi-rural communities in that it is being invaded by commercial ventures such as WalMart, Lowe's, Dollar Tree, Appleby's and Kohl's. Things are changing rapidly. A beautiful barn on my road was always a stand-out due to it's two dilapidated but beautiful spires. I always hoped to paint them. A couple of years ago, I finally had an opportunity to produce a painting of each one. Whoa...........within a few weeks of completion, the spires were removed and disassembled, despite local rumors that the owners were going to completely refurbish the structure. I feel lucky. My goal in "Hidden Symmetry" was to juxtapose the extreme texture of the shingles and old wood with a complete smoothness of the background. As always, easier said than done. My normal painting style is full of texture and strokes. Painting the background was most difficult, what with trying to hide and smooth out brushstrokes. "Hidden Symmetry" can be seen in "The View From Here", currently on exhibit at Second April Galerie in Canton.