I wanna triple.....time as a healer...

Wait   mixed on paper   20 x 13.5

Well then, would that be a triple base run, a triple lutz, or three great paintings in a row?  Sometimes, the ideas expressed by other artists resonate within me.  Not immediately, but will rise to the surface of my thoughts in time.  I am grateful for this.  Last week an artist in my class lamented the fact that he felt he needed to progress more, and the measure for that would be three or four great paintings in a row.  Those of us who have been painting a long while just looked at each other and simultaneously declared, "That ain't gonna happen".  

Like it or not, we have a lot in common with athletes and I believe that we need to incorporate some of their experiences into our own.  While the desire to conquer, to win, to claim the prize is decidedly a left-brain notion, the actual playing of the sport, the moment-to-moment maneuvering of one's body in response to another's is an in-the-present notion that is shared with us artists.....from the R-brain.  One needs only to take in the sports news for a week or so to realize that even the best of the best athletes have their share of disappointments and setbacks.  To attain peak performance at all times is an oddity.  What matters, of course, is the long run, the continued playing of the thing, the continued painting of the thing over time that allows for more success, whatever that might entail for any given individual.  The process is the thing. The love of the thing.  The playing.  The triple-lutzing.  The capturing of light in early morning.  A peak performance at any given event does not guarantee a peak performance at the next.  You are only as good as the current game, the current painting.

"Wait" is about exactly that.  A feeling of failure.  A loss.  Not living up to what one believes is his or her potential.  The only healer is time....waiting.....painful waiting....until the next painting when all goes as planned and one's self-imposed definition of success is met.  Sometimes it happens.

Wait

Wait   mixed/paper   20 x 13.5

No one understands defeat like an athlete. An athlete seems to understand the ebb and flow between victory and defeat and the resultant tenacity that serves him/her well. Everyone experiences defeat. Artists experience defeat when they receive rejection notices from exhibits that have chosen not to include their work. Artists experience defeat as the painting progresses from the deliriously expectant and joyful start to the realization that this work, too, has its flaws and may not be everything they had hoped it would be. But without the polar opposites of victory and defeat, we would not even begin to understand one or the other. Without defeat, success would be devoid of meaning. And I believe a successful athlete learns to gracefully incorporate both victory and defeat into her/his being which leads to a rich and soulful existence. Creative Akron artist Mark Soppeland has a wonderful work at the "Fresh and Witty" exhibit at Summit ArtSpace that is entitled "Obsessing over Other's Successes". This work has been created from old trophies. I can't wait to see it in person! The model for "Wait" posed with a towel around his neck, a dejected look on his face, and a trophy in his hand. I chose to concentrate on the face area, as I hoped that his dejection would have a more generalized influence without a physical trophy. Vertical strokes were used to strengthen the feeling of being "down". As with all sadness and disappointment, the only medicine is time.....the wait is painful.