Daunting, but exciting too – could be a good antidote for my mid-winter slump. I’ve been busy working on paintings for a couple different shows, so I’m starting the month off by cheating just a little bit; I’ll post the four very fresh (still wet!) paintings I’ve made for Zip 37 Gallery‘s “Valentine/UnValentine” show, which opens this Friday evening and runs through February 18. Pictured below is “The Lovers,” oil on canvas, 10″ x 8″.
Tonight I am filled with ineffable sadness. People always talk about “battling depression.” How? Do we punch it in the nose? Break its glass jaw with a hard left? Also I am painting about love and dogs (is there a difference?), making beef stew and sourdough bread, and trying to remember how to blog. I hate January.
I’m excited to be opening this ekphrastic show – painters responding to poets and poets responding to painters – at Zip 37 Gallery in six short days. The entire project had its origin in this blog, sort of, about a year ago. I was participating in Leslie Saeta’s 30 in 30 challenge after losing my studio made me wonder if I would ever want to paint again. Ken Smith was at that time writing a poem a day and posting those poems on Facebook. Ken wrote a piercing short poem titled Clown College Failure in response to one of my little 30 in 30s and I started a large canvas in response to his poem, “An Old Man’s Story.” Do you remember the old Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup Ads? Saying it was just like that is silly, but tonight I feel silly and I’m going to embrace that.
As the date for my show neared, I approached Ken to see if he would be interested in participating in a larger ekphrastic project, including works from some local painters I admire (Gina Smith Caswell, Rebecca Cuming, Joan Fullerton, Lance Green and Mark Penner Howell) as well as a few of my own. Not only was he up for it, he enlisted two Indianan poet friends, David Dodd Lee and Ross Taylor, to participate as well.
Each painting will hang along side its corresponding poem. I could not be more excited for this show. I haven’t seen most of the poetry yet, and one of the paintings will be a surprise to me as well. I love having something to look forward to in these dark times.
I look forward to seeing YOU if you can make it to Zip 37 between February 10 and February 26. The opening reception is Friday, February 10, 5 – 10 and there will be mini-receptions On the following 2 Fridays, Feb. 17 and Feb. 24. Zip is open Thursdays 5- 8, Fridays 5 – 10, Saturdays and Sundays noon – 6.
I don’t know anything about football, but it’s nice to see my friends and family who follow the sport so excited and happy. Will it end in tears tomorrow? Who knows.
Do you get phone calls from people with Indian accents asking about your windows? I do, several times a week. I would love some help with my circa 1945 windows. They are crumbly and leaky and let so much cold into the house. The folks on the other end of the phone claim to be interested in my windows but always hang up when I start telling them about my windows.
Yes, it is actually January 29 which means I am a day late. As a friend recently confessed to me, time is not so much linear anymore. It’s more like a deep pool.
I may be misquoting him. Anyway, I am a day late with this painting, but a busy day it has been. Schlepping for hours and the studio is empty of art. A few bits of wrapping and hardware remain. I’ll fetch those things tomorrow. It echoes, like the first day I popped my head in to that room to take a look. Onward.
Paint Fumes 