Friday, May 22, 2015

What's this painting about?

I am often perplexed when someone asks me what a painting is about,
what it means, or what I am saying.  Just as the words I choose to express an idea will more or less frame and colour the fluid thought I have in mind, so they will be heard and interpreted differently by every listener, depending on context, history, perceived tone and expression; a myriad different interpretations.

And beyond that, other than direct illustrations in response to a concrete text, paintings which I create may begin with a line or shape and thereafter take on a meaning different every time I work on them and holding each of these references for me while perhaps having none of these for the viewer.

So unless we have a lot of time - and I mean A LOT - to discuss all these various themes, histories and nuances given the lines, colours and shapes that appear, go ahead and tell me what sort of response YOU have to a piece.  Really.  Go ahead.  No response is unacceptable.  And let's go from there. 

2 comments:

  1. I love your drawing of fish hands. I had a dream about something like that, but I still don't know what that means. Good luck with your festival! I think you have a good answer to people asking what things mean. It could be curious to find out how they respond.

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  2. Thanks, Linda. If it comes up, I'll make a post about it. I'm not sure what the fish hands mean either. Sometimes a dream is clearly my quiet mind demanding that I pay attention to something I've been ignoring, and at other times I take it as a nudge to think more deeply. I'm sure these fish hands were a dream before they became ink on paper.

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So glad you stopped by. I love to hear your thoughts. Drop me a line! Hurrah! Aino