LATE SEASON - THE FAR VIEW AND ITS CONSEQUENCES

#1230, 18" x 18". Ink and watercolor suspended in polyvinyl resin glue on wood.

You may notice this piece looks a little different. It represents what I consider to be a late-season breakthrough. Let me explain.

Making these things is mostly hard work involving intense concentration. The pleasure comes from looking at them afterward. And I look at them alot, sometimes with a very critical eye.
Late this season I became concerned about how, when viewed close-up, the individual expansion events look spectacular - but when viewed from far across the studio many just looked like filled-in dots of color (the events that expand all the way to the edge of the glue pool, what I call "fills").
To me, the events that remained distinctive shapes within the glue pool looked more interesting and dynamic from a distance. This seemed even more obvious to me when a studio visitor commented on the same thing (thanks, Vic).
So I resolved to try creating a piece composed entirely of "non-fills" - formulas known to retain distinctive shapes within their pools.
This piece represents the first attempt and may serve as a starting point when work resumes in Spring of 2013.

Currently in my possession for the pleasure of continual gazing.

RETROSPECTIVE

#1229 (New Formulas 2012 In Order of Discovery), 24"h x 36"w. Ink and watercolor suspended in polyvinyl resin glue on wood.

This piece is a kind of time capsule of 2012. It compiles all 77 (!) new formulas of the 2012 season in order of discovery (from upper left to lower right). Click on the image to see it larger.

A personal favorite. A diary of sorts.

At Studio One 11, Palm Springs.

THE BIG ONE

#1228 (King's Court Strategy), 36" x 36".

This is a greatly expanded version of the King's Court Strategy (see previous "King's Court Strategy" post for the smaller study and a detailed description of how the strategy functions).
The second of only two 36" x 36" pieces attempted during the 2012 glue season. Pieces this large represent alot of labor and material costs and are usually only created by request or commission. Or to test a pet strategy.
Click on the image to enlarge.
As of this writing, this piece is available through Fresh Paint Art, Culver City, CA.

ON PERFECTION AND SYMPATHY

The expansion event above is a good example of what can happen on a perfect day - or more specifically - a perfect moment in the studio: a perfect expansion.
Since my studio is an uninsulated barn-like space it is very much in communication with the weather environment outside. During the warm months of glue season I have to initiate expansion events (drop color) during the early morning hours when conditions are the most balanced and temperate - "just right". But even in this window of time, there are better days than others. Sometimes it's too dry or too humid, sometimes the barometric pressure too low. Many factors come into play.
But when conditions are especially optimal I can feel it. It feels comfortable to me. Pleasant. And what I've discovered is that the glue medium is sympathetic to the same environmental influences. In other words, when conditions are such that i feel good the glue "feels" good too. Because we both share the same liquid density? I don't really know.
All I know is that the pool will be a benign and receptive environment for the color formulas. The expansion will be gradual, full, and smooth with all the graceful flourishes the formula can provide.

Glue is without a doubt the most sensitive and sympathetic material I've ever worked with. Kind of mysterious in that way. Probably the reason I'm still exploring its properties 20 years on...