Remembering a Place and Time

'Falling Stars,' ink and acrylic on canvas, 30 x 22 cm

When I am not painting, I am always thinking about my work to try to evaluate where I have been and sift through where I would like to go next. It is not possible to be too fixed when thinking about painting because, with the way I work it is very spontaneous and I rely on the intuition of my hand and brush. But I do believe that thoughts influence how I paint when I pick up my brushes, and it is always good and positive to evaluate the work. 

Paintings constantly influence each other, both past works and current works. Ideas branch out in to new directions while all the while taking the most relevant aspects of my current ideas.

The painting posted above is about a memory from my time staying at the Brickyard Retreat, next to the Great Wall of China (during my Fellowship) last August. Every night I sat outside the restaurant, next to a small pool of Lotus,flowers and watched the moon rise above a forested hill to the east. It was a much appreciated quiet time after the heat and being in the studio every day. That area is very rural and the sky held the brightest stars I have ever seen anywhere! The hill to the east was near where I was sitting and it was covered in a dense forest which appeared jungle-like by day and night. As the moon rose very slowly, I watched it illuminate parts of the hill and the stars almost appeared to be falling and sparkling. This painting incorporates ink and as I worked it suggested this place and time.