Layers of Color 1604

Layers of Color series: non-figurative, spontaneous, phenomenal paintings

Begun in 2015, the Layers of Color series pursues painting as pure visual phenomenon, freed from the structure of figurative motifs. This work is the fourth of 2016 and the thirteenth in the series overall.

The basic method of the series is to layer and sand acrylic paint, then decide which surface counts as complete, orientation included.

There is no explicit theme. I hope you will first take in the colors and textures that emerge on the canvas simply as phenomena, just as they are.

I began this work with only a vague image as motivation: “pink as the main color.” On the premise that pink tones would be applied last, I first built up the layers with free, improvisational decisions, laying down colors other than pink.

Sanding away built-up paint means that part of it is lost. At the same time, the picture rises into view. Vanishing and emergence occur together. I continue sanding while exploring the state that appears between control and chance.

I consider a work finished when I feel that physical strength and imagistic richness coexist at a high level across the entire surface. It is the moment the picture reaches a beauty that exceeds my expectations yet feels inevitable.

The canvas is first prepared with a careful ground on both front and back, then temporarily stretched over a working board. On the front, more than twenty layers of paint, across both broad areas and details, are built up. The surface is then developed by sanding with waterproof sandpaper under running water. After the work is completed on the board, the canvas is cleaned and dried, then stretched onto its wooden stretcher bars. Because the surface is sanded out, it is smooth and can be wiped clean with a cloth.

My aim is to make full use of one of painting’s essential qualities: its “layered magic.”

In 1999, I found a way of working that answered the desire I have held since I first set out to paint. Since then, through a consistent technique and matière, layering and sanding acrylic paint, I have pursued the possibilities of painting.

3 weeks