My current series of art is inspired by things I have seen while traveling in the Southern US. If you take Hwy 78 in MS, you will notice these water towers and cotton fields. There was a water tower near our home and one of my childhood memories was going there. I think my brother’s friends were going to try and climb it but I was little so I was just along for that ride to look up at them. I have always been kind of drawn to the towers. I remember going to NYC and seeing a modern art display where one was put up as art. I love to see where city’s paint them or make them into design objects like the Georgia peach.
The cotton in the field has a rich history to it. I will never forget going to the pilgrimage play in Natchez, MS and the lines spoken about the cotton. When you see little tuffs of white all along the side of the road that’s not trash, but the cotton that has flew out of the bin. When I see a field of cotton I think of the history of those plantations, I think of civil rights and of the things that field has seen. However, that is not the only stories I see in that field. Since I worked in apparel for many years I think of the cotton from a textile approach as well. I think of the texture of the weave and the breathability of the garment. I think about the crisp sheets hanging on the line that are made from that cotton.
Currently I am exploring making textures on my canvas. I am using acrylic paints with a palette knife and also a brush. I am working toward an abstracted approach. I like to allow the viewer to complete the details. Some of this process comes from my many years of working as a theatrical designer and finding it is better to allow your audience to come along on the journey with you rather than being too realistic. It is better to allow them to fill in the details with their minds.
Maybe my collectors have similar stories from their childhoods and this field might hold their stories
