Posted on 12/13/2023 12:37:55 PM
By Greg Chamberlin
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Thumbing through my studio journal recently I came across a note from September of this year that caught my attention and demanded further consideration/exploration:
Recent work has me realize they are the paintings of an old man working to perceive the foundation of his own imagination.
Perhaps all of our worthy endeavors are in service to that quest, and that I am just especially slow at sussing it out. All I know is that it wasn’t until I retired and could bask in long stretches of uninterrupted time that I was able to surface such an inquiry and via painting begin to flesh out an answer.
Prior to retirement I knew I had leaned my career ladder against the wrong wall. And while I never saw the top of that ladder I did achieve a modest ascent, one that allowed me to meet my financial responsibilities. As grateful as I was to have the income and work that was interesting and meaningful a portion of my psyche remained dissatisfied.
In my off-hours after work, on weekends, and vacations I tried to address that void. At first I pursued writing. I took workshops, worked with mentors, and garnered encouragement from folks whose opinions I respected.
To make a long story short, after decades of work the energy available to me after a day at the office was insufficient for creative work. In frustration, I began to cut-up my manuscripts and rearrange the text ala’ William Burroughs. Rather quickly I started to include collage materials with the text. Reinvigorated, I made many collages and as that practice evolved I moved away from including text.
One evening, confronted with a purely pictorial surface I had constructed I threw some paint on it. The result startled me and something aligned within. In a short amount of time I began painting and I haven’t looked back.
Most days you can find me in my little home studio working away to more fully realize where paintings come from. Elsewhere I’ve written that I’m inspired by nature, that having been steeped in landscape of the Mid-West aspects of that locale appear in my work. Yet it is more the resulting emotions thereof which manifest and are what people respond to.
What do you think? Are you gripped by such issues? What in my work do you respond to? What resonated with you? Does looking at art (mine or the work of other artists) trigger associations and memories? I’d love to hear from you! Drop me a line.
