acrylic on canvas
In some ways, Tea parallels The Visitors in terms of concept and composition. A picnic on the verge of going awry, it involves an attitude of both panic and indifference; when we become unconscious of what we are actually doing because we are so caught up in our heads. The world, however, stops for no one as the goats and other animals reveal, continuing to go about their tasks, driven by their basic needs in their uncomplicated ways.
For me, the two figures represent a collective consciousness and contrasting emotions. The figure on the left is that little voice that keeps us in check when we lose ourselves. She's aware of what's going on unlike the other, who is transfixed in a world unbeknownst to us, her overflowing cup of tea indicative of several things. Humans are an excessive lot, draining precious resources from a world that still manages to sustain us, and a part of this painting speaks to that. The neutral sky and hazy landscape gives this painting an air of ambiguity, which further serves the purpose of this picture, as I wanted its essence to be one of dark playfulness tinged with uncertainty.
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6 comments:
I'm sorry Andrea....I can't help myself from commenting again. There is so much going on here. Seeing a painting like this in a group show....the viewer will not pass in front of it without being invited to engage in the drama. It has that kind of hold that draws you in....people will relate to it on so many levels based on their own life experience. When I first dicovered you art on your mini paintings blog.....at first I didn't understand why images dating from June 2007 and onward carried that kind of days gone by feeling. It's almost as if those paintings were preparatory studies for your current work....or even yet....those mini paintings could have been hanging in the home of the characters found in your current art. They have an isolation quality that is almost undescribable in words.....but felt in the imagery.
Thanks again! I do agree the mini paintings definitely served as preparatory studies, because looking back I think they led me to where I am with these. It all basically stemmed from my love of ruralscapes and the moods I'm drawn towards in them.
really cool stuff ... love the story that you seem to tell with your art
keep on keeping on,
jan
Thank you, Jan!
You had me at the hairdo's
Fantastic. I don't think I've every seen anything like this!
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