Robert Graves Gallery submission and new Artist Statement

Well, the past few days have busy indeed. Monday, although that is a day I work in the office seeing clients, I did have time in the middle of the day to create yet another blog. One that is not just about us, but about the arts in our area. The title being the Arts in the Valley and beyond. Several people have been very interested and have been submitting info for me to write up in the blog. So; ofcourse, yesterday we were so busy with other equaly important projects, that I have yet to get back to that. And, speaking of yesterday. I encouraged Martha to get back to work on the Robert Graves Gallery materials. Since last I wrote on that she has been touching up the painting that will go into that submission. So, while Martha worked on her Artistist Statement, and put together several list of important exhibits, publications and commissions she has had over the years, I took some new pictures of the newly touched up paintings and then helped with the bio and Artist Statement. I have included the new Artist Statement for this grouping of paintings that have been hand sellected for the Robert Graves submission. It follows here and I think it is really good.

Artist Statement

With this show I have put together a collection of my works that are not just a retrospective of my work. But, that tell the story in some way of my own inflorescence. Inflorescence ; being a botanical term that is central to the form and function of a flower.  But,  more of that later.

When I was trained formally as an artist, I was encouraged (encouraged is perhaps too polite of a term) to move away from the personal and more toward the abstract and impersonal. So, I stopped drawing and painting of faces and the familiar forms I was so familiar with growing up in Central America and instead concentrated on abstract imagery.

From this came the long and fruitful series of large and colorful pieces that I called “Organic Forms”  These pieces had all the shapes and colors of truly organic mostly fruitlike forms, but yet were not of any specific or recognizable organic object be it fruit or vegetable or other. Though, certainly one can see many familiar organic shapes within the forms. Some of this is intentional, and, others not so much.

Still, I was not content to stay with indefinitely, and as I matured and progressed both artistically and personally having gone through a number of important phases, periods and life events, I came to reconnect with the personal and emotional in my work… perhaps it was never completely absent, even from my most abstract work.  Then, as I came into my own personal flowering and independence in my life, I came to embrace the personal and emotional in my work in a way that was instep with the changes I was going through in my life.  I infused my own flowering and growth as a person coming to myself in the larger world and gave expression to this as the “Immerging Women” theme in my work that is present in so many of my pieces over the past two decades.

Eventually, as I became more personally satisfied with my own life and could re-embrace my love and appreciation for who I am, where I am from and the love I have for all things innocent and full of life and promise, I began to give voice to the child within me, rediscovering my joy and, skill and pleasure at drawing and painting children and families.

And, eventually came full circle to revisiting the faces and forms that were so familiar to me in my childhood. As a product of this, I have over the past several years done many paintings of Central American women…some from memory and some inspired by the travels my husband and I have done over the past decade throughout Central America and the Caribbean. The resulting work of this period is such that, to do it justice, it needs to be a show unto itself.  I have, thus chosen to not include the women and children representing these memories and travels in this collection and instead have stayed with the central theme of my own inflorescence in order to present a coherent theme for this show. In the future, I think a show centered on the faces and people of the land of my birth and surrounding countries would be wonderful show as well.  

As to that botanical term, Inflorescence, which is a cluster of flowers that together form a rather showy blossom.  In some kinds of inflorescence the youngest flowers are at the bottom somewhat smothered or hidden.  And, there are those in which the youngest flowers are at the top or in the center of the flower and the first thing that one sees.

Like these different kinds inflorescences, there have been those times in my life, as in the lives of many, wherein I was more like the one kind than the other. There have been times in which the youngest or most youthful parts were clearly present for all to see and other times in which this youthful life and vigor have been more hidden and less visible at first glance.

But, this youthfulness is none-the-less always present. Even, if, a little uncovering is necessary to find that newness that is the flowering child full of promise that was so evident when we were young and not yet fully formed and mature.  

And, so; Inflorescence, is not just a play on words including the name of Flores. It is a genuine expression of the flowering of the soul or essence of, not just my self, but of all of us. And, that should be present throughout our lives.

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