The Long Rectangle: Painting Studies

Black "V", 20 x 10 inches

Archimedes, 10 x 22 inches; A study for a 20 x 44 inch painting

Black Slant, 10 x 28 inches; A study for an 18 x 50 inch painting

Living in the far frozen Northeast Kingdom of Vermont, I am eager for each summer to arrive so that I can go out to farms and work on painting studies for the upcoming year's work. All my studies are gouache on paper; I also shoot black and white photos for detail. I never know beforehand what my eye will pick up or what will interest me, which makes for an adventure. Each year my work changes a bit. This summer, I've been influenced by my hooked rugs again, in that I've done quite a few long rectangles. I find the shape an exciting one to work with; it allows for very different pictorial tensions than a conventional rectangle. The pull of blacks in Black Slant with the pings of yellow on green create an interesting rhythm. The repetitive curves of Archimedes roll across the wide surface. The emphatic triangular movement of Black "V" is emphasized by its length.