Love, Hope, Faith

Love, Hope Faith, Mixed Media on Watercolor paper, 7.5"x7.5", $250

Love, Hope, Faith

This is a painting I did last year. I wasn't painting much, but I did go to a workshop and this piece came from that. The title comes from the words I wrote on the painting - you can just see them along the bottom edge. This was actually part of a much bigger painting (an exercise in using reds) that really didn't work as a whole but provided me with this painting and several good "starts" for later work. I have been reluctant to use a lot of red in a painting - whenever I start in that direction, I hear "If you can't make it good, make it big; if you can't make it big, make it red." in my head. This painting was an effort to get past that mental roadblock.

As we continue to avoid congregating in groups and traveling about, I am exploring concepts, symbols, and personal expression as I seek to grow artistically. I am working to integrate abstraction and representational elements, as a way to make emotional connections with my art.

Note: This painting is currently for sale at ArtHound in Essex Jct., VT. Contact John Churchman at john@arthoundgalleryvt.com to purchase or to inquire about my other paintings.

Symbols of Love and Loss

Love and Loss, Charcoal on Paper, 24"x18"

Symbols of Love and Loss

With all of the emotional and societal chaos around us, it can be hard to find a mentally quiet space to think. I have been making an effort to do just that in my studio, using this time to explore concepts and feelings and how to portray them in my art.

In this drawing, I explore the intersection of love and loss, something that all of us are confronted with sooner or later. Clearly the symbol of love is the rose. Even though it is a cliche, the rose really speaks to me - I love the shapes, the velvet petals, the heavenly scent. My father used to raise roses in his garden outside of Atlanta when I was a child. Mom always stopped to smell rose blossoms wherever she found them. And, in spite of the harsh Vermont winters, I have somehow managed to keep a collection of roses growing in my gardens over the years.

As for loss, many of you will recognize the black border as a symbol of loss. Growing up, the child of immigrants, I can remember my parents receiving thick envelopes with the tell-tale black or gray border (or in later years, sometimes a lilac one) sent via ship mail from the old country. Each envelope contained the news of someone's death - an uncle or aunt, a parent, an old friend. The thickness of the letter foretold family news, a story of someone's passing. And the letter came by ship to purposely delay its arrival until after the funeral - no one wanted my parents to feel obliged to use meager savings to go to a funeral.

I hope all of you are safe and healthy as we navigate the upheavals associated with of this pandemic.

Fruit on a Shelf

Fruit on a Shelf, Charcoal on Paper, 24"x18"

Fruit on a Shelf

In this drawing, I wanted to play with the idea of different planes. Each plane has fruit sitting on it. The trick here was to create movement, a visual path, and interesting shapes and values. I was working from memory with regard to the various fruits, so not all of them sit on their shelf as they should or adhere to the rules of perspective. But that's what sketching is all about - exploring ideas and figuring out how to make them work. I actually like this - the repeated criss-cross areas connect the various planes while the assortment of fruits make for interesting shapes. I could make a bunch of different paintings using this underlying concept while varying the colors, sizes and varieties of fruit as well as changing up the division of space. Lots of potential!

Most of these drawings take about an hour to do. I try to work relatively quickly to nail down the concept without over-thinking it. I can always come back to an idea and refine it.

Radishes and Scallions - Spring is Coming

Radishes and Scallions, Charcoal on Paper, 24"x18"

Ready For Spring

Winter is long here in Vermont. The snow was finally gone on Sunday, but we got a new dump Monday night. I am ready for Spring. This is a drawing of radishes and green tail onions (scallions), two of the earliest vegies in the garden. I had hoped to plant the first seeds this week but I will now have to wait for the snow to go - maybe next week. As with the other drawings I have been posting, most of this is from memory. I am working with an idea, some simple shapes, and values.

As an aside, I picked my first daffodils a few days ago - that is really early here. Also, The buds on the maple trees are also starting to open. If you look really closely at a maple when it blooms, you will discover that those little bumps are actually red, green and yellow bells and are interesting and really attractive. And, the pussy willows are finally showing their silver-white fuzzy blooms. So Spring is definitely on the way and none too soon.

I hope you are all able to stay safe and healthy, and also get a little space and time to create and to experience Spring unfold.

Travel and Interconnectedness

International Travel, Charcoal on Paper, 24"x18"

Traveling the World

I have begun sorting my parents' things, especially photos and documents. One of the things I found last week was a pile of passports - 65 years worth for each parent. Most of them had international stamps from border crossings made visiting family or moving or just vacationing. The earliest passports were from their country of birth. Later, after becoming U.S. citizens, they got American passports. Through all of those years, there were dozens of countries visited.

This drawing was based on the idea of travel and international connections. I used the booklets and the variety of Customs stamps to create a visual collage. 

Seeds and the Cycle of Life

Seeds, Charcoal on Paper, 24"x18"

Seeds and the Cycle of Life

I have long been fascinated by seeds and seed pods. I love the shapes of the pods and the fact that they remain after the flowers have died and the leaves have fallen. I have a large vase in my studio that contains stems of seed pods from my gardens and walks along the road and through the woods. There are milkweed, tulip, poppy, day lily, and Siberian iris pods as well as lotus (obviously purchased), and road-side weeds. I composed this drawing on the fly, adding shapes as the spirit moved me. This is another really busy, active composition that I hope will offer a basis for up-coming paintings.

In addition to the basic beauty of seeds and seed pods, I am interested in their symbolism in the cycle of life. They appear as the flower dies, but contain the source of new life in their seeds. So they bridge the old generation and the new. The pods are frequently resilient, weathering storms and pests to protect the seeds until they are ready to emerge and begin a new cycle.

Art in the Time of Coronavirus

Time, Charcoal on Paper, 24"x18"

Art in the Time of Coronavirus

Like many of you, we have been encouraged to stay home. So I am using some of that time to focus on my art, spending valuable time in the studio. Since there is no commercial pressure right now, I am taking this time to think about themes, personal symbols, new techniques, etc. Since I am also coming off two years of personal (family) up-heaval, this seems an especially apt time to think about my artistic direction and personal expression.

Since my art has been on hiatus for a while, I thought I would start with loose charcoal sketches to create visual interpretations of broad concepts. This piece is about time. I like clocks and watches, as well as the time elements associated with the sun, moon and stars (our celestial time keepers.) Losing my parents has forced me to acknowledge the passage of time and my elevation to the elder generation.

My goal is to use this drawing (as well as others to come) as a jumping off point for some similarly-themed paintings. I have a rough value sketch here, as well as some ideas for division of space.  I plan to use the techniques I have learned in various workshops over the last five years, including abstraction and mixed media techniques to create my own unique take on a variety of topics.