just before second lockdown, i was at the studio. i know it was coming, still i had to prepare myself to the unexpected.
i had a lot of wood leftovers, i was mad about the situation, and i thought i have to turn it up. So i started small sketches about an idea combining reductive art, color theory and mapping.
Therefore, i designed a pattern, 2 circles interlocking. reffering to the situation of course and also thinking of sacred geometry drawings.
then i started to create(without knowing) a database of my lockdown.
I saved readings, news articles, portraits, everything close or far that affected me in a way or another.
During this lockdown, there was a lot of frustration and anger growing in Israel(for reasons), there was also BLM (still here), there was closed ones having physical or mental issues, there was demonstrations globally all around the world.
That being said, it was hard to scale importance of each every day.
so i thought, let's create a color scheme for moments. as if we were looking as a color profile of a picture, i tried to put aside my own affect, and create something distant but getting closer.
In my work, as you may have noticed i enjoy using geometry because its the best tool to mesure difference, impact, and facts.
I just had finished various works about squares, started some studies about circles, i thought its time to develop it and think to involove time impact and challenge technique.
there is never only one way of reading an artwork.
To create depth, you need to level up your intentions, and process.
Once I had all that in mind and also organized, i was able to work. As a reductive Artist, i organized a home studio that was 1 meter on 1 meter and a half. i wanted to immerge myself in the process fully. i try to report to my scale all rules that i apply to my work.
The first 2 works, i was thinking of time management, and over flowing of content in all platforms I was visiting. in other words, we have been submerged by notifications,messages, pictures, stories, news articles and decor to handle the "time in".
For someone visual, working in color field, i have to say that it was overwhelming and disappointing. i am always curious and surprised to discover the amount of things or intimacy people are ready to share for attention. well there was a lot.
So i had to reset my mindset, and create a personal escape.
This is more or less how i usually work. create an artefact to handle a cluster fuck.
portion time, divide priorities, list things, create automatism, rules and then circle around it.
also according to rules of lockdown, we were only allowed to move in 1 km radius around.
I thought the concept of radius was very intersting.
If you think about Earth, and planet navigation, you may see in a more interesting way.
they all move on radius, not all the same distance, and not in the same directions.
Litlle by little, i was finding bridges between circles, lines, and what was happening out. light and space were always on my mind. Each cycle of whatever event bring rythm, and then you can apply this system and generate a painting.
Of course, there were some events i wish i never had to create about.
it's not about being sad or happy, i never wish to give room for racism or any discrimination.
Once i had my mind set up properly, i went back to reductive Art purism.
the pattern becomes a surface.
i had to think about the different color theories and my own color perception and balance everything to make appropriate choices.
i think you can never be to generous with colors, but you can be over using your skills.
At the same period, i was also studying some NASA maps about climate, and different locations.
As you may have read, we are doing wrong. we are over consuming, we have many issues in terms of sustainability and mostly we are damaging Earth.
According to NASA, where you can find a lot of ressources,maps, and sattelite pictures, the colors of certain maps changed because of lockdown sequels, some new colors appeared, and some disappearing.
For exemple the light blue on this painting, in temperatures evolution, this is high cold weather. Because of climate change, this scale of temperature is disappearing. we did that.
Sometimes it's good to be basic.
so i decided to have 1 major color and 2 minors.
the idea was to apply same gesture on a bigger/smaller scale for each color until reaching major.
This is also someting i have noticed during this lockdown. some kind of trinity of communication.
As if people always need confirmation of a fact or a second opinion on things.
It's always funny to observe your surrounding as some distant narration and make it abstract.
Then i was in the dark place.
It happened to all of us. some are still there and some will never come back.
it's never pleasant when you have to manage your own emotional bucket.
During this period, i think like everyone I reached the godwin point of all my feeling together.
Still according, to the different rules, process, i was able to translate it, more or less.
Healing. after the first ones, i received and talked with many artists, friends, random people about their perspective, their way of copping with it, and their connection with my Art.
Obviously, a bottle of Kool aid cannot fix the situation, neither my paintings.
For many people, Art was their relief during lockdown. Whether doing Art, whether supporting artist, whether buying, whether discovering.
that made me happy.
i was happy to notice a lot of solidarity and support between artists, designers, craft, wood workers, ceramic artists...
on a small or big scale, i was happy to see that it has an impact.
we have a long road for recovery, but we can make it.
Now that i'm back at the studio, I found bigger pieces of wood, looking at it all with a more global vision, i made a new one.
i keep on watching maps, observing my surroundings, recording colors, chosing moments.
I check on Earth, see the change, record it, and expose it.
As an artist I think we all can stand for what we want or believe in our own terms.
working on sustainable concept and supporting different communities by different gestures.
The process taught me so much about resilience, intentions, and the different tools to reach my goals that I feel the change, and the new perspectives in terms of creativity and system are very satisfying.
to be continued....
Earth Spectrum, October 2020, Acrylic and pigments on reclaimed wood.
60X120 cm
23,6 X 47,2 ''
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