December focuses on work based on architecture. For the last couple months the tabby saddlebag Slave cabins on Ossabaw Island have been my subject matter. I have experimented with all kinds of compositions, formats, and paint explorations. Dozens of little chicken scratch sketches that have guided me as well as color palette tryouts. It is all in the mysterious experimental stages. Not quite sure where it is heading, but there is other architectural content lurking that has recently poked through my conciousness. I suspect that at least a few of these ideas should be fulfilled before moving forward.
A couple years ago I stumbled on archival photos at Armstrong University (recently absorbed by Georgia Southern University). As a class project in the early 1940’s, Armstrong students created books of documentary black and white photos of the environs of Savannah focusing mostly on people living in poverty and difficult surroundings. Many of these structures had no water or electricity and were made out of found materials. Hard to get those images out of my mind. They include Yamacraw, defunct Frogtown and (now bulldozed) Tin City. Interestingly, and sadly, many of the images look like contemporary refugee camps and even local homeless camps.
Originally I was interested in making a statement about the structures and context, but now am looking at a more painterly approach dealing with brighter colors out of context. I am hoping that might draw the viewer into the image with more immediacy with the added benefit (at least from my perspective) of forcing questions. We’ll see.
A couple years ago I stumbled on archival photos at Armstrong University (recently absorbed by Georgia Southern University). As a class project in the early 1940’s, Armstrong students created books of documentary black and white photos of the environs of Savannah focusing mostly on people living in poverty and difficult surroundings. Many of these structures had no water or electricity and were made out of found materials. Hard to get those images out of my mind. They include Yamacraw, defunct Frogtown and (now bulldozed) Tin City. Interestingly, and sadly, many of the images look like contemporary refugee camps and even local homeless camps.
Originally I was interested in making a statement about the structures and context, but now am looking at a more painterly approach dealing with brighter colors out of context. I am hoping that might draw the viewer into the image with more immediacy with the added benefit (at least from my perspective) of forcing questions. We’ll see.
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