PowerPoint

PowerPoint

" ... the point from which the power is emanating... "

I sure enjoyed working on this painting! Lately, painting my abstracts has been hard work, and I have had fewer paintings to share. (I have had a bunch of plein air work to share, but not as many abstract paintings.) As I looked at this mostly blank but textured canvas, I thought back to another painting that I found satisfying to paint, so that you will not grieve like the rest who have no hope, and thought I would try to paint with the same freedom I felt when I worked on that one. Well, the results could hardly be more different, and the experience was very different, too, but I do feel that I achieved a painting I like while feeling the joy and freedom of painting. 

24" x 24"

Painted with artist quality heavy-body acrylic paint on 1.5” deep gallery wrapped canvas

Edges painted black

Click here to view on my website.

You can see a bit more of
the interference colors in 
this photo.

If you could see this one in person, you would see that there is a lot of color, which is difficult to see in a photo. It is added to the painting by use of interference paint. The paint manufacturer explains interference colors this way,  "... offer a unique “flip” when viewed from different angles. Colors flip between a bright opalescent color and its complement. Over white or lighter surfaces, the color is more subtle and the “flip” effect is more obvious. Over black or darker surfaces the color is more obvious and the “flip” effect is less dramatic." I use these colors often in my work, most often on darker surfaces. But, they are tough for me to capture in a photo!

One of my tubes of paint is a lighter, brighter purple color. I bought it because I liked the color so much, and I had been trying to use it on nearly every painting I did, but it never seemed to fit. This canvas was my chance to start out with that color, along with a single pigment tube of deep purple paint that is a related color found in the blended pigment of the light purple. (Sorry - geeky artist stuff...) Those two colors gave me an interesting background from which to start building this painting. 

Next, the light colored shapes "intruded" on the darker shapes, and the fun really began! Putting light behind the darker purple shape came next, and the idea of illustrating the point from which power was emanating helped me make decisions for most of the rest of the work. 

There are circles in the textured paint which are accented with gold interference color. There are also swirled shapes. The deepest purple paint has a glossy finish, and I intentionally accented that by using a heavy application of that purple in those shapes. 

Along with all of those notes, I also want to touch a little on the communication I was after through this painting. I chose to use a (slightly modified) cruciform composition once again to reemphasize my dependance on the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross for my sake. The "power" comes from the center of that cross shape, as does the power in my life and work. I don't know how to put what I have painted into words, but I have really needed to rely on the power that God offers in my life as I paint lately - particularly in my abstract paintings. I really want to communicate, and I really need His help to do so! I hope you can hear what I am painting.