Piper

Comment

Comment by Resident Curator on May 31, 2012 at 9:36am

Curator’s Comment:

 

Piper doesn’t just embody relaxation because of his pose- the whole painting enjoys a loose calm because of the organic, inclusive brushstrokes.  I am also very fond of the broken color, and roughly scumbled textures.  The marks create a dynamic contrast between linear drawing and more tonal areas of high chroma color.  The warmth of the animal- in mood and coloration is also nicely offset against the primary red and blue ground.  Larger proportions and emphasis of head and paws give him (her?) the quality of sensitive vulnerability.  Seaport also has soulful gaze amidst strong, bold brushstrokes. There’s a sophisticated handling of the cool blue violets within the face, and directional strokes that move me effortlessly throughout the piece.  These dog pieces are ripe with emotion and affection, but never descend into sentimentality.  Ironically, your human portraits seem in general more technical, and exhibit a very different spatial quality.  More highly refined in terms of detail and smoother surface, the figures seem cut out against a more decorative space, rather than wholly in their environments.  Perhaps the human subjects demand a more astute realism than their companion counterparts.