NEW HISTORY

Shared Destinies Oil on linen 120 x 160 cm

Detail of yet un-named oil on linen painting 90 x 200 cm

In today's Weekend Australian newspaper there is an article [page 4] ' Author Puts New Slant On Culture' by Rosemary Sorenson about a new book called The Lamb Enters The Dreaming by La Trobe University research fellow Robert Kenny. I will be very interested to read this book, because if it is as described in the article, it departs from the 'tired debate' surrounding the 'history wars' where strongly held 'right or left wing perspectives' breath almost inpenetratable distance into difference. University of Queensland Professor of Australian Studies and Cultural History, David Carter is quoted with a comment about the book which I found very exciting. After suggesting that if there can be acceptance of a notion that white and Aboriginal history is not all about 'exploitation' then this history is leading, "...towards a history of entwinement and entaglement."

'Entwinement and entaglement' surely mean something is shared. As I read these two words I thought of a particular painting I completed in 2006 called 'Shared Destinies'. When I painted this image I was thinking about how so many different cultures share history and thus also share destinies. If we share destinies there is an imperative to be compassionate towards each other, otherwise the journey together can be less than pleasant, as history amply illustrates. Readers of my BLOG will know that I have a couple of paintings with shared history-type titles.

The painting above called 'Shared Destinies' has two tree-of-life motifs which seem to to wrap each other. Their limbs and twigs extend beyond the painting to show a future and a past. They exist in a universe representing time which of course is also shared through concurrency. After all, time is not literally devisible and indeed may not really exist!

The second image is a detail of a just completed painting. I have written about this work on the BLOG before when I started it a couple, if not a few months ago. And now it is finally completed...or at least I have done my bit. Readers of this BLOG would know that I do not believe I actually complete my work. Each conversation, whether with oneself or with others, completes my work. Thus there is the potential for multiple completions.

I have yet to give this 90 x 200 cm painting a title. I know what I want to encapsulate, but have not come up with the right words yet. The reason I have only a detail is that my camera cannot take images of large work, so I now have to wait until it is dry before I can take it to a photographer.

But, getting back to the theme of this post...this latest painting is a continuation of my interest in embracing similarity rather than just difference. From a vast distance of space or time many differences are not noticeable often giving light to similarity if not sameness. A human body seen from a great distance is not discernible with regards to sex, colour, culture etc, yet the basic identifying body parts and shape we all share in common identify it as a human.

This new painting has a wave like appearance of colour. Whilst there are different colours there is a fluidity which I think portrays an 'entwinement and entaglement' suggesting a human-race shared history and future=destiny.

I believe compassion is a key to examining history with a different perspective. I will be interested to read Robert Kenny's book to see if a compassionate quality exists between and in his words. I believe, Kevin Rudd's Apology to the Australian Aborigines has opened the doors for compassion to be mutually given and felt. Sympathy, as I have said before on this BLOG, can emotionally colonise both the giver and the receiver giving rise to hierarchies which can become dangerously entrenched, thus stagnating life circumstances and history.

When I get the photo of the painting I will upload it to this BLOG.

And this TED talk by Elizabeth Gilbert is brilliant...and absolute must. http://www.ted.com/talks/elizabeth_gilbert_on_genius.html

FRIENDS

Living With Distance Oil on linen 120 x 160 cm 2002

Where Are We? Oil on linen 80 x 120 cm 2002

Over the last month I have had wonderful opportunities to catch up with friends from the past. One gathering was with three friends from High School . We have not been together since 1975. Another gathering was this week with three friends from Goondiwindi where I lived when I was married [now nearly ten years ago].

Needless to say in each case there was a lot of catching up. But at both gatherings people commented on the fact that even though we do not keep in contact via email, Facebook, Twitter or other online or virtual connection, our conversations fell into a comfortableness that time has not eroded. My friends from High School commented that even though it had been over 30 years since we had been together, we talked about and told each other things which we may not even tell new friends. This was because sometimes the history explaining our reactions, beliefs, upbringing is too complex or time consuming to tell. As old friends we were each a part of the others' histories thus rendering explanations about reactions to events and happenings as unnecessary. This kind of friendship is very special, because time and frequency of contact do not influence the links.

So, inevitibly, at both gatherings we touched upon the high frequency of contact via Facebook, Twitter, Texting etc, people [esp young people] seemed to be hooked on. In one discussion we agreed that the busy frenzy of always being contactable is exhausting. We did not come up with any solutions, except to agree that as very busy women uninterrrupted time alone is like gold.

There is a lot to write about with regards to constant connection. But, I will depart from this subject a little to reference my recent experiences in terms of my interest in perspective. I have noticed that as I get older conversations with friends can become far more inimate in terms of life story telling. This is probably because as a person ages the years are filled with more and more experiences which cause reflection, changes in attitude, shock, happiness, sadness and so on. Looking back over life the perspective of time can enrich conversations, erode prejudices, awaken confidence, engender humour and peel away useless beliefs and attitiudes. All of these then change the perspective potential of the future

The two paintings above are older works both painted in 2002. Living With Distance is a bride seemingly floating above the Earth with her long veil wrapping the Earth's curvature. The title explains the physical distance of the bride, who is actually a country bride who has a life lving in remote rural Australia as her future. The title also suggests that emotional distance can corrupt the quality of a relationship, so that one or both partners feel adrift.

Where Are We? plays with multiple horizons, in this case there are two. The mountains are metaphors for overcoming adversity, so in each horizon there exists the potential of the past and the future.

PS. Have a look at http://www.joshualevigalleries.com.au/ and keep looking at this site. Looks like I will be exhibiting there in March next year!!!

CYCLICAL

That's Life Oil on linen 55 x 80 cm 2006




Everything Is Cyclical Gouache on paper 30 x 42 cm unframed 2009



Recently something spun into my head about the actual form of perspective as a metaphor for how we view ourselves and others. A predominantly western view would be that it has a linear appearance and action. Yet, the world is not linear even if our thoughts have been trained that way.


I am toying with my thoughts on a spherical but not necessarily static type of image of the action and appearance of perspective. When we think of horizons we tend to think of them in our line of sight, yet thay exist all around us even when we cannot see them...except of course with our mind's eye or imagnation. And, it is with these capacities that we can also 'see' beyond the horizons. As readers of my BLOG know I love playing with perspective in my work, asking the viewer to question space and distance, both as literal experiences as well as metaphorical ones.


I have written about the contemporary stage as being one which exists between the 'wings' of the global and local, yet this suggests a more linear experience which does not fully encapsulate how I imagine perspective in this globalised world in which we live locally. But, I had a 'Ah Ha' moment when I imagined a theatre in the round with the 'wings' existing at any and all points. These 'wings' can move in and out at will or at random [or seemingly so]. This stage at its most micro level would exit within us as we contemplate and reflect upon experiences whether they be in the physical world or other. As we develop skills in perspective I believe our horizons are pushed further, whether they be at vast distances or close ones. And, as these horizons move we become less fearful of what might be beyond the horizons.


In my last BLOG I quoted JK Rowling from her 2008 Harvard Alumni Association presentation entitled The Fringe Benefits of Failure And The Importance of Imagination http://harvardmagazine.com/commencement/the-fringe-benefits-failure-the-importance-imagination . The quote is, ' The willingly unimaginative see more monsters. They are often more afraid.’

I really like this quote. Without imagination or tapping into our mind's eye our horizons contract and can swallow us with fear.

The two paintings above are about circles, cycles and spheres. In 'That's Life' the tree-of-life splays out with positive and negative circle shapes above and below it. These circles could be seen as perspective turned inside out. They could also represent the 'contemporary stage' in its most fulsome presence ie: multi dimensional. "Everything Is Cyclical' is a newer work essentially dealing with water, yet a drop of water has a form like I imagine our contemporary stage to be. It moves, it can collide with other drops or separate itself, it can penetrate, it can soften and enmass it is awesome.

SEEPING INTO THE INTIMATE VASTNESS

Seeping Into The Intimate Vastness Oil on linen 80 x 120 cm 2008


On Wednesday of this week I made a presentation at the annual King's College Foundation business breakfast . King's is a men's residential college at the University of Queensland. http://www.kings.uq.edu.au/ I was able to choose my topic which was 'Perspective: In a Global World In Which We Live Locally'. I spoke about art's agency as catalyst for experiencing perspective or multi perspectives. I suggested that this is achieved by inviting the viewer to literally move back and forth [replicating the moves an artist makes], but also to stimulate conversation whether it be with others or internally with oneself. Conversation is a 'movement' back and forth as participants 'see' and hear another person's point of view, perspective or story.

I suggested that in this increasingly globalised world in which we live locally, it is imperative that we all appreciate the vast scope perspectival dexterity has in helping us negotiate this contemporary life. With this kind of dexterity comes compassion for ourselves and others.



Space and Time Oil on linen 80 x 100 cm 2001

The elments needed to develop perspectival dexterity are things like imagination, judgment, confidence, open mindedness, empathy. Yet, the one element I see as the most pivotal is imagination, because it is imagination which allows us to put ourselves in another person's shoes.
I quoted JK Rowling from her speech The Fringe Benefits of Failure And The Importance Of Imagination made in 2008 for the Harvard Alumni Association, ' ‘Imagination is not only the uniquely human capacity to envision that which is not, and therefore the fount of all invention and innovation. In its arguably most transformative and revelatory capacity, it is the power that enables us to empathise with humans whose experiences we have never shared.’

In the same speech KJ Rowling also said, ' The willingly unimaginative see more monsters. They are often more afraid.’ I used this to augment the imperative we have to grasp skills which allow us all to live freely, fulfilled and compassionately in an increasingly global world in which we individually live locally. I suggested that those who cannot imagine how to embrace the contemporary 'stage' which exists between the 'wings' of the local and global are destined to see more monsters because fear grips them. One only has to think of the regimes [amongst others] in North Korea and Zimbabwe where unhealthy self interest and conscious ignorance of the world outside have created the kind of monstrous events and fears that have been and are indeed hard to imagine.

I have uploaded the two images above, one painted in 2001 and the other in 2008 because they are both about water. In my presentation at King's College I used my series on water [previously written about on this blog] to illustrate a couple of things. One was that water and its use are local and global issues and easily understood as such. The other is that water has the capability of being a vast mass yet also a drop, thus providing a living example of fluid connection between the micro/local and macro/global . Water can seep into the smallest and most intimate of spaces, but a deluge has a tipping point where is can become a saviour or a disaster. With all of this in mind our bodies are also %70 water.

Seeping Into The Intimate Vastness is an ambiguous 'landscape'. The tree-of-life seems to embrace or wrap the 'scene' with its vein like red branches. Its vascular-like appearance is 'Life' and indeed water systems, whether natural or manmade, are life giving. There is a general feeling of wetness and water about this painting. In the flesh it also has an almost 3d appearance as if things are swollen or sodden.

Space and Time painted in 2001 reveals an earlier interest in water. Sheets of red 'rain' fall from the sky on the edges of multiple horizons. I lived for many years in western Queensland where rain would tantalisingly appear at the edge of sight. This was particularly evident when driving west along lonely highways with the distance colliding with me and my car, but never reached.

WATER HARVESTING

The gouache on paper above is from my ongoing exploration of 'water'. It is called 'Water Harvesting' taking from the actual term 'water harvesting', which means irrigators collecting [or harvesting] by pumping water from a river or water system once the height of the water has reached a certain limit.


Like many of my paintings this image is ambigious. Is it a landscape of sky, midground and foreground? Is it a cross section? Is it an earial view of a river and surrounding land? This image is very like my previous post 'Currency Of Water' on June 1 this year. It poses similar questions about the tension between the natural flow of water and humankind's need to syphon from its flow. The tension is not only environmental but also financial. Wealth created by abundant supplies of water, its allocation, its storage, its industrial and agricultural uses is immense.

I have painted the top section with the word 'rain' and the bottom section with '$' signs. The mid section or 'river' has circles of words which represent dams, damming or water storages. These circles also represent the cycles of nature, but also play on the stock market term describing commodities as cyclical.

This image also 'speaks' about my interest in perspective. The ambiguity created by the possibility of multiple and simultaneous perspectives embraces all the many and various viewpoints stakeholders have about water and its usage. Water is a local and a global issue. And water itself can seep into the most intimate spaces as well as being a vast mass.

Water Harvesting gouache on paper 30 x 42 cm 2009

TRUTH

The work on paper above is called 'Truth' and it part of my series on water which I have previously written about on this BLOG. It is an image of the Aral Sea, a saline lake located in Uzbekistan and Kazakstan, both previously part of the former Soviet Union. In 1960 the Aral Sea was the world's fourth largest lake, the size of Southern California. The blue mass on the left is the Aral Sea in 1989, the divided mass on the right is the sea in 2003.

In the past few decades there have been drastic changes brought about by agricultural and industrial activities. The Aral Sea's volume has deceased by 75% with its surface area by 50 percent. The shoreline has receeded up to 120 km from its former shore.

I have written text copied from Wikepedia which is 'the free encyclopedia that anyone can edit.' The text comes from the entry on the Aral Sea. I have called the painting 'Truth' to comment on the veracity of information provided by internet sources such as Wikepedia and the increasing use of it as a source of information. The entry on the Aral Sea reads authoratively, but with so much information available today on the internet, how do we really know? The entry on the Aral Sea has changed since I painted this image earlier this year, which is in keeping with the Wikepedia philosophy.

Yet, satelite photographs of the Aral Sea reveal the truth that it has drastically diminished over a relatively short time. I found other photographs as well as those on Wikepedia. These amazing photographs, taken from a vast distance, hit you in the stomach with the visual information they provide. Written information about details does not have quite the same impact. However, the two together provide an imperative to do something about the situation.

This painting again deals with my interest in the macro and micro, global and local and our need to develop flexible perspective of ourselves and others. How can we move back and forth from a macro perspective to a micro perspective when we live locally in an increasingly globalised world? Indeed, is it possible to have both close and far perspectives simultaneously? How can we ensure healthy self interest [ie: local] benefits the whole world?


Truth Gouache on paper 30 x 42 cm 2009

CURRENCY OF WATER

This work on paper is a new painting 57 x 114 cm unframed. It is a continuation of my interest in water which I have previously written about on my BLOG. Text in the image is the word 'rain' and $ signs. I wanted to create a tension between the manmade and the natural. The manmade being the exchange of money for the use of water and the natural being that which falls out of the sky at the will of...who knows! It is out of our control whether it rains or not. Yet, the control of water is a major issue for contemporary society.

I wanted to create a feeling of tension also because rivers want to flow towards the sea yet along the way the water is pumped, harvested and dammed. Whilst the natural flow is one way man pulls the water in other ways. Hence the river like shape across the middle of the image and the text pulling it away from its flow. Yet, the painting could be a landscape of ground, mountains and sky with rain falling from black clouds.

Readers of my BLOG know that I like to play with ambiguous landscape. Yet, my work is not about landscape... it is about perception, perspective and distance. As a child I 'knew' I could fly. I knew what my parent's farm looked like from above even though I had not flown in a plane above it. I still remember the feelings I had when I 'flew'. The 'experience' I had as a child has influenced my work yet it is only in the last few years that I have realised my work is not about landscape but about deeper perspectives. I think this realisation has happened because I now have the benefit of the perspective of a reasonably long past which I can reflect upon, pull apart and 'see' things I could not see when I was younger.


Cheers,
Kathryn

PS. If you click on the image it will be large on your screen and then you can see the text a bit better.

ONE

A few posts ago I said I was starting a large work which I wanted to appear like a wave of colour or a map of colour where boundaries fused. Well...the painting is nearly finished. The image above is me working on some of the last bits! My arm gets very tired!

My idea was to use my tree-of-life motif pouring it over the canvas with a multitude of colours creating from a distance a vision of a wave...yet up close the viewer sees where colours begin and end. I played with the idea of how a map when viewed up close will clearly show where boundaries exist yet when seen from a distance the boundaries are indiscernible. Thus, reminding us that the Earth is one planet with manmade markings meaning nothing when viewed with a distant perspective. As readers of this BLOG know I am very interested in both literal and metaphoric perspective with the latter holding clues to how we might negotiate a globalised world in which we live locally.

I was thinking about the colour which is released from white light hitting a prism. Ultimately all colours emanate from the one source. Humanity and life are like the colours released by a prism...ultimately we are one. We all share the common signs of life ie: breath and pulse. Plus we share the urge for identity which ultimately manifests in the creation of culture and religion, which unfortunately often lead to conflict. Yet, the primal urge for identity is the same.

I believe deep thought about perspective will reveal new pathways for peace on Earth and compassionate negotiation [of oursleves and others] of the distance between the global and local.

I am calling the painting 'One'.

One Oil on linen 90 x 200 cm 2009

NOSTALGIA

I was going through my photos and found a few of interest. The top one was taken in 1965 at the Dalby Kindergarten. I loved painting at kindy...although I don't look that happy in the photo!

The second photo was taken in 1993 in Goondiwindi [4.5 hrs drive west of Brisbane] in my old shearer's quarters studio. The cute little child is my eldest daughter who is now quite grown up. This photo was taken just before I had an exhibition in Maleny. You can see the tree-of-life was a major influence even then. Readers of my BLOG know I still love this motif.

When I had small children I would go straight to my studio to work as soon as they had their morning or afternoon sleeps. I had a baby monitor attached to me so that I knew when they awakened and needed me. Mothers become very adept at discerning 'I want you now!' screams or just playful whimpers or 'Mum I am bored' grizzles!

This photo was taken in 1977 when I won first prize in the senior section of Queen Elizabeth Silver Jubilee Art Award for children. Part of the prize was meeting the Queen at Government House in Brisbane. My whole family travelled to Brisbane for the event and I was taken out of boarding school for two days! The Queen had chosen the theme of the art award. This theme was The Family and my painting is the one slightly obscured by the Queen's head. I painted my family! Unfortunately of the 3 photos taken of me at the event this is the only one of me with Queen Elizabeth...and we can only see her back. This was well before people could take a thousand digital images. I am just over 180 cm tall and the 'teenager me' insisted on wearing high heels. Of course on the day I realised my mistake and I felt like an amazonian standing beside and talking with Her Majesty.

This photo was taken in 1981 when I worked as a curatorial assistant at the National Gallery in Canberra. I am standing beside a Monet Waterlily painting. I got the job in Canberra straight out of university.

Painting and art have been part of my life since forever. Over this time I have come to believe that art's agency [rather than purpose] is to give to those who are keen and open to receive. Art can be reflective and/or affective. As I have said before on my BLOG I believe my paintings are finished not by me but by viewers and the conversations they have either with others or...inside their heads.

Cheers,

Kathryn

FOREVER CONNECTED

The above painting is called 'Forever Connected'. My universal trans-cultural/religious tree-of-life becomes the burning bush in the story of Moses. This story is shared by the three Abrahamaic religions Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Across time people are connected by shared stories, just as the non-consuming fire represents an eternal connection of life to God, the Divine, Creation. Through shared stories we are also eternally connected.

After exhibiting in the Middle East and sharing conversations with people from all over the region I am interested in those things which remind us of similarity rather than difference. I am sure that the distance between people can be negotiated more compassionately through finding similarites rather than just focusing on differences.

The human urge for identity propels us to create different cultures and religions, yet the urge is fundamental and shared. Embracing the fundamental similarities between people means the differences can be rejoiced rather than cloaked with the word ‘tolerance’. To me this word is not a compassionate word. It suggests one has to try very hard to 'tolerate' and it evokes a sense of heirachy ie: the tolerator and the tolerated. I have written about compassion previously on my BLOG http://kathrynbrimblecombeart.blogspot.com/2008/08/compassion.html


Forever Connected Oil on linen 120 x 80 cm 2008

ANGELS' WINGS

I am very excited because I am one of the 30 finalists in the third LAUNCH: Clayton Utz Travelling Scholarship Award which will be announced in early June. The award is co-ordinated by http://www.positive-solutions.com.au/

This means I am now waiting for the outcomes of three awards I have been selected for ie: The Prometheus and the Moreton Bay Art Awards as well.

Now to the image above. The trans-cultural/religious tree-of-life represents space, time and matter, Heaven and Earth. It intrigues me that system-like processes, seen and unseen, felt and not felt can connect the unconscious and conscious, the human and the spiritual. The exploration of these systems suggests the presence of other forces tantalizingly playing with the distance or space between closeness and farness questioning the existence of opposites and antimonies with the suggestion that these connections give rise to variations rather than separate entities or concepts.

So, as we negotiate contemporary life in the spaces between the macro and micro, global and local, vast and intimate we know that our potential exists within the chaos. Optimism is knowing that life's complexity and its chaotic presentation actually create the forces of survival.

To me the seeming chaos is like the flutter of angels' wings creating energy and thus potential. The trans-cultural/religious tree-of-life, its visceral branches, its constant movement in the air epitomises the essence of chaos's promise.

The Brush Of Angels' Wings oil on linen 53 x 97 cm, 2008

LIFEBLOOD

Click on the painting and you will see $ signs! In a previous post 'Currency' I have written about my interest in the uses of this word with regards to money and water. http://kathrynbrimblecombeart.blogspot.com/2009/03/currency.html

I have called this painting 'Lifeblood' because water is the Earth's 'blood'. Rivers, oceans, streams, underground aquafers, rain, melting ice are all parts of the visceral and vascular system which assists in keeping our planet and us alive. Yet, water has become a commodity to be bought and sold, borrowed, harvested, allocated and litigated about. There is a monetry value to water and its flow which, if monitored appropriately, will ensure appropriate use of water for all people. However, can we be sure that this will happen?

So...in this painting I have created a vein of red $ signs in the sky. From this vein rain falls in two strips. This rain is also painted with $ signs. I have painted the rain in strips because when I lived in western Queensland I was always intrigued by the appearance of rain in the distance. Driving west from Toowoomba to Goondiwindi I often witnessed strips of rain on the far horizon and hoped the rain was falling on Goondiwindi! This kind of hope is deeply felt by country people.

I have also painted the dammed and underground water and the surrounding soil in $ signs. This is commenting on the 'value', use and diminishment of underground water. The depletion of underground aquafers causes salination and thus the loss of soil richness, subsequently causing land degradation and loss of income as well as sustainability.

Whilst this painting comments on water and its 'value' it also contibutes to my interest in perspective. Like many of my recent paintings this painting, when viewed from a distance, does not reveal its details. It looks like some sort of ambiguous but vast landscape. However, up close
the viewer can see the details of the $ signs and starts to question the 'big picture'. In a way the movement back and forth to view the painting [mirroring how an artist works] is a metaphor for contemporary life living locally in an increasingly globalised world.

I have previously uploaded this painting, but since then I have worked on it a bit more.

Lifeblood Oil on linen 90 x 200 cm 2008/09.

artHIVES update: Kathryn Brimblecombe-Fox up for awards

artHIVES update: Kathryn Brimblecombe-Fox up for awards

ANSWERS

I have been very busy lately. Apart from feeling like a yo yo Mother I have been exploring the possibilities of widgets, Twitter and other online distractions. I have loaded a Widget called FEEDJIT onto my BLOG and it detects visitors to my BLOG. I have revamped my TWITTER http://twitter.com/brimblecombe with a background of one of my paintings. I am also on FACEBOOK which embarrasses my children as I am too 'old' for these sorts of things. Well, apparently we 'oldies' have taken over FACEBOOK as well as the TWILIGHT series of books. If you have not heard of this series...well ask any 11 year old girl and she will tell you about them! Actually ask any woman on the street and she will also be able to tell you ...probably!

But, I have also been painting. I am working on the large oil which I talked about in my BLOG post 'SOAKED'. The painting is progressing and I am completely absorbed with it when I am with it! Hours pass by and I am looking forward to, but also anxious about, seeing it finished. Painting is also an bit of a yo yo experience. One minute everything is going well....the paint glides off the brush, my arm stays steady, the colours meld well and then...all of a sudden....I realise I've put too many lines, or I've been thinking without looking, or the paint does not behave as I would like it, or I get up to move away from the painting to see it from a distance and I realise it is not quite right. The process is a constant movement from contentment to...sometimes the extreme of hopelessness.

Yet, I love it. The positive and negative aspects of creating a painting stimulate a movement which feels right to me. The problem solving stretches from practical issues to conceptual concerns. On the one hand the paint might not have the right consistency, but when I look at the painting does is actually 'say' what I want it to? Both the practical and conceptual fuel each other.

I know I must love what I do because when I have a problem it does not get me down. I don't become stressed in a way which makes me wake in the middle of the night to ruminate and catastrophise. In a way I enjoy the problems as they stretch my intellect and imagination. I remember my Mother telling me something a doctor once told her. That is, if a job or activity causes the kind of stress which leads to sleepless nights then it is unhealthy. But, if a job or activity causes the kind of stress which fuels your energy at all levels then it is a healthy place to be. It has taken me awhile to sort out what jobs and activities are really suited to me, as sometimes parts of a job or activity do satisfy, but how one copes with problems is the litmus test I think.

The gouache on paper painting above is called 'Answer To A Prayer'. it is from my "Water" series. But like most of my work it says a lot more than its obvious intention which is about being grateful for rain.

RAIN DROPS

Since my last post I have finished the work on paper above and started on the large oil painting I wrote about in the last post. This work on paper continues my interest in water. I was watching the rain fall only a few days ago and fell into wondering about the smallness of the rain drops, yet the impact a deluge of them can have. This impact can be devastating or truly remarkable and wanted.

I have read that the human body is made of around %70 water. This makes me think of a number of important details. One is, that by looking after our planet's water supply we are honouring our bodies as well. Another thought is that water, from one drop to a mass, can be absolutely beautiful. This beauty then must have potential within us too.

Water has the capacity to seek out and seep into places thought to be impenetrable. By doing this it strokes the landscape's intimate parts where any kind of distance or space is unknown or difficult to imagine.

Image: Rain Drops Gouache on paper 55 x 115 cm unframed 2009

SOAKED

In the last couple of weeks I have received some really good news. My entries for the Prometheus and Moreton Bay Art Awards have both been selected as award finalists. The two exhibitions and the announcement of the awards both take place in May.

My painting 'Sending Love' oil on linen 80 x 180 cm has been selected for the Prometheus Award and 'A Frisson With Distance' oil on linen 85 x 147 cm has been selected for the Moreton Bay Art Award.

I am working on another large oil painting and so far I have created the underpainting. This process takes time and lots of mess. The time is because I layer paint and each layer needs to dry before I pour/paint the next one. The mess is caused by the highly diluted [with turps and oil] paint spilling and dripping onto the floor and me walking in it! I do have the garage door open when I am doing this as the fumes are strong.

This afternoon I will start painting the surface image. I have ideas running through my head. I want to paint an image which from a distance seems to be almost moving waves of colour, but when up close the colours are distinctly discernible. I will use my tree-of-life motif to create this vast yet intimate image. I am thinking that a map of the world loses its manmade boundaries when viewed from a distance because they just cannot be seen. Yet, up close the boundaries are clear reminding us of difference. Perspective is a wonderful thing...as long as you keep moving. With my new painting I want to show that whilst the colours are distinct they actually grow from their neighbouring colours. In other words I am replacing borders with a fusing of colours to indicate connection...of all kinds. And, from a distance the sense of wave-like movement suggests a connectivity that is vibrant and fluid. An alternative to the rigidness of a map.

So, it will be intersting to see how the painting works out. Generally if I have thought about it for awhile it just flows...with the odd moment of frustration!

The painting above is a recent work on paper again focusing on my previously mentioned interest in water. However, I have loaded it up today not to talk about water, but to describe how my works on paper influence my oil paintings. Some of my thoughts for my new large oil painting have grown out of the processes involved in creating my water paintings. As I have said before I actually use water to help create the effects ie: wetting all or part of the paper before applying colour, using a spray to 'wash' the paper and to generate changes in the way colour performs and so on. I really give the paper a work out. The idea of a wave-like work in oil came to me after working with watery effects on paper.

So as the weeks ebb by I will keep the BLOG updated on progress with my new large painting.

Soaked Gouache on paper 30 x 42 cm unframed 2009

WONDER

After a couple of weeks not painting I am now back into it. I was distracted by the preparation for two presentations which both went well. I have to say, though, I prefer being in my studio on my own. Venturing into the public arena is always fun, but I need to recharge my batteries with some alone time in my studio. The recharging is under way.

The good thing about a break is that it can cause a departure from previous work. Others may not pick up on the departure, but I am aware of it. I used to fight it, but now I welcome it knowing that any departure is a result of new experiences, rethinking and reflection...even if it has only happened in a couple of weeks.

In my presentation for the Qld Academy of Arts and Sciences at the Queensland University of Technology Art Museum I spoke to the topic 'A Critical Space: The Art/Science Nexus'. One of my suggestions was that both artists and scientists have insightful powers of observation. This might happen to a greater or lesser extent in individuals, but generally speaking acute observation is a capacity which is shared by both scientists and artists. Both may observe their physical surroundings but they will also observe their reactions to and thoughts about these observations. It is one thing to observe with your seeing eye, but to observe those things which sight might trigger in the imagination where the capacity for wonder exists is another level of observation.

Artists and scientists will make internal critical judgements about their wonderings. This is where there is possibly a departure in manner because the desired outcomes are different. And, it is a good thing there is a difference, because I believe art must avoid the trap of thinking it can provide answers when it has the power to prompt questions. However, science is driven to find answers albeit knowing that any answer must be refutable. Questions keep science honest, but only to the extent of the quality of the questions. Art is one of science's partners pushing for questions based on wonder and imagination.

The power of observation ranging from observing the external to then observing the internal paths of imagination and wonder is a dance of close and far distance. The artist and the scientist employ powers of perspective to view their physical world and also their own internal worlds. Interestingly I have written the plural for internal 'worlds'. This poses interesting questions about the space or distance which is inside each of us.

The painting above is called 'Rain Brings Hope', gouache on paper, 30 x 42 cm [unframed]. It is from my 'Water' series of works on paper.

DUALITY?

On Wednesday 18 March at 6 pm I am co-presenting with artist Keith Armstrong at QUT Art Museum in conjunction with the Queensland Academy For Arts and Sciences. The topic of the presentation is 'A Critical Space: The Art/Science Nexus'. http://www.artmuseum.qut.com/programs/ Everyone is welcome to attend, so please visit the website for details.

I am looking forward to the presentation and have enjoyed contemplating the topic with reference to my work. Whilst the topic may seem daunting, at the end of the day, it is easy to talk about one's own work. I accepted the invitation because over the years I have had a number of science based people ask me if I have... medical training, studied histology, been a nurse, have a science degree. So, this unconscious connection to science is something I have reflected upon for some time. It is amazing what other people see in an artist's work and I believe it is imperative for an artist to release their work to alternative interpretations. But, as readers of my BLOG would know my work is about life...and science is about life too.

The painting above is 'Duality?', oil on linen, 30 x 30 cm 2009. Please note the question mark in the title. Questioning duality is a philosophical exercise which traverses the boundaries of science and art enticingthe spiritual. These sort of BIG questions are fascinating as the possibilities are endless. The question does not necessarily need an answer. In fact, an 'answer' could be seen as a tragedy. My idea for this image was to somehow suggest that duality as an oppositional construct does not exist, because extremes are merely variations of the same thing. Duality as two opposites proposes a separateness which seems far too simplistic.

I chose to depict my much loved tree-of-life positioned as if the two trees were reflections of each other, yet the colours I have used have been reversed. The upside down bottom tree seems reflective yet it also indicates roots. Is duality really the persistence of connection disguised as seemingly oppositional forces?

CURRENCY

Currency Gouache on paper 30 x 42 cm unframed

Water Rights Gouache on paper 30 x 42 cm unframed

I love the way some words can have multiple nuanced meanings. The word currency for example. It has meaning with regards to the circulation of money, the legal tender for use in a particular country, whether something is is current in time, and the relevance and prevalence of ideas/words/arguments. Water has increasing 'currency' in terms of its economic importance...but I love the play with the word 'current'...as in the current or movement of water.

The two paintings above have been created by using copious amunts of sprayed, splashed and spilled water both before and after the introduction of colour. Over the top of this watery surface I have painted the 'landscape' using text and $ signs. I am intensely interested in the increasing status of water as a commodity. What does this imply in terms of its 'life' giving force?

I have deliberately created the work using water's fluidity, randomness...actual currency rather than implied currency.

Cheers,

Kathryn

WATER

                                                         Rain Gouache on paper 30 x 42 cm 2009


                                                           Blue Gold Gouache on paper 30 x 42 cm 2009

I am continuing with my focus on water. All sorts of ideas come to me as I paint. Also, with such extreme weather happening in Australia at the moment we are living the truth that water, whether its too much or not enough, is an important topic.

We can read about the floods in Northern Queensland...or we can see them on the tv, but until the experience touches personally it seems distant. I remember the floods in and around Dalby in the early 1980s. These floods cut roads, destroyed houses, businesses and crops. My father's farm suffered massive errosion along one boundary. He could never plant crops in this soil again because of the flood-created gully. This also amounted to a sustained financial loss.

Dalby Flood
It was during this flood that I started my first job. This was at the National Gallery in Canberra and I was beside myself worrying about how I would get to Brisbane to fly to Canberra. My Dad ended up driving me to Dalby in our largest truck as it was the only vehicle that could get through the flood waters. In Dalby my boyfriend [later my Husband and now my ex!] picked me up in a landcruiser. We spent hours getting to Toowoomba as most of the roads were also cut. We took back roads and ended up getting severely bogged. We were saved by a farmer who happened to have his tractor nearby. I got the feeling he thought we were nuts! I finally arrived in Brisbane and then flew to Canberra where everyone had read about the Dalby floods and were very impressed with my efforts to start my first job.

Goondiwindi
In Goondiwindi I lived through a couple of floods. Admittedly not as bad as those currently in Northern Queensland. The Goondiwindi floods could be considered the positive kind of flood where waterways, catchments and so on were replenished after years of drought without the loss of life or major destruction of property. People were happy to put up with the irritation of cut roads and minor damage to equipment etc. I will never forget being in a dinghy having a look at the extent of flooding and coming close to a submerged fence. The top row of wire was above the water. Along it were dozens of brown snakes clinging to keep out of the water! We very quickly decided to keep our distance.

During one flood our house was an island surrounded by water. We had deliberately built the house so it would be above flood height. My garden was largely under water and we could not drive out along our access road to the main highway. I had two small children at the time and my greatest fear was that they'd be inquisitive and get too close to the water, be swept away or be bitten by a snake...or some unforeseen calamity. I have great empathy for people in Northern Queensland with young families trying to keep them safe... and occupied

I have another story about a friend of mine who lived way out of town and went into labour during a flood. She had to be driven to town on a tractor...and I cannot remember how many gates there were!

Paintings
So, to my new paintings. I have uploaded two of them. In both I have used text including $ signs.
I have deliberately used the colour red to indicate the fertility rain brings to the earth. The $ signs are symbols of the wealth associated with rain and water whether it be created wealth or the loss of it through destruction or the monopolisation of water by certain people/countries. The painting 'Blue Gold' refers to the increasing view that water will be the next oil ie: 'Black Gold'. The proposition that wars could be fought over water is frightening. I have faith that somehow we can avoid this happening.


Cheers,
Kathryn

Water 'Landscapes' Land and Consciousness

System Gouache on paper 18 x 25 cm 2009

Water Rights Gouache on paper 30 x 42 cm 2009

I am currently working on images inspired by water, rain, rivers plus the human-made 'add ons' eg: commodification, infrastructure, cost, rights, limits, water harvesting, allocations etc. Water [either its abundance or not] and its uses are issues which are experienced locally but also have global perspectives. The investigation fits well with my previously mentioned interest in the space between the local/micro and global/macro.

The work I am painting falls into a few discussions which range from the more spiritual to the practical. These are 1. water's spiritual character as a symbol for consciousness 2. natural water delivery as a 'system archetype' which is also found in my much loved tree-of-life motif plus internal bodily life systems 3. the changing status of water in a world where climate change influences everything 4. water as a commodity to be bought, sold, traded etc and the impact on the haves and have nots ie: wealth production.

I have previously mentioned my childhood on my parent's grain farm outside Dalby in SE Queensland, Australia. I have also mentioned my 18 years living in Goondiwindi on the border of Queensland and New South Wales. Goondiwindi has a diversified agricultural base, but irrigation for cotton and other crops significantly expanded in the 18 years I lived there. The new paintings are influenced by my years living in rural Queensland. However, this is overlaid by my interest in life forces, systems and spirit.

The two paintings above are examples of two different aspects of the theme 'water'. System blatantly reminds that flow is like blood, hence the use of red for the tree of flow. Water Rights is created with the word rain repeated as rain falling from the sky. The ground is a mass of $ signs indicating the value or currency of water to the land. Not only does water literally enrich the soil, the production it manifests creates wealth for all those involved in rural productions eg: farmers, grain merchants, farm suppliers and ultimately nations via export. This painting asks questions though. It is not benign.

LISTEN...TO THE CHILDREN

Embrace The World Gouache on paper 28 x 37 cm 1997

Destroy The Masks Gouache on paper 28 x 37 cm 1997

There are many things which are of immense concern with regards to the current Palestinian/Israeli conflict. The loss of life, sadness and destruction at the local level is beyond imagination. The loss of hope for peace has no horizon as it permeates the psyche of everyone.

However, the most heart wrenching aspect of the conflict for me is the suffering of children from both sides of the conflict. The daily scenes in the media of dead children or children wracked with sadness over the death/s of family members or images of children crumpled by fear grip me with devastating sadness. As a mother of three children I cannot imagine the broken hearts of parents who witness literal destruction of their children's lives and/or the death of innocence through the crippling effects of extreme fear and experiences no child should ever have.

The plethora of images of suffering and dead children worries me for obvious reasons, but I am also concerned that we [the audience] may become immune to the shock. I remember when I was a child seeing my first dead body on the tv news. I cannot remember whether is was in the 60s or 70s. It was possibly associated with the Viet Nam War. Up until this point seeing dead people on the news was not common for all sorts of reasons, one being that in death there should be no loss of privacy. I remember seeing the image on tv with my Father who actually made a critical comment about it which seemed also to hold concern about me having witnessed it. My Father made our first tv set in the early 1960s when I was a very small child, so I know we had tv coverage from around 1965/6. The image I witnessed was unusual at the time I saw it.

Now, we see dead people daily in all sorts of media. We even see images of people moments before death ie: witnessing the extremely private time of 'passage'. The images we see are not of dead bodies in the distance, but often close up 'portraits'. The images of children, their bodies in funerial wraps and their faces lost to death's 'peace' literally make me cry. But, are we already yet unknowingly becoming immune to these wretched images which are posted not only to compel public opinion about perceived wrongs and rights, but also to sell papers, gain audiences and subscribers.

The 'war' is being fought literally, but it also being fought virtually. By being part of the 'audience' are we drawn into the battle lines? Yet, the word 'audience' implies a distance which both ordinary Israelis and Palestinians on the ground cannot and do not have. Being part of the distant 'audience' also makes our seeming powerlessness more depressing. So, in some ways despondency can neuter us before we even have a chance to choose to seek out how to effectively and actively engage or not. The media bombardment induces a kind of passive engagement which has insidious culpability.

To make the images of dead children really meaningful we need to ask questions not only about the deaths, but also about the use of these images. Let them not be lost to only moments of anguish before we turn the page or switch the channel...and forget or worse still become immune to the horror.

I am aware of collaborative projects between Palestinians and Israelis. These projects include the arts, sport, agriculture, medicine and so on. Why are there never images of these more positive aspects of life in the mainstream media? You only have to google to find the many projects that exist in the Middle East and throughout the world. I wonder what a media bombardment of these sorts of positive images would do to the psyche of the world? I suggest they would help restore states of mind which enable rather than disable.

In 1997 I painted a series of work about children. Two of these paintings are above.

Embrace the World is a child wrapped around the earth not only taking some ownership, but also nurturing it and taking every opportunity to experience a full life. This is what childhood should promise. This is what the dead and suffering children of any war zone or conflict area have taken from them.

Destroy The Masks 'speaks' about the masks children take on in order to be safe from a perceived threat to their identity, whether it is in the face of bullies, to please teachers and parents etc. Sometimes the masks never come off and the child never knows who they really are. Children in war zones wear masks of fear which seem glued to their faces.

One charity which I have worked with before is War Child http://www.warchild.com.au/

It is an international organisation with an active Australian office. They work directly for the benefit of children who are in war zones or who have sufferend as a result of conflict. Please visit their website to see the amazing work they do.

EXPECT THE BEST-OPTIMISM'S SONG

Suggestion Gouache on paper 18 x 25 cm 2008

Well, Christmas Day has been and gone for 2008. I had a wonderful time with my family. We spent a few days together in Maleny which is in the mountains behind the Sunshine Coast in Queensland. It is beautiful, green, pretty, has rolling hills, fat cows and mild weather...and my Mum is a fab cook, so we have returned home a bit fatter.

After doing lots of Christmasssy things like attending a very moving Christmas candle lighting service at Unity Church [which preaches from a metaphysical perspective] , singing carols, being with family and generally just slowing down it is obvious to me that letting go a normal routine of frantic activity is absolutely necessary to gain perspective of oneself! Yes, it has been awhile since I slowed down!

I also think that letting go gives the potential for optimism to sing its song. As some things which may seem important in a frantic life drop away in significance a recalibration of priorities can take place. I suppose this is where New Year resolutions may be found!

So, over the years I have thought about the idea of New Year resolutions but I've never really made any mainly because of an underlying niggly feeling of inbuilt failure. I think maybe this was because the resolutions had more to do with controlling a frantic life rather than being truly alive. I have decided that for 2009 I will make only one resolution and that is to expect the best.

Expecting the best does not mean I have a predetermined idea of what is the best! Indeed, whatever is 'the best' sometimes may not be evident until the magic of hindsight reveals it.

I have been painting on paper lately exploring the tree-of-life motif which I love and also investigating ways to satisfy my need to expose the beauty of water. The latter is about my observations growing up on a farm, living out west and witnessing the transformation of water from a free and reliable resource to something which has become a commodity...and all the ramifications this entails.

A recent nostalgic trip back to my birthplace of Dalby with my youngest daughter has inspired me even more. It has been 14 years since I visited Dalby, my parent's old farm and other places of personal significance. It was a great trip and my daughter thoroughly enjoyed seeing where Mum grew up. I have to say the land and crops [mainly sorghum] are looking fantastic.

Over the next many weeks I am concentrating on more works on paper. I also have some ideas for new oil on linen paintings. I have applied for an exhibition and will be entering various competitions ...and expecting the best!

Happy New Year

MYOPTIMISM

This painting is called The Brush Of Angels' Wings Oil on linen 53 x 97 cm 2008

As we negotiate contemporary life in the spaces between the micro and macro-local and global-vast and intimate we know that our potential exists within the chaos. Optimism is knowing that life’s complexity and its chaotic presentation actually create the forces for survival. To me the seeming chaos is like the flutter of angels’ wings creating energy and thus potential. The trans-cultural/religious tree of life, its visceral branches, the spaces between its branches and twigs, its constant movement in the air epitomises the essence of chaos’s promise.

MYOPTIMISM

MYOPTIMISM @ MYHOUSE


Optimism is having faith in yourself and the human race.

Optimism is knowing that life’s complexity and its chaotic presentation create the forces for survival.

Optimism is knowing that the dark night of the soul when you stare into the open mouth of the lion, is part of a journey, not the end. It is knowing that mourning releases you from the crippling clinging attachment to those things, people or relationships you have lost. By letting go you release yourself and others to potential.

Optimism knows the negative exists in potential, thus….

Optimism is realistic.

Optimism is far more than positive thinking. The latter overlays negative thoughts without dealing with them, leaving them to ultimately corrupt the positive thinking.

Optimism is not wishful thinking.

Optimism can inspire others.

Optimism is a choice.

Image: Frisson Gouache on paper 21 x 30 cm 2008

AFTER THE IMPLOSION

                                                                      Sharing The Spaces

                                                                    After The Implosion

I started writing this [below] for a letter to a newspaper, but it got too long...so here it is for you instead!

THE IMPLOSION
Media commentary on the global financial implosion is peppered with key descriptive words which have seemingly gone unscrutinised under the deluge of blame, fear and doom reporting and rhetoric. Words such as ‘bubble’, ‘magical’, ‘fantasy’, ‘unreal’, ‘dreamland’ and ‘nothing’ describe the antithesis of reality, yet they hold clues to identifying the underlying motivational [albeit not necessarily conscious] reason for the financial and economic turmoil which has swept swiftly throughout the globe. This reason goes beyond Gordon Gekko’s simple and obvious greed.

Over the last twenty to thirty years postmodernism's distortion into slippery yet seductive narcissistic tendencies and a love of simulacra has insidiously infiltrated many of society’s institutions via memetic means. Narcissism is characterised by a self worship, which proclaims a right to flout rules and regulations, at the same time as making them up for others, who abide only to find the rules change in a nano second, or they are so complex multiple interpretations confuse. Narcissism’s passive-aggressive qualities dupe people into thinking someone cares making sympathy a tool to emotionally colonise the poor, underprivileged and powerless. Conversely the latter [along with everyone else] succumb to the narcissistic seduction by believing they can have a house, a car or whatever without concrete obligation.

The slippery and swift manoeuvring of ‘dud’ deals into packaged ‘investment’ entities to offload onto someone else is narcissism’s game, aided and abetted by simulation. The simulated experience is also seductive because an escape to a fantasy world where everything is available and abundant seems possible. The sub prime debacle is an example of simulacra vanishing in the face of ‘authentic’ experiences of ‘real life’, one example being interest rate rises. The debacle whipped the rug from under narcissism’s feet causing the economic ‘house of cards’ largely built from more simulacra to collapse.

Society’s core values have been hijacked by the underbelly of post modernism’s narcissistic inability to share. Lack of emotion, except for selfish and sensationalist emotional displays designed to manipulate, is a characteristic of narcissism. In varying degrees this behaviour is part of normal teenage development, so perhaps the crisis is a wake-up call to grow up! The world currently has deeply bended knees. The hope is that when the world jumps it actually moves and does not land on the same spot becoming the arrested teenager. The latter is unlikely because the crisis is very serious and the need for new paradigms supported by core values which embrace the experiences of a world where globalisation has collapsed the distance of difference is obvious.

The implosion could be seen as an inevitable aspect of post modernism’s demise and simultaneously a sign of burgeoning new paradigms which collectively have yet to be named [and possibly even identified]. Within the artworld artists, academics and theorists have been contemplating the question of ‘what’s next?’ for some time. In this way the artworld can be seen as a barometer for detecting, reflecting [and sometimes affecting] change well before the broader community is aware that failing structures are actually heralding something new. Hopefully whatever is ‘new’ will retain the best of postmodernism including its creative insistence to stretch boundaries to test whether what seems impossible has real possibility.

Art’s agency is its potent ability to be reflective, yet at its weakest this can merely scaffold existing paradigms. Art’s less obvious agency is its ability to be affective albeit not deliberately so, otherwise it falls prey to restrictive and prescriptive didacticism and purpose. Flexible skills in perspective are needed to negotiate or dance across the contemporary ‘stage’ which exists between the global and local ‘wings’. Art's agency is its potential to provide experiences with multiple, distorted, unexpected perspectives both literally and metaphorically.

Perspective of others and self is enabled by contemporary life which is about living locally in the increasingly globalised world. Thus, perspective gained by experiencing multiple viewpoints creates a [potential] space/place where compassion for self and others can flourish and be shared in dignified, equal and mature relationships, negotiations and transactions in all areas of life.

Healthy self-interest becomes a compassionate urge at a micro level knowing that it wants and needs to positively affect the community or macro level. World leaders and the general population must re-build foundations based on underlying compassionate principles taking into account the individual and the collective. For this to be effective it needs to be done without wasting time on blame and retribution because basically we all passively [through ignorance and disinterest] or actively played in post modernism’s illusory playground where ‘bubbles’, ‘magic’, ‘fantasy’, ‘unreality’, 'dreamland' were the games [albeit at times very enjoyable games].

All good things must come to an end and whatever happens next will ultimately implode/deconstruct/die to make room for the necessary out-picturing of evolutionary urges.


Image above-After The Implosion Gouache on paper 25 x 18 cm 2008
This work on paper was inspired by the possibility of something new happening in the aftermath of implosion. The 'new 'errupts in a way which whilst not necessarily identifiable is possibly detectible by the very existence of implosion. I have used the spiral to reference my interest in Don Beck's Spiral Dynamic Integral theory. http://www.spiraldynamics.net/

Sharing The Spaces Gouache on paper 21 x 30 cm 2008

Spaces are created when we have perspective literal and metaphoric. The distance in these spaces can be close or far, spatial or temporal, conscious or unconscious, material or spiritual and so on. These spaces are not empty.

A FRISSON WITH DISTANCE

I wanted to create an image which embraced a feeling of excitement and anticipation...like when you meet someone you are really attracted to. So, yes.... a bit tingly, sensual, earthy and anticipatory. I wanted to do this for a few reasons. 1. I am intensely interested in the idea of distance being close and/or far and that the space between is replete with energy thus collapsing the idea that opposites and antimonies actually exist because this 'space between' insists they are variations of each other. 2. The moment before a romantic kiss when the distance between two people is close but not closed is full of anticipation and possibility. 3. I imagine time and space dancing with each other causing frissons which create a rich environment for the collective consciousness. 4. I am interested in questioning the idea of duality and that maybe it is an illusion...if it is distance has no meaning.

I was thinking this morning about the current financial crisis gripping the world. Readers of my BLOG know I am very interested in what's happening. I had a thought which I think has a positive spin to it. If Post Modernism's narcisistic tendencies and love of simulacra have driven financial environments allowing activities which ultimately have caused the current crisis, we can perhaps 'see' this drive as the element which has also caused the unprecedented collaboration amongst world leaders as witnessed this last weekend. The drive for personal gain and wealth without safe levels of responsibility has brought the world to a situation where countries/nations and their leaders are now forced [or at least have the opportunity] to work together and to put genuine and compassionate action into 'global world' rhetoric. Any kind of simulation cannot last, yet it is sometimes difficult to know when it is enticing or seducing you. Narcisism will perpetuate simulation by upping the ante with changing rules, no rules, rules for some and not for others, creating complex arrangements etc until it just cannot be sustained anymore. The implosion is inevitable and I think should be welcomed because it means change can happen. 'Global world' rhetoric now has an opportunity to become actioned with a real understanding of the interlinking capacities and activities of contemporary human endevour. Hopefully there is recognition that compassion needs to be a guiding element of change and the outcomes of it. I also hope untethered blame does not poison attempts to create our new world.

So with regards to my painting above 'A Frisson With Distance' I also would like to think it suggests the 'charged' feeling the world is experiencing now. Like being on the 'edge' where anticipation creates energy and inspiration.

A Frisson With Distance Oil on linen 84 x 147 cm 2008