Barbara Mink

I find myself at an interesting juncture in my painting, the bottom of a trajectory that has taken me through a concentrated attempt to meld science and art; I've come out on the side of painting for painting's sake, with a very light touch when it comes to titles. I had reframed my large-scale abstracts in the context of physics and math; painted first, then finding the scientific corollary afterwards. I purposely chose more abstract concepts from the hard sciences rather than the more obvious biological or geologic contexts, which would seem to fit my organic style. I think it worked; but by drawing such specific ties, it raises false expectations; that the paintings are translations of the science, which they are not. Taking a lighter approach works better I think. The new body of work is called Event Horizons, and I now have a book of photos available from my website or from Blurb.com.

Haven't written for a while; but recent family tragedies and the normal difficulties of life have reminded me of the importance of living in the present, and the joy in being able to pour oneself into the act of creation. I found after September 11 that I tried to literally put my feelings into a painting; the result was banal. More helpful, I think, is to work with the medium than impose an emotion on it. My recent body of work that plays with scientific concepts is often dark, but I don't think depressing.

I'm introducing a new piece at the forthcoming State of the Art show, in conjunction with the Light in Winter festival. Flatter, less textured, more emphasis on line, but still in the relatively narrow color palette of white, black, beige, hints of red. I do love going back and forth between large and small scale as well as differences in texture and line; the one thing i don't do well is stay in one place.

The other Paris exhibit was at the Musee de quai Branley, the controversial primitive art museum near the Eiffel Tower. An exhibit called Upside down Arctic was a multimedia installation featuring fabulous masks and tiny detailed inuit sculptures and talismans, all over a thousand years old. Air conditioning and fake snow may have been a bit kitchy, but the ambient animal sounds and creaking ice made the whole thing work. Good discussion with my friend James Siegel, anthropologist, on the role of masks in ancient cultures and how they fit in (or don't) with the aesthetic of an art museum.

Sitting in CDG airport in Paris, languishing as flight home delayed five hours, a good to to reflect on some of the art experiences this past week.I was especially impressed by an exhibit of Jacques Villagle, specializes in incorporating ripped advertising posters (ripped by others) into large-scale collages with acrylic paint. In the retrospective at the Beaubourg I was really struck by one period in his output which came close to Abstract Expressionism; heavily textured paintings because of the paper and words, but pulled together with large color fields, a la Rauchengberg, Clyfford Still, Rothko. I think I'm going to try incorporating words and pictues along with the photo transfers I did last year, perhaps a good way to reinforce the texture of the acrylic medium.

Sigh. It IS odd, trying to launch a new business venture in the midst of a worldwide economic recession, but I guess one does what one must. The giclee prints on canvas I've had produced locally came out beautifully, I think; the big oils and acrylics scale down nicely, and they ARE an affordable alternative to the originals. But people are understandably wary of laying out money right now, so... we'll see.

It's hard to believe almost a month has passed since my last post during Art Trail; everything was subsumed bythe excitement and triumph of the election. Now that I can think of other things, I'm thinking about the different attractions of abstract and representational painting. I do love realistic renderings of people and still life arrangements; but I really enjoy the freedom and complexity of abstract improvisation. The materials take on an interesting new role , more like a partner than a medium to be bent to your will. The resulting layers of color and texture are fun to explore over and over again; a different experience as a viewer, and certainly a different process as a painter.