the first part of the experiment, yesterday's ni zan creek, still in process, departs from the pattern of the last 13 paintings in that it has no collaged paper. after critiques from some of the gallery staff, i decided to see if i could create the same or higher level of layered complexity and informed randomness i so love, without the collaged paper.
at the same time, i am experimenting in this new piece, wu zhen creek, with NOT stretching the canvas so that i can work on a hard flat surface, creating less liklihood of the paper wrinkling and buckling, which was part of the gallery critique.
and finally, because in the last 13 paintings i was using my right arm in a stressful way, flattening the collaged paper with a spatula in a way that eventually resulted in "tennis elbow," shoulder problems, trigger finger, etc. i realized something had to shift!
so this is the first day since our trip to houston that i am once again collaging paper. and i must say, my first reaction is one of relief at being back in that playground i so love, where excellent surprises are the rule and not so excellent ones can be obliterated, often creating exciting visual results. although my arm does hurt & i'm headed for the ice pack.
stay tuned friends.....
STAGE I wu zhen creek 16x66"
acrylic & collaged paper on canvas