4:31 PM: our heat & hot water stopped working over at the house, so i had to interrupt & go see what's going on. it requires a plumber, and there's only one good one in crestone so i have a call in to him.
this is about the 5th incarnation of grey 20. most of the series have gone through 2-3, but none as radical or frequent as this. here's where it's at as i clean my brushes & go home, probably with no hot shower tonight, unless we drive over to the studio. this image is based upon a vermeer painting i haven't yet translated. more later, gotta run now...
1:56 PM: current state of grey 20. other images were overlayed, with which i was not satisfied, and a scrumble took place. time for a lunch break now.
grey 20 at about 12:40 pm
12:40 PM: and the muse asked, "will somebody please introduce a note of aliveness into this painting?....it may be headed for oblivion, but it has to shift
12:11 PM: beginning work on revising grey 20
11:17 AM: walking to my studio through the wet snow and mud, i had a sense of of elation. for no good reason. maybe it had to do with the sun emerging after an unusual, for the Baca Grande, 24 hours without seeing her whatsoever....
my all important first glance at grey 20 came up a clear "no, not there yet." so, once i prepare my matcha tea and pour it into my friend dan's excellent bowl, i'll dive back in and see what emerges. so in love am i with the process of making a painting, sometimes i think i'm just delaying completion for the sheer pleasure of engaging in the process! seriously!
here is an example of high art. great art. yes, it's coming from a deep religious belief, painted by a monk who was immersed in his meditative practice, perched high in a monestary. but, above all, this for me is high art. it sings! it's a detail of a fresco in the st. mathaiou sinaïtôn church in crete, made in the 16th c. by the hand of m. damaskinou.
since today is, in the greek orthodox tradition, megalo savato, or the saturday before easter sunday, this is a gesture in that direction.