Could color coordination be my antidote to life's many frustrating inconsistencies?

I think I figured out why I like finding things that coordinate with each other so much. It's because of the many incongruities in my life. They're not unlike the litany of circumstances catalogued in Alanis Morissette's "Ironic," which, though they range from unfortunate to tragic, are not truly ironic: "rain on your wedding day, a free ride when you already paid, good advice that you just didn't take..." Parallel to that.

 

Growing up as an artist in a country that doesn't care about artists. Applying to colleges based on name recognition; only having my alma mater's name recognized by men who implied I was never qualified to go there. Getting a full academic scholarship to a university that didn't offer my desired major. Seeing that same university offer the major I wanted years after I graduated from it. Having an internship that opened a door, but it was the wrong door. Enrolling in a fiction writing MFA program when I had writer's block. 

Going back to school to escape dead-end retail jobs; being offered almost nothing but dead-end retail jobs after graduating. Acquiring years of work experience in fields I don't care for. Finding a job I loved where I hoped to move up the ladder only to get laid off and have it turn into a job I hated in the process. 

Applying for jobs before graduation in order to have something lined up afterwards, then getting offers that would have required dropping out of school in the middle of my last semester, and not getting any offers when I applied again after graduation. Getting job offers I don't want and never getting the ones I do. Watching people who don't know what they're doing fail up again and again while being rejected for not having enough experience. Knowing what I want to do with my life but not knowing enough people willing to pay me a living wage to do it. 

Falling in love with men who didn't love me; attracting attention from men I find odious. Discovering a TV show I find captivating that gets canceled while shows I don't enjoy get renewed season after season. Having the entrée I always order from a restaurant–the only reason I even go there–taken off the menu. 

Finding out a store I want to order something from is having an amazing sale when I'm totally broke. Earning a windfall that is almost immediately consumed by unexpected expenses. Checking my email in anticipation of something important and only finding spam. Receiving messages from businesses who want me to be their client instead of potential clients who want to do business with me. 

Treating my art practice like a business; finding that my business is a second job where I pay to work there. Posting my art online in the hope of getting 1000 true fans; mostly getting responses from a smattering of reply guys. Having my best social media posts shared by weirdos with a handful of followers, while the ones with typos or missing information get shared by accounts with thousands of followers. Scrolling through calls for artists that all have entry fees or else are irrelevant to my work. 

Being bombarded with unsolicited advice from people who claim they just want me to be happy when it has the opposite effect. Wanting to make art in a world that only wants content. Feeling like a square peg in a round hole...

It makes it all the more satisfying when things coordinate, complement, fit, match, harmonize, and align. A pleasant illusion in a frustratingly chaotic world.

More new paintings for the summer

Here are some more new paintings that I made this summer. I've really been enjoying the process of working with the sheets of foam packing material that I've saved over the years.

This is Flare.

This is Golden Hour, which, as with Pandora's Aquarium, is an older piece that I just repaired after it got damaged in storage:

This is Visions of a Sunset:

And this is Icewater:

All the paintings are available for purchase on Etsy as of the time of this post. But if you happen upon this post after they've been sold, don't despair. I can make a similar custom painting for you. Click here to learn more about my commissioned art process.

Pandora's Aquarium, revisited

While reorganizing my studio, I unearthed a variety of old pieces of artwork. Some were incomplete, like the canvas that would eventually become Enmeshment in Green Blue and Yellow. Others had unfortunately gotten damaged. Sadly, that's what happened to Pandora's Aquarium, which I made way back in 2010.

Pandora's Aquarium in 2010

 I'll be honest with you, I don't enjoy repairing my artwork. I usually feel so bad for letting it get damaged in the first place that I don't even want to start. That was how I felt about Pandora's Aquarium for a very long time. I didn't know where to begin. I couldn't remember what paint I had originally used. How could I make a seamless repair? But then I saw Stuart Semple's new "Ice" paint, and I knew that it would be the perfect medium to take my work in a new direction and give it new life.

Here's the repaired and renewed version:

At the time of this post, Pandora's Aquarium is available for purchase on Etsy. But if you happen upon this post after it's been sold, don't despair. I can make a similar custom painting for you. Click here to learn more about my commissioned art process.

 

Back at the MCA: Forothermore and more

This week I went to the MCA with a cousin who was visiting from out of town. As with the Art Institute, I hadn't been there since the pandemic began. I'm glad I went. 

Everyone's been talking about Forothermore, the big solo exhibition of Nick Cave's work. I was familiar with his Soundsuits, but hadn't seen the rest of his body of work. I took pictures of the portions of the show that I found particularly striking.

Of all the birds in his work, his use of bald eagles is especially compelling. They appear as such menacing figures, an appropriate symbol of the tortured dynamic between the United States of America and African-Americans.

I also liked this piece by Wendy Red Star, which was featured in the Based on a True Story exhibition on the first floor.

And I love Firelei Báez's gorgeous mural in the lobby.

Forothermore is on view until October 2nd and I would definitely recommend seeing it if you can.