Cosmic Ocean

I went to the art supply store with a plan in mind, to get a 20" x 30" cradled wood board so that I could stay consistent with my existing paintings. But the art supply store didn't have any 20" x 30" boards in stock. And then I saw a circular board. It was 24" in diameter. I decided to try something new. It seemed fitting. The pizza I was waiting to pick up from the pizzeria around the corner was also round.

I knew before beginning that I wanted my new painting to be teal with a lot of metallic and iridescent accents.

This clip is officially a beauty supply but came in handy for holding the pods in place while they dried.

I had considered getting some fancy palette knives to apply the heavy gel but ended up using a butter knife and a silicone spatula instead.

I used a whole jar of heavy gel and still hadn't finished adding texture to everything. I had to buy a second jar. This is probably the most heavy impasto texture of all the paintings I have made so far.

I found the most beautiful glitter to add to the insides of the pods.

I added some deeper shades of teal to the edges of the pods for shading.

To me, abstract painting has a mystical quality. I am saying something that can't be put in words. There is a transcendence about it. It rises from the deep wells of my unconscious mind. I have to let the painting be what it wants to be. I have to listen to it to know how to begin and when it's finished. When I am working, it puts me in a different state of consciousness. I listened to several stories from the LeVar Burton Reads podcast while working on this painting. My favorite was a story in two parts, "The Merchant and the Alchemist's Gate" by Ted Chiang.

I price my paintings according to their surface area, and because this one is a circle, I have to calculate the area using π. But I don't mind because geometry is the only math I ever loved at first sight.

I decided to call this painting Cosmic Ocean because of its colors. I queried "cosmic ocean" on Google and found that it is a concept in numerous creation stories. It makes sense that an ocean came first in these stories since the Earth is mostly water. In the interest of preserving water, while painting I washed my brushes in buckets of water and am going to let the water I used evaporate until only paint residue is left, then incorporate that paint skin into an assemblage. I didn't want to waste any water while making a painting the color of the ocean.

Cosmic Ocean  |  2019 |  $500  | 24" Ø  |  acrylic and ink on cardboard and wood

If you like it, you can see it at my studio tonight, or buy it on Etsy.