By Bonnie Fey Gilliams
About The Art: Painting
When I paint I know limitless possibilities can happen. For me, keeping with a harmonized palette takes discipline and requires pre-planning-maybe even removing paint tubes from my work space. I love color, mark making, texturing, and a free flow. Many times my brush strokes are short and over thirty colors end up on my canvas. Sometimes I find myself scrubbing, texturizing and turning my canvass in every direction. Finally, I see something….
When I am not working on a specific project, my mark making and colors seem to create shapes and images that I find interesting. This is exciting for me because, when I just paint and not plan–I find stories that resonant with me and my values, and messages that I wish to share–shine through.
I believe in using quality materials and paying attention to the integrity and foundation of all my work. Some of my work is intensive, and many pieces take time to develop. I spend time with my paintings. I like to sit in a chair in front of the painting or a cross the room and see what I see.
I love Abstracts, and Narratives because each layer reveals something special. The hard part is to know when the piece is finished. Does it have a story? If I turn it upside down what do I see? What might the collector see? Where would the painting live? How might the viewers mind travel when intellectually responding?
To me, I feel like a painting has life of its own. Will it live in a room in the background setting a mood, or could it be enjoyed in an environment that takes center stage. I love paintings that are captivating and sits with you.
I also love change, so I like my work to have flexibility. What I mean by this is that some of my work might have display options. I like the opportunity to switch hanging direction, or include an interchangeable series-canvases that can be switched and moved offering a different perspective. This allows the collector to participate in the creative flow, and I believe this contributes to the visual context of the artwork. It’s a nice collaboration and keeps artwork fresh.
My desire for purchasers of my work is that the creative energy, care, and specialness I feel for my paintings is shared.
With love, peace, and joy…..Art on Purpose.
Bonnie
