compose update 10:18 AM 2/20/2014

Short time line: 2009 stopped painting. Started plaster sculpture project. Started working seriously with digital photography. Rekindled interest in digital imaging after stopping this project in or around 2006. Combined digital photography and digital imaging; creating composites. 2012 —feeling quilty for not painting for nearly 4 years, restarted painting projects.

An encaustic project was scheduled to begin in the fall of 2012. Main idea = good winter project where hot plates and heat gun can help heat the studio. Project didn't start until March 2013, and then reluctantly because the muse for this project had left the building. I, however, felt guilty for not placing brush to canvas in over 4 years. I prepped 3 studio frames with 9 small paintings per frame . My mind's eye had a vague idea of what I wanted to do in hot wax painting. After several painting sessions and as many days, I began to dislike intently what was happening in the paintings. I said, "No, no, this isn't it! I feel a 1967 Iowa City dejavu all over again". I stopped and packed up the encaustics. Dilemma! I had 2 fully prepped painting frames and one partial. What do I do? I let this question incubate for a week or so; procrastinating whether I should pack up the painting in favor of doing something else —like reopen the plaster sculpture project. I decided to continue with the project using acrylic polymer paint. As I enter 2014 this is what I am pursuing.

I have concluded, again, that thinking about what to do to make a painting as a conscious process is much over rated and useless as a making procedure for me. I returned to automatism as a creating process. For me and all my art making, leave the conscious thinking out of the equation. Play the improvisation card. Let it be whatever appears out of the process. The one conscious attachment for my painting and sculpture — keep content structure fully within the non-objective abstract mode. No stories. A caveat, working with digital images, especially photography, realism now plays a roll. Story is introduced to the making equation because realism, to me, automatically inserts a story line for the art work. This will be covered in my 2013-14 update .

01 & 11: All of my painting is executed on adjustable studio stretching frames. These special frames allow for fabric tightness to be easily maintained. I like to work on a very taught fabric. The painting dimensions are laid out, taped, and painted. Once finished, the paintings are cut from the studio frame and either fastened to permanent stretchers or mounted on wood panels. The stretched paintings are gallery-wrapped sides (no frame). The panel mounted paintings are inset into a drop-frame.

02-05: Encaustic (hot wax and pigment) on raw (sized only) CD12 cotton duck. Each painting =~ 16 x 19 inches. Collage material = newspaper, fabric scraps, archival inkjet prints. All paintings untitled. 03: Blue area = acrylic polymer. 06-10: Acrylic polymer on raw (sized only) CD12 cotton duck. Each painting =~ 16 x 19 inches. All paintings untitled. 04, 05 & 08: Collage material = scrap fabric.

11-20: Acrylic polymer on raw (sized only) Belgian Linen. Each painting =~ 12 x 16 inches. 17: Digital print collage. All paintings untitled.