This became a primary aspect of my work, the limitations of the vessel, and how forcing contents in causes the container to protrude beyond its capacity. In my work, the vessel manifests itself in innumerable ways. Just prior to heading off to church today, I glanced in the mirror. I usually look at the forward facing view, then turn sideways and consider just how much of a protrusion there is. Countless times growing up I saw my mother do this. She would judge to see if her muscle, skin, tissue, and fat communicated favorably. This became a primary aspect of my work, the limitations of the vessel, and how forcing contents in causes the container to protrude beyond its capacity. In my work, the vessel manifests itself in innumerable ways. The idea evolved in the work because of pressure experienced working situations. In exploring how to manifest this in a painting, I decided upon the balloon. Balloons are used for joyous occasions they are often colorful and when let go they symbolically represent freedom. In 1956 an arts film from France won the Oscar for a children’s film, The Red Balloon. One of my teachers shared it with my class when I was a child; it was my first introduction to film as art. In the film, the balloon escapes the grasp of a small boy. The balloon did not desire to be a possession; the boy chases it through the neighborhood. The balloon comes to life and experiences a life of its own. Humans breathe into the balloon giving it shape and substance, however, too much and it bursts. If twisted, squeezed, or wrung, without sufficient leeway, bursting also happens. A balloon will also pop if it is pierced, or pressured. The balloons reference the figure, sitting, reclining, standing, and the figure occupies the totality of the space. Each idea begins with a sketch, I begin with a scribble. The unlimited curvilinear quality of the scribble drawings is available to me as a source of freedom in the work. I begin with a loose contour then harden the edges to form the body of the shape. These shapes are feminine; their roundness pushes past flesh, and there is no predetermined outcome for any form. Finally, the forms in both my paintings and in many of my drawings have navels; the navel the point where independence once began. It is often our first scar and is scar tissue that has healed after it is severed, emancipated life. In visually referencing artists like Fernando Botero, Kenny Scharf, and Philip Guston my goal is to reference playful imagery in reflecting on a much more complex idea.
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Laurie DarbyThis blog was created to share academic dialogue. My painting studio is based in Savannah, Georgia. Archives
October 2017
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