i want to ride to the ridge

where the west commences
and gaze up at the moon until i lose my senses
i can’t look at hovels and i can’t stand fences
don’t fence me in…

robert fletcher and cole porter

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this blind-contour portrait body of work started in 2020 and has continued in the background of everything else i’m working on for most of the ensuing years…

when i sit down in the studio to play with no objective, the faces are frequently what comes out.  in pencil.  engraved in wet acrylic paint over other layers of old work.  in a good old roller ball ink pen.  i love the way those tools just slide around on the page.  looser and silkier than a nib pen… the slick movement translates into easier more intricate details.  

this Starry Skies piece is my favorite variation in this collection - the face flipped to a supine orientation … as a landscape in and of itself.  what other human landscapes to examine? hands? feet? 

the 24” x 36” painting is 100% archival: mixed media acrylics and inks on 300 lb. 100% cotton watercolor paper, mounted on a cradled wood panel, sealed with wax medium for water resistance and easy cleaning. it can hang as is, or you can purchase a floater frame to amp up the formality.

This painting is on view at the Arvada Center Holiday Art Market through Dec. 15, 2024. It is available for sale there.