Face Value

Small Profile, 2015. Graphite, oil & collage on art board, 10x8".

The first assembly of the Thursday Artists' Working Group met in my studio in December of 2009. We have since shared countless afternoons generating, discussing and celebrating art. We have also exhibited together, mounting our most recent show Atelier III on 3 April 2015. For each exhibition we have chosen a common object or element to address in our various media and styles. This year we chose self-portraits.

For Atelier III I embraced the challenge of self-portraiture for the first time in many years. This provided opportunities to regard myself in the mirror, observe signs of aging, and reveal what I saw with my current process and skills. At times I was preoccupied with the logistics of holding a pose, managing light and materials in the studio. But I was, nevertheless, presented with a distinctive means to contemplate my image and image-making.

As time goes on, I seem to care less and less about how I look. That is to say, I care less about my appearance. Now I care so much more about how I look actively: my perception of others, the immediate and wider world, my place within it. I want to see honestly, respectfully, compassionately.

Unflinching, 2015. Graphite on paper, 10x8".

Gray S-P, 2015. Graphite & chalk on paper, 10x8".

Backlit, 2015. Graphite & oil on art board, 10x8". 

There is a peculiar severity to my face in concentration. This is not the cheerful or tender countenance I wish to offer others. And yet this is the way I look when I am looking, a searching gaze. These studies, like all of my work, are essentially artifacts of a process -and not just the process of a day, an hour or season- but the life-long process of learning to see clearly.