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| SUMMER BREEZE 24” x 36” |
For a professional artist, one of the pressing questions is always what to do with paintings that have been shown extensively and not sold. Non-artists tend to assume that paintings sell soon after creation, but fellow artists will concur that is not the case. I just sold a painting from 2014, and that’s not uncommon. Depending on the size and depth of your work, storage can be a massive headache, especially if you have over 10 years excess.
Artists deal with the situation in many ways. I heard a story that Claude Monet once used a painting to patch his canoe. Other artists have used them to mend leaky roofs or burned them for warmth in the winter. Some artists have radical sales, gesso over and repaint, give to charity shops, or just have a cathartic rip and tear session. I tend to accumulate and occasionally tweak as my skills develop (hence the need for a store room).
Regular visitors to my blog may recognise this painting because it has been tweaked many times. I have loved each stage of this work, but the public has passed by. I believe it has good bones and just hasn't suited anyone’s decor and pocket book. The great thing about acrylic paint is there is no concern about cracking and no limit to the depth of paint, as there is with oil. Therefore, paintings like SUMMER BREEZE tend to accumulate a thick layer of paint, medium and gel, giving a fashionable and intriguing surface texture.
I suspect that this is exactly how Monets early works gained such depth of surface; how interesting it would be to x-ray through the layers to see the progression of composition and color before those paintings sold for millions. Below are a couple of previous versions of SUMMER BREEZE so you can see my thought progression.
SUMMER BREEZE can be viewed from 19 August at Lake Country Coffee House, Bottom Wood Lake Road, Lake Country, BC.
Solo Exhibition of Sea Dean new works
Lake Country Coffee House
during business hours
19 August - 17 September 2018
(including during Art Walk)
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All work by Sea Dean protected by International Copyright - No printing, copying, electronic transfer or any form of duplication allowed without written permission from the Artist.