I learned this week that Coral Canyon was being purchased by Samaritan North Lincoln Hospital . It’s an interesting experience, selling a piece that you have invested so much physical and psychic energy into. I am very pleased that it will be on display to people at their most vulnerable times (I am hoping that it will go to the pediatric ward) but I can’t deny that I will miss having it around. As I am taking Deception Pass up to Canada next month and Hegira is currently hanging out at the Lincoln City Cultural Center, I find myself with only The Reef and my current canvas which is currently unnamed.
I did, however, invest in three stretched canvases 60 x 72, for my “squid and the Whale” triptych. I am moving next weekend to the apartment above where I currently live which will give me more room to have an actual studio space. As I work on my current landscape, I plan to start gathering the yarn for the triptych and then eventually giving myself 3-5 years to complete it. With every canvas, my goal is to challenge myself with some new aspect of creation or biological interpretation. Giant Squid and Sperm whales have battles thousands of feet below the waves in areas of the ocean inhabited by wondrous bioluminescent creatures. It will be a new experience to create a canvas filled with the darkness of the abyssal depths but still create the necessary canvas of colors to keep everything interesting. I am also considering using the occasional glow in the dark yarn as a secret “Easter egg” for the canvas.
My canvases have their own stories. Hejira was all about holding human kind responsible for the actions it takes, positive and negative, towards marine creatures and environments. My new triptych will showcase the powerful struggle of two creatures in their natural environment, miles below the surface, hidden from the gaze of human kind. It will take humanity out of the equation and it’s size will dwarf the human viewer. It will send the message to it’s human viewer that humanity is not on top of the food chain and in this instance, humanity is completely irrelevant.
As someone who seeks experiences that make me realize my fragility in the natural world, I am very excited about this project.