On art and inspiration
Often people will ask me who my favorite artist is, the one who inspires me the most in my career. Actually, I have two favorite artists.
Don Music
Salieri in Amadeus.
To me, creativity and self expression flow when we can find an honest place in ourselves despite all the other roles we have to play. But that impulse must be continuously rediscovered as we learn, change, profoundly experience the ups and downs in life. Perhaps that’s the most significant aspect of art for me- the pulse it has on the human spirit.
On an every day level there is also an aspect of painting for me which is fun and continues to be exciting throughout each year. I enjoy the freshness of paint, a crisp feeling of color and an exciting design. Painting offers a chance to improvise with a style or mood using a familiar subject matter- in the same way musicians might play with a popular tune. For instance this still life of Apples plays off of a zigzag composition very much like Cezanne’s. However my style wanted to go with a different color harmony and a greater feeling of form and light.
Without food for the brain and excitement for the eye, the act of painting can be indescribably tedious. A painting is a physical recording of an artist’s emotional, brain, eye and hand activity, therefore the best paintings are those where the artist is completely involved and not going through the motions. Like a music performances, the best recordings are moments in history and when it’s over there’s no fun in doing it again.
