Author: Beki Borman

I love the way these smaller pieces are going. I think the scale of the piece works well with the scale of the mark making. Also, I could not easy achieve these thick, creamy surfaces on a larger scale without using a different approach completely. There is an intimacy with the paint here. I think it is evident in the few larger works I have posted recently that this style does not translate well large. As I paint these, I experience a very physical connection to the medium. I push and pull at the paint, sculpting shapes, lines, and transitions through the edge of a painting knife. I very much look forward to showing this series.

There was definitely some frustration in my studio today. Ever have one of those days where nothing turns out? Yeah, sometimes I think my head just is not in it. Sometimes I think I paint aimlessly and get lost because I don’t know what I want. I am working on figuring that part out. In any case, I worked on a few different pieces today, and this is one of them. Not done yet because I am not really happy with it. My abstract landscapes are evolving. I have yet to decide what is next. With these thick oil paintings, I can only do into them so many times before the surface is too think and textured. If I don’t get it in the first few shots, it is often a lost cause.

I had a nice three-day class in Door County. I taught “Painting Without a Brush” at the Peninsula School of Art in Fish Creek. The focus of the class was on direct painting methods with a painting knife. I feel I always learn as much as I teach while doing these workshops. Everyone did really wonderful work and it was a beautiful time to be up north.

This image was done from photograph, I was demoing using a painting knife to paint a landscape. I am happy with how this piece turned out, and it may influence the direction my current work will take.

It can be a very difficult thing to throw a painting away. Once I have made a serious commitment of time and materials to a piece I never want to quit. I have struggled through some pretty miserable paintings and have found success in the end. The more I push and the more paint I apply, the harder it is to give up. I understand intellectually that the time and energy are never wasted because the learning process is more valuable then the product. Emotionally, however, it is still a feeling of utter failure.

I came across this Wednesday. There is this painting I have been pulling out and working on for a month or so. I kept changing my mind about everything and it just refused to meet that indescribable place in the creation process where I go “yes!” Such a moment exists by the way.

The paint on this thing was getting horribly thick, so thick I couldn’t reasonably paint on it anymore. After 2 hours I made a quick and sudden decision to end the suffering. Without thinking too long or hard about it I jabbed my pallet knife through the canvas, tearing the piece down the center. Oh the freedom. I had to physically destroy it to prevent myself from ever returning to it again. I felt sad, and frustrated. It was not so much about the wasted time as it was about the wasted paint. I mean, we are talking about a lot of paint. Despite this, I felt very good about myself and my ability to make that decision. I trust that I know when I have a painting worth saving and when I don’t. I got over the loss quickly, but the confidence and relief remains.