In my last post I asked for suggestions on how to break a slump. I have been stuck in the creative doldrums for weeks months and I need to get moving again. And, I am so happy to tell you, I got some wonderful suggestions and have already tried several of them. Thank you!
Receiving Pay Cheques, 3000 Men Building a Reservoir (Near Balboa Park-San Francisco), 1933, is an early work. I love the curvilinear forms and the color palette:
Flying Trapeze, ca. 1942, reminds me of the work of Picasso. Perhaps with a bit of Matisse papercut sensibility thrown in:
There is a wall of framed sketches, which are very inspiring.
Park's abstract expressionist phase was short lived. Beth explained that Park always found joy in painting people, and that abstract forms did not excite him. In fact, at one point he gathered up most of his abstracts and took them to the dump. This one survived. Untitled (J), 1948:
Park returned to painting figures. I love the two areas of focus in this photo, the boy in the foreground and the figures on the other side of the street. I found that layering of focus intriguing. Boston Street Scene, 1954:
One suggestion was to visit a museum, read about artists that interest you and to immerse yourself in art. And, coincidentally, the local SAQA group had scheduled a trip to the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth last Saturday.
The Modern itself is an inspiration. The building, with it's beautiful reflecting pool, is gorgeous:
We had a docent-led tour of the new exhibit featuring David Park and the Bay Area Figurative Art Movement. I was not familiar with David Park, but his work struck a chord. And his evolution through realism into abstractive expressionism and back into figurative art was interesting.
Our docent, Beth, was entertaining and very well informed. Park's two daughters had come to the opening at the Modern, and she passed along some of the stories they had told about their father and his work.
I love the exuberant colors of The Bus, ca. 1952:
And this painting, from near the end of his career (and the end of his life), may be my favorite. It is luminous. Louise, 1959:
I was not familiar with the work of David Park. I am so glad to have discovered him, and I bought the catalog of the exhibit to study and savor. And I want to thank everyone for their wonderful ideas -- I have already tried several and I can feel a stirring of interest in creating in the back of my brain. I actually spent Monday and Tuesday in the studio, creating a couple of new small pieces. But I'll tell you more about that tomorrow.....
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