road trip: a paper trip

There is something about the adventure of jumping in the car; the spontaneity of taking that next turn in the road, the freedom to stay in a place a bit longer….
 
When I am away from the studio some basics get stuffed into my travel bag: a very old, tiny metal Winsor & Newton watercolour box, a couple of brushes, some conté, paper and always, a camera. Painting en plein air isn’t part of my practice. Wandering around a location that draws me in, while observing the light and energy of a place, is.
 
“I work to eliminate the time or the distance between my thinking and doing.”
Philip Guston
 
At the end of a travel day, a few loosely drawn marks with washes of colour capture an emotional response to an experience that language doesn’t always have words for. Watercolour is unforgiving, once you lay pigment down, you have to leave it and continue on. The way I paint with watercolour is similar to drawing with graphite or conté, the connection between thought and line is immediate.
 
These initial marks are a meditative way to play out on paper new ideas and directions I'll use when I get back to the studio. Visuals and ideas that seemed random out in the world, when I trace back, have a direct connection to the path I’m already on but haven’t articulated to the depth I want in the work. Photographs will be used later to reference textures, scenes, the feeling of a place…
 
This new series evolved from a recent trip around Vancouver Island; from the ocean’s edge near Sooke and Tofino, north towards the mountainous areas of Courtney Comox, and finally over to Vancouver.

a new exhibition at

Winchester Galleries
2260 Oak Bay Avenue
Victoria  BC.

'R o a d  T r i p:  a   p a p e r   t r a i l' 
T u e s d a y   J u n e   7 - J u n e  30
Come to the Opening if you're in Victoria,  it would be great to say hi!
S a t u r d a y   J u n e   11   2:00 - 4:00  Upper Gallery