This latest set of paintings are the result of seeing the work of Lynn Boggess at the Lines and Colors blog. I found his paintings really inspiring, and they made me re-connect with the days when I studied painting at the Maine College of Art in 1984, where we used painting knives exclusively during the early part of the year. I started using again at Ohio School of Art where I was working on abstract paintings. As a matter of fact, I still am using the same knife I bought in Ohio back in 1993. It is a difficult tool to master because the initial application of paint is so direct and striking that it is hard There is a purity of color that can be achieved when painting with a knife that is very different than that done with a brush. The “creaminess” of the paint really shows, and the intensity of the color is strong, which is partly due to its layering on the paint surface. Of course, these are the things I found in Boggess’ work. I have yet to get to that point, but these pieces attempt to bring that forth.
