Finish something.
I have been working on a set of tiny paintings which are only 6 inches square. The idea I had was to play around on them over the dark months of the year when I don’t feel particularly vibrant. To be painting anything at all from mid November through December is a huge departure for me, and I’m proud that I did that. I have had fun using different tools and working out what something this small needs. It turns out they need the paint to be thick and to look spontaneous. Any evidence of my hand being involved looks far too ‘designed’ on this scale. I used Liquitex Basics paint which turns out to be the perfect consistency for some reason. Not so thick that you can’t trowel it smooth but thick enough to stand out. I used trowels, squeegees, sponges on sticks, pretty much anything that wasn’t a paintbrush. I learned a lot that I hope to bring to my larger paintings when I go back to them, and it has actually inspired me to think of ways to scale up even further in the future. I’m still thinking of them in terms of episodes from a longer story, or moments in time captured in photographs. I hold this idea loosely though and it is something I notice when it comes through rather than anything figurative.
Emi’s tiny paintings, only six inches square.
The size of these paintings means that I approach the finish line faster than anything I’ve been working on before. I have spent the last five years engaged in experiments, playing with paint and not keeping much. This process of learning to paint is the most consistent effort I’ve ever made and something I am immensely proud of. I do feel that I am about to leave this phase and that actually finishing something now might be good for morale. So what would finishing one of these tiny paintings look like? How do I finish a painting? It is particularly important to stay loose and experimental, there doesn’t seem to be anywhere to hide hesitation on something this small. My practice is to work on several things at once and bring them all up together, and that is vital to keep things playful. I bought a tiny frame and put it around some of my favourites to help me judge. This orange and blue painting is looking really good. The differences between thin and thick, transparent and opaque are working well and the texture is interesting. When I started I thought I was into flat and glossy surfaces, but I do love paint and I like to see it. I think thick layers of paint turn these tiny paintings into three dimensional objects that you feel you can pick up and hold. It makes you believe that despite the size someone has worked on this surface for a while and poured their energy and attention into it, which to be fair, I have.
Emi’s orange and blue painting which is probably finished.
Something that has come up for me as a result of trying to finish these in a playful way is, how seriously do I really take myself as an artist? You can’t finish anything without taking yourself properly seriously as an artist. Otherwise a splash is just a mess, a flat shape is too bare, a line doesn’t go anywhere. An accidental mark could be done by anyone and an intentional one is embarrassing. I thought that I had a fair amount of confidence around this but as I move to the next level I find myself stretched . I made that blue mark and decided that it was enough. I could keep going forever. Who am I to decide that this is now a work of art? I think they are finished when they start to mean something to me. I have spent a lot of time finding out what I want to paint and what it looks like when it feels like me. My confidence as an artist comes from having done The Work…
And if anyone else likes them that’s a bonus.