#307 - Retro Robin

6"x 6" oil on masonite  Sold

Ever since I got a better camera for taking pictures of my paintings I've been bitten by the photo bug. It's just so much fun. The speed and ease (compared to painting) at which you can make beautiful images is very intoxicating. But as fun as photos are, I still think of them for the most part, as painting fodder. A DSL is a different world of beauty from a point and shoot, but still you can't beat the convenience of something smaller. Speaking of convenience, I can't get enough of the camera on the iphone. There are even apps on there now that rival photoshop. The iphone app called Instagram ain't no photoshop, but it's a hell of a lot of fun. Lately I play with it all the time. I can't resist the old retro filters! I love the ones with the borders, especially in black. I always like the way they seem to add a feeling of weight, reference and nostalgia to an image. Feels like a border or frame, grounds an image in time and space. It's an anchor for an image, like a period is for a sentence. The style of the frame can be an anchor in time. Remember the way the old family photos (~70s) had those rounded edge? I loved that. How kind were those edges to see and hold compared to the sharp ones? A sharp corner is so definite and sometimes acts like an arrow sharply pointing you away from the image. A rounded edges seem to gently nudge you back inside a photo (or back in time?). Anchors and weight. That's what I've been thinking about lately. That's what I've been missing or wanting in my paintings. I think physical as well as visual weight too. Feels substantial. The next painting I'll post up soon is a 10 x 10 on a thick canvas frame. The size and weight feels good. I'll keep on painting the smaller masonite (and artcard) ones, but I want to play with some bigger sizes. It's fun to stretch out.  It feels good, plus maybe it's simply time to get bigger.

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