1st stage

here is the first stage of a 4'x6' painting, the largest painting i've attempted in 3 years. the second and final stage will be filling in between the vine forms with delicate paint strokes. i'm trying to achieve a contrast between concentrated material and action in the center and methodical mark-making around the center. i feel that this allows the work to be direct as well as subtle. i intend to convey wild nature in this first stage. the second stage essentially "frames" nature, which calls into question the ways in which we perceive and understand nature. gardens are framed nature. landscape paintings are framed nature. audubon's studies of wildlife are framed nature. in my paintings nature is not illustrated, but conveyed by chance occurrences in the movement of acrylic color. it is also referenced by the network of tendril-like forms. the work in the second stage of the painting brings nature to the world of artifice; the world of human experience. the end result should be visually engaging and slightly awkward -- fitting the world of nature into the package of human understanding reveals more mysteries than answers.