Pig Tales

After several months of video focus I'm finding my way back into the paint again. I've had a series of small panels (20cm x 20cm) prepared with chalk gesso sitting waiting for me for some time and I finally realised that rather than going BIG with the current series I wanted to go even smaller. I spent the afternoon drawing up nine close-up mini portraits of the salt and pepper shakers that feature in my measure for measure series. And I'm feeling quite happy with the outcome. I particularly love this little piggy, he's such a ham (I'm sorry).

I attended a Gregory Crewdson lecture on Tuesday and he asserted that all artists have a core story that they are trying to convey. I left wondering about mine. Do I really have a core story? Maybe. I do seem to be obsessed with "stuff"; collecting objects, painting them, cherishing them, studying them. And if I think back through my childhood journey there are a few reasons why I cherish stuff. Dad was in the army and we moved a lot. Six schools by grade three in three different states. It was a lot. And we didn't get to keep much from one place to another. And stuff went missing. There's certainly a deep sense for me in finding cherished objects for which I find playful narratives that somehow replicate childhood fantasy and play. I think that this might be part of my motivation, the story in my work.