LUCKY NEW WORK

Hot off the easel, is my brand new work. I have another few to show you on friday as well! 

Yup. I am really plowing forward towards my crazy deadline!!!

WHAT DEADLINE???

If you regularly stop by here, you know I have a brand new exhibition opening in October.

"Sign of the Times" will showcase some great new work!!!

Over the weekend I wrote up a new 'artist statement' for the show - (that will be used to help promote/describe the work for this exhibition). Let me share it with you:

At first viewing, this new body of work appears to be all about posters, billboards and advertising. Similar to my previous work, each piece evokes a sense of nostalgia. However, “Sign of the Times” is essentially about the signs all around us.  Signs that tell us our world has changed. Signs illustrating for good or for bad, the kind of communities we have built. Signs that society needs to react and change for the better!

The paintings in this exhibition have a specific message related to the politics of everyday life. I navigate around difficult themes such as drunk driving, urban sprawl and government budget using my ‘signature’ humour and word-play. They say “you can attract more bees with honey than with vinegar”, so I provide political commentary in a somewhat ‘sugary’ manner.

These acrylic paintings employ a collage-like approach, but are rendered in a technique that may be considered ‘trompe l’oeil’. Within each piece, the imagery has been designed specifically to mimic iconography and ephemera from pre-1950. This vintage ‘look’ offsets the political sting and complements a humorous approach to social activism. Along with acrylic paintings, I have once again created work using mixed media and found objects for “Sign of the Times”.

As always, I hope that my work entertains but also challenges people to re-assess the world around them, and perhaps even be a catalyst for change!

Ok.....so it is a bit 'art=speak-y' (which I HATE) but people in the art business are always expecting an obscure and ten-dollar-worded statement that essentially makes people feel stupid. I am NOT like that, so I try to keep it simple and easy to understand. Maybe because I am also simple. 

;-p

OK.....so here is the latest painting for the show:  

"Luck",  36" x 24", Acrylic on Board.

So, as you can see, this one looks like my others in its look.

Now, let's break it down!

It has a background of tiles from Union Station. Actually they are the tiles from the Light Rail (streetcar) station UNDER Union Station. I have always loved the teals and greys and beiges together.

The poster is of some crazy kids partying it up on a Friday night. The streetcar is an oldie. The city in the background it the Toronto skyline. The poster is aged and has the usual folds and such painted on.

The quote on this painting is "Luck runs out, but safety is good for life."Although I cannot find the source from it, I like what it says. It sets the theme of this piece!!

I then painted a horseshoe, and a coaster from 'The Horseshoe Tavern'.

The final elements are a vintage car key for a Ford, and a bottle cap for 'Steam Whistle' beer.

I wanted to make a painting about using your head, and taking transit when you plan on going out to drink. I wanted to tell that story in a tasteful and subtle way. 

I think I was successful.

What say you???