Friday, August 14, 2015

May, June, and July

After completing April 2015a (note: all these titles are place holders, I'll create something more personal in the future but just didn't want to deal with it immediately) I decided to make an complete series of stripes on board because I really liked the interaction of the vertical colors with the wood grain as well as the opportunity to create interesting relationships between the different stripes. In living with these in my own space for a while I've also found it very interesting how they all work with each other, that the vertical stripes have an additive affect and effect, but that if one of them is hung horizontally it starts to cancel the others out.
May 2015a
acrylic, oil pastel, shellac on wood
48" x 15.5" x 1"
2015
May 2015a (close-up)
 May 2015b
acrylic, oil pastel, shellac on wood
34.5" x 10" x 1"
2015
May 2015b (close-up) 
May 2015c
acrylic, oil pastel, shellac on wood
41" x 16.75" x 1"
2015 
May 2015c (close-up) 
 May 2015d
acrylic, oil pastel, shellac on wood
58" x 10" x 1"
2015
May 2015d (close-up)
June 2015a
acrylic, oil pastel, epoxy, shellac on wood
72" x 16.25" x 2"
2015
June 2015a (close-up)
Because of the interaction I noticed between the different pieces, I wanted to look for a way to create a single piece that would have that same effect; so I came up with a system for hanging a series of them perpendicular to the wall.
July 2015a
acrylic, oil pastel, epoxy, shellac on wood
45" x 10" x 5.5"
2015
It took me two days to work out the hanging system but finally decided that a mortised french cleat was the best way to do it because of its strength, stability, and clean look.
Mortised French Cleat
I like the idea of hanging them "a little too tight," so that the viewer can't easily see all the sections, I think it adds a little mystery and tension, keeping the viewer engaged and wanting more.
July 2015a (second view)
I'm happy with the resulting interaction between the colors as the viewer looks at the top, bottom, and walks around it.
July 2015a (close-up)
July 2015b
acrylic, oil pastel, shellac on wood
63" x 7.5" x 7.5"
2015
July 2015b (first close-up)
July 2015b (second close-up)