Connective Tissue will make it’s premiere at the Creative Arts Guild in Dalton GA this Friday, July 2nd, 2010. Several new works will be included in the 50+ pieces on display throughout the month of July. Here’s a preview of the paintings. Information and directions to the show.

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In college I did a piece based on Mondrian called “Mondrian Bathroom Tile”. It was one of his primary compositions reinterpreted by me with a urinal handle in the left corner. It was also stolen from the statewide show, it must have been a popular piece.

I never cared too much for Mondrian’s work, distilling something to it’s essence wasn’t something that entered my mind, I wanted to learn to paint what I saw. Years gone by and he still has some influence on me. I look at this piece and I see “Broadway Boogie Woogie”. The grid has me for good or ill.

This is the final piece based on an earlier post of my self portrait which, I’m told, doesn’t look a thing like me. Here your chance to see what I see.

Daniel Liam Gill at Creative Arts Guild

A retrospective of my figure work and abstractions.

Main Gallery July 2–23, 2010
Opening Reception-Friday July 2, 5:30 pm-7:30 pm
520 W. Waugh Street, Dalton, Georgia
760.278.0168

http://www.creativeartsguild.org/

I haven’t many self portraits, I can count them all on one hand. I started this piece last winter in my studio and typically of me, I forgot to shoot the original before I taped it off.
The base is an abstraction made by monoprinting myself and pulling out some details. It looks like a lobster or a scorpion. I told an old girlfriend the Aesop’s fable once. “That’s you to a tea.” she said, hence the title. The top layer I painted by looking at myself in a mirror. It’s very comic book like in a mug shot sort of way. Here’s a progression slide show. I’ll post the finished piece when the paint dries.

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These are my sketches from last Sunday’s drawing session at The Rivoli with our model Summer. She did a fantastic job and was very popular wit the group. It was very hot in the studio that day, it felt like a steam bath. I can’t wait to move to Townsend Atelier in July. These are from my sketchbook, made with Micron pens.

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I spent a lot of time looking at this painting in it’s previous stage and decided it needed to be dark to balance the top third and the red line across the top of Amanda’s head.
I also did some scratching on the piece with a knife and some steel wool, mostly on the tattoo. I’d painted it in too much and it lost too much of it’s rawness. I also added some eyes that I’m working on, want to do something with the hair and I need to fix her lips. Paint dries quickly in the Rivoli. I’m waiting for darkness to cool the place down.

The second stage of the painting with a couple of obvious changes. The addition of the red line separating the globules from the figure and the deletion of the thumb from the angled hand. I’ve also warmed the flesh overall and tightened the face. The left eyebrow is giving me some cause for concern but the clutched hand has turned out nicely. It’s on to the tattoos and the eyes in the next round. Compare this stage to the previous post and leave your comment, I’m always eager to hear from you.

Art.a.ma.jig is an event hosted by Tanner Hill Gallery for the Arts & Education Council here in Chattanooga. Artists are asked to donate a piece of work with a common theme. This years is “I Am Fierce”.  I played with this concept in my head, rolled it out to paper and asked my friend Amanda to pose for me. These are my musings on the session and not the model’s. Amanda’s very unassuming and the last person I can think of as “fierce” in the literal sense of the word but she does have some demons writhing around inside her, as I know I do. Amanda’s break through her skin in the form of tattoos. This sugar skull on her shoulder manifests itself into the fierceness that I’m looking for, her open hand clutches at her shattered side. There’s a lot of emotion in this piece already, the floating jellyfish juxtaposed to the hacking strokes of paint. I can’t wait to see where this goes. Here’s a gallery of sketches revealing my process.

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I had a good night last evening sketching at the REACT Collective. I like the space and the models were in good form. Here’s a slideshow from my sketchbook. Micron pens on paper.

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Here’s my first attempt at a really large painting. This is 6′ wide and 4′ tall. My friend Summer sat for this one, it’s one of her excellent yoga poses. The bottom third is an abstraction that needs some more work. I’m not sure where I’m going with this one but invite you along for the ride. Go now if you have to, we’re not stopping until we get there.