Salinger
- Mixed Media, oil and acrylic, found objects, paper
- 84 x 60 in
- Ashley Collins
“Anyway, I keep picturing all these little kids playing some game in this big field of rye and all. Thousands of little kids, and nobody's around - nobody big, I mean - except me. And I'm standing on the edge of some crazy cliff. What I have to do, I have to catch everybody if they start to go over the cliff - I mean if they're running and they don't look where they're going I have to come out from somewhere and catch them. That's all I do all day. I'd just be the catcher in the rye and all. I know it’s crazy, but that's the only thing I'd really like to be”
-JD Salinger, Catcher in the Rye.
What may be our most magnificent gift as people, is to care and protect those that are innocent, that may not have the strength we ourselves have. This relationship changes throughout our lives.. sometimes we are the stronger, the caring… sometimes we ourselves need the hope, love, and protection of others….
Collins brush focus’ is on the most sensitive part of the figurative horse… the nose and mouth… where sweet air and joyful experimentation come from… from a young colt, to the more cautious adult……. it is the softness of the lips and nose that jump out of the painting….. amidst the countless stories that are told in the actual 1800’s historical pages that provide the layered backdrop….
The crumbled pages at the bottom represent days past, days which we build upon, much like new growth derives nourishment from old. Collins deliberate use of drips provides a sense of movement and warmth. This work is an homage, not so much to the book itself, as to the stunning gift of care, and of love, of sweet kindness.
- Collections: ashley collins breeders cup