This is one of the first paintings I created after leaving college.
The “canvas” is composed of one of my dress shirts, a couple of my old t-shirts and a "found" object. The paint splashes and spray paint give it an atmospheric feel that wasn’t intentional, when I discovered it, I played it up. The work contains several symbols and ironic elements, like the title. The hard to read text is something that I pulled directly from instructions that came with a filtering paper face mask. It struck me as funny. I decided to include it in the same vein as Magritte’s “Ceci n'est pas une pipe". The texture of the pink in the whale not only shows the weave of the fabric but also the underpainting providing an interesting balance with its surroundings.
It still is one of my favorite works. It hasn’t aged.
Can you read the hidden text?
- Subject Matter: Abstract
- Inventory Number: WSS19870419
- Collections: Animals, Color, Cloth & Chaos, Early Works, Tales Among Old Threads