Statement

Painter's Statement

Why Do I Make Art?

Because I must.

Painting is the most human of the plastic arts. To make a mark requires touch. Marks and images made by hand is really non-verbal language that offer a sensory and emotive thread that is deeply human. Why are we fascinated by hand-prints on cave walls found from Africa, France, Mexico and Indonesia, to Spain and Tibet? Because we have all made that mark. That simple image is full of wonder, connection, and the curiosity of being human. It is an assertive declaration of self.

Mark-making in painting is the grammar that is foundational to both representational and abstract works.

Painting starts with a blank canvas, colors, and endless possibilities. It’s about laying down texture and lines; layering color washes or applying thick, opaque passages. The act of brushing, pushing, scraping, wiping, smearing, and dripping paint to cover one passage then another is really about the push and pull of light, color, and ground. With time, the painting will begin to reveal itself and offer me an invitation to come play.

I prefer my work to stand on its own. No puzzles, no questions to answer, and no hidden meanings. I don’t believe in trying to manipulate a viewer’s experience. If I have done my job well, I've conveyed the magic of my interaction with the painting.

Where does my inspiration come from? It comes from literature, poetry, life science, socio-political complexities and nature. Of course, I’m influenced by my surroundings and where I grew up.  

I’m sixty-eight and find this to be a most wonderful time of life. Acknowledging time passed and sweeping out the dusty corners of my inner life has energized a playfulness and 'working patience' in me and the paintings. The result is a new working freedom and deeper narrative to the work.  

Copyright 2025 Hunter B. Hadley, III. All rights reserved.