7'h x 6'w, acrylic paint on wood, 2009.
“birds of omen ...
words of prey ...
speaking with winged words:
hostile world - this is not my dream ...” ph’09
i’ve always been interested in the mechanics of flight - lift, drop, pivot, glide - like dancing in air - defying gravity - something western cultures aspire to ...
the summertime antics of birds around my studio never cease to amaze me - their endless display of dexterity - the incomprehensible speed of hummingbirds and barn swallows - the grace of otherwise awkward turkey buzzards in flight - and the cunning accuracy of hawks, owls, and eagles - they all seem to operate on a different frequency ... more articulate and accelerated ...
their efforts in flight are inaudible and usually barely noticed, but closer examination reveals some pretty astounding acrobatics applied against a full range of atmospheric and weather conditions - just one more example of the evolving perfection of nature ...
take-offs and landings are always interesting, even in airplanes ...
but particularly with birds of prey - navigating the thermals on meal reconnaissance; gliding through altitude adjustments, agile dives, attack and retrieval ...
with amazing accuracy, their finger-like feathers seem to grasp at air currents as they pull out of bulleted descents upon their prey ...
i see that image often - that momentary ‘landing’ - in the clearings around my studio, but also in reoccurring dreams since childhood of some shadowy, vague archetype ...
it made its way into a few paintings over the years - not through conscious intent, but as a recognizable element within an otherwise abstract field ... and i'm always somewhat alarmed by its appearance ...
'dream time',1986.
throughout the making of this painting i was avoiding preconceptions while still allowing some of my more recent and re-emerging interests to filter through; the kaleidoscopic summer changes in the northeast, sumi-e drawings, twombly’s calligraphy, growth patterns of plants, trees - neurological similarities - the possibilities of grey - the monotony of ignorance - metallics, iridescence, color interference - things not always appearing as they are - string theories, circumstance, causality - the timelessness of beautiful music and homer’s odyssey - what his birds of omen predicted - a line from a chili pepper’s song: “with the birds i share this lonely view” - our diminishing resources: natural and cultural - the passing of so many legendary ‘creatives’ over recent years - the shifting in consciousness toward an apparently unthinking culture, albeit emotional and controllable - fueled by a lack of facts or credible information - mob mentality - woodstock ...
and, the power of words ...
