Pentimento Epiphany!

Wow–so there is a series of work that has been floating around in the back of my mind for at least a year now but has never made it to the studio because I haven’t found the right execution for it yet. It stems from wanting to take my drawings to another level and not being proficient enough in printmaking to make that happen yet. It also has something to do with subject matter. I’ve always enjoyed drawing from small natural objects and trying to abstract them somewhat in the process (bones, especially skulls, wood, etc.) So, there I was last week, home alone and channel surfing, when I came across a short documentary titled ‘Pentimento’ which is about an artist in New Mexico named Fran Hardy. (It’s still showing now and then on PAEC, the Pacific Education Channel, as well as some PBS stations if you have a chance to catch it.) It was one of those true “AHA!” moments–her technique was exactly what I had been looking for. So here’s the scoop: Fran does these amazing very tight botanical illustrations on large (4×5′ or so) panels in graphite. She then layers an abstract / non-representational color field on top using oil pastels, and then scratches through to the original drawing without knowing exactly what she’s going to find. This is it–it speaks of process and time and a certain spirit about the subject matter, exactly what I’ve been looking for.

Here are some of my first experiments with this–it’s a drawing of a bevel fungus that I’ve applied the technique to.