28 May 2026
Began an 8x10” painting today, a plume of smoke on a ledge redux. After trying to work with it a few months ago, I came back to the image I still remember from when I visited Rob's studio in Sag Harbor and he showed me an acid-yellow work that featured the same subject. It's a beautiful idea, an explosion confined to a container in a quiet room (and no one is around to hear it...). I think I already prefer this one to my initial attempt, firstly for the size—the implication of large-scale destruction works better small. Christopher Culver's charcoal and pastel drawing Octobers (2025) of a white bird in flight approaching a domestic windowsill to land has been tacked up in my studio while I've been working on this one. For the lovely color harmonies, but also because I think there is a lot to be learned from him about subtle texturing of monochromatic space. There's also a tonal parallel to the content; alarming, aggressive action framed and frozen into a kind of tranquility.