Light A Candle
Two drawings from the 1970s, in other words from my teens. Experiments with pen on paper. Lots of dark cross-hatching technique. The aesthetic of chiarascuro.
I found these again in a box of old paintings and drawings from my teens and twenties, the 1970s and 80s. Mostly bad stuff, but interesting to look back on, technically, and thematically. Both of these are early representations of life-long themes in my art: the candle in the darkness; the cave lit from within. The latter a visionary moment that dates back to much earlier in my life than I thought; the vision of the candle in the cave was something I wrote about later, in a longer poem. I had forgotten that there was an artistic precursor.
I had a pretty bad day today. Lots of emotion emerging from the trauma around the recent surgery. it was major, high-risk surgery, after all, so some feelings are bound to percolate up, sooner or later.
So this is to light a candle against that outer darkness. A little remembrance, a little solace.
I found these again in a box of old paintings and drawings from my teens and twenties, the 1970s and 80s. Mostly bad stuff, but interesting to look back on, technically, and thematically. Both of these are early representations of life-long themes in my art: the candle in the darkness; the cave lit from within. The latter a visionary moment that dates back to much earlier in my life than I thought; the vision of the candle in the cave was something I wrote about later, in a longer poem. I had forgotten that there was an artistic precursor.
I had a pretty bad day today. Lots of emotion emerging from the trauma around the recent surgery. it was major, high-risk surgery, after all, so some feelings are bound to percolate up, sooner or later.
So this is to light a candle against that outer darkness. A little remembrance, a little solace.
Labels: art, candle, drawing, personal essay
posted by Art Durkee at 11:55 PM
2 Comments:
Of late I've not been around much, Art. Trying to finish my thesis. I'm sorry to hear you've been struggling with the repercussions of surgery. Your early work is wonderful. Please don't disparage it.
No worries, E. I know how involving a thesis can be. Good luck on finishing the process, and getting everything done.
Thanks for the comments on these old drawings. They're okay. I can look back, though, and know that like every young person you start out by imitating, or by doing things out of your imagination. I still am not the best technically at drawing, but then I'm not trying to be. I can depict what I'm trying to get across, even if it's not "realistic" or whatever. But it's all good.
Thanks!
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