I continue to consider what it means to “create” a painting. It is difficult for me to say that I created a painting, not just from a self-doubting perspective (the struggles to put myself “out there”), instead more from the varied influences on each step along the way to build a painting. In my last post I shared the many artists that impacted the creation (Titian, Ingres, Manet, Matisse, Rousseau and Chagall), so to say that my work is original would be difficult to suggest.
Knock Turn Close Up
And then there are the current inspirations of Connie Wallace whose presence is front and center along with her suggestion of the flying pigs. There are the anonymous hands that created the canvas, filled the paint tubes and crimped the brushes. Then there is the canvas itself that constantly spoke to me, affording opportunities to stop and see the patterns that began to come forth over time. This happened most notably with the elephants that emerged from the sky (literally) as well as the moon rainbow stretching
Knock Turn Close Up
across the cityscape above the two crows. And lastly, my guides (some call them angels or muse) that patiently suggested directions during this long journey that became the Knock Turn. With all this in mind, I can more confidently say that I co-created the work.
Knock Turn Close Up
As for the name of the painting, Knock Turn is a play on words. Nocturne, related to nocturnal, or that which occurs in the night, is my indirect way in suggesting a dream. Often dreams can suddenly become chilling (as the sudden “knock” or bump in the night) while taking unusual “turns” leading to disorientation and confusion. It is this combination of words folded into the theme of dreams that became a constant under current over time, leading to the final punctuation of the co-creation … Knock Turn.
