In and Out

Looking in. Looking out. One View.

Divided yet connected. Split. Wide open yet enclosed.

The great American author F. Scott Fitzgerald once said, "The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in the mind at the same time, and still retain the ability to function. One should, for example, be able to see that things are hopeless yet be determined to make them otherwise."

Nice. Easier said than done. I prefer to use charcoal and see two points of view at the same time.

The White Tablecloth

I've been musing about the split-perspective. I seldom see it in paintings, but when I do it can be mesmerizing. The idea of dividing the picture plane into two different sections is playful. It's another puzzle. The areas can relate or not. There are no rules, but sufficient contrast is ideal. Busy and calm. Far and close. Inside and outside. I'm starting to see an emerging metaphor here for how I want to live my year. Here and there. On land and under water. Urban and remote. Perhaps my life will begin to imitate my art as I create more of these split-perspectives. I'd like that.