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| Chili Box |
I've been working on this painting with only one real goal—to put on whatever color felt like, without thinking about it. I worked on it several days, gradually shaping it into a pleasing value pattern, and stroking on colors from the palette in whatever way made me happy. I just kept playing with it, enjoying myself, and when I noticed things I wasn't quite happy with, I painted over them, not worrying about whether that would look right or not. I just planned to keep putting on paint till I liked it all. Then last night, after making a dozen small changes and additional glazing, I actually knew I knew I was done, except to sign it. I didn't think it—I felt it. And as soon as I stopped, I felt very content. I took some photos, looked at them, and made one more change.
I know this doesn't sound very earth shaking but I don't remember ever feeling quite so content, or being so relaxed throughout the whole exercise. I wasn't trying to do anything except enjoy myself, and make a painting I like. So I think what happened is that I actually painted this 100% the way I wanted, with no particular expectations or real goals except to make an interesting, beautiful painting. All I really consciously chose was the color palette and the squares format.
