‘the gamble’
These paintings begin on a stretched background printed directly from patterns created from the cookie jar that was always in my mother’s kitchen. As our own experience is the backdrop for each of our opinions and bias, so are these paintings sitting on top of my memories in the form of prints from my mom’s cookie jar. On thIs printed surface I am exploring the iconography of Playing Cards. Throughout the world, Playing Cards have evolved and crossed cultural boundaries. Playing cards are rich with historical , psychological and religious symbolism. They are almost always viewed the same upside down and right side up as a sort of mirror image, yet flipped. These paintings are exploring a relationship with risk and an addiction to money. We are living in a time when physical labor is less common than achieving wealth through the investing on money - money makes money.
"QUEEN OF DIAMONDS" the gamble 26 x 18"
"RACE HORSE"'the gamble' 26 x 22"
"THE HARVEST"the gamble 23" x 13"
"THE SWAN"the gamble 26 x 23"
"SELF DRIVING" the gamble 26 x 23"
"THE GENERAL"the gamble 26 x 23"
"Protecting the Beast from our own Propensity for Bad Behavior." • 50 x 44"
"Pieta" or "I am dead now" • 50 x 44"
‘the gamble’
This series of work uses the playing card as a jump off point. The images are painted on top of patterns printed directly from a cookie jar that was in my mother’s kitchen. Most of the patterns created by printing directly from the cookie jar are obscured by the painting process. Remnants of the background print are only visible around the outer edge of the canvas creating a framework. Each painting evolves in response to the printed surface inspired by the iconography and the graphic intention of a specific card.