Bainbridge Island Museum of Art
Bainbridge Island, WA
Polson (from Poulsbo) presents regional landscape paintings in oil, plus sedimentary layer paintings which can be viewed as either stacked histories or alternate dimensions.
Artist’s Statement:
My relationship with art started at an early age, and I have the same motivation and obsessiveness as I did then. Early on I didn’t think of where I might show or how I might sell. Producing art has always been loving the process. Like a scientist in a laboratory, I painted with a purpose to grow, delve into my mind and experiment with my medium. I am a firm believer of studying the masters as well as works by other artists. It is important to draw and paint from life, both the figure and landscape. Learning from age-old disciplines and techniques, as well as from new developments in art adds greatly to your toolbox. My paintings begin with an overall idea filled with images, shapes and color – the specific subject matter might change during the process. I lay the canvas on the floor and dive into it with spontaneous brush strokes, splatters and washes. I then use a large rag to blot in random shapes and textures. When this dries to the point of not dripping, I place it on the easel or wall and sit back to contemplate images and shapes. Controlling a painting from beginning to end leaves me unsatisfied and sapped of energy. I believe it is essential to allow the work to have half the control, so my process and direction is constantly changing. This gives life to the painting and I become engaged in this relationship – not unlike human relationships. Too much control will destroy it. To allow a ‘give and take’ experience makes it a living thing, with its own energy. I don’t know if this energy I am relating to is the universe, God, or some other entity. All I know is that it keeps the movement of the painting alive. It makes the process enjoyable and the outcome much more exciting.
Credit: Exhibition overview from museum website
Bainbridge Island Museum of Art
Bainbridge Island, WA