OIL PASTELS

The oil pastel series shown here I call my "Primal Stories " series.

This body of work was created between 1994 -1996. It was inspired by a trip back to New Mexico where I revisited a place of inspiration from 20 years prior. The work signified a change in medium for me, switching from large-scale somewhat abstracted sculptures to figurative drawings.

In these drawings I use archetypal female figures whose images, firmly placed in the landscapes they inhabit, become themselves topographical features colored by their strong emotions. I wanted to create a sense of temperature to make the figures and land seem lit from within, as it does just before a huge summer thunderstorm blows in.

Using very rapid strokes to created intensely colored layers, there is a feeling of energy visible just beneath the surface of the figures. I really loved doing this series and working with the Caran D'ache brand of oil pastels which are densely saturated with pigment and creamy in texture.

(Click on images below for larger views)

Blood Mountain

Bruise Cruise

The Fires I've Set

Haywire

I Am
What I Have Become

I Love New York

Aquadabon, My Vicious Llittle Pet

Pink Hotel

Sleepy Peppers

Tic Tac Toe