A Convocation of Color

Ed Whitmore

I work with metal effects paints (iron, copper, bronze) which change color as they oxidize, creating evocative patina in subtle shades of brown, green and blue. The accumulation of paint evokes the passage of time and suggests loss and decay. Both of my parents were born in Poland and survived the complete destruction of their families and their way of life. I was born in the Bronx and spent my formative years living in Paterson, New Jersey, an industrial city that was home to past triumphs but now a place of gloom and hopelessness. To give my pieces an authentic feeling of the past, I often incorporate vintage materials that evoke a long lost past in my paintings and sculpture such as reclaimed barn wood, vintage wrought iron candelabra bases and old letterpress trays. I sometimes hand chisel wood planks prior to painting which gives the work a 3D effect and has distant echoes of the bas relief panels chiseled in stone from ancient Mesopotamia and Egypt. I collect and tumble semi-precious stones which I sometimes use to ornament my paintings and sculptures. The agate, garnet and jasper enhance the colors of the oxidized metal effects paint. For those attuned to the spiritual and metaphysical properties of minerals, the work exudes positive calming energy. Mark Rothko’s large color field paintings have been a big influence on my art. I try in my own work to capture some of that ineffable sense of awe that Rothko’s work evokes. I seek to create paintings that transcend the familiar and elicit emotion regarding the sublime. My process can often be spontaneous, allowing the imagery to evolve naturally, ensuring my subject matter will be fluid and unique each time. This serves to draw the viewer into the painting and invites them to assign personal meaning and universal context. I attempt to create paintings that transcend the familiar and try to infuse the work with anima, the vital principle or animating force within all living things. I work in a wide variety of styles and approaches, however since by choice I have a limited palette (brown, green, blue) the disparate works pull together as a cohesive whole when displayed together.