This diptych, a quick sketch from this evening, was influenced both my Swimming at Night paintings and Life of Pi, which I saw earlier this week. I was enchanted by the scenes where Pi, seen from above, is surrounded by fish. I think I will be painting a lot of Pi-inspired work in the months to come. (If you’re wondering: the blue is from a retractable eye shadow pen I found in Dischem.)
This diptych explores the existential crisis that has plagued me for years now. It’s all pretty obvious; no arcane meaning here. That shark lurking below the boat to the left is the big F: failure. The seabirds circling to the right represent the view of the sailor who gazes into the sky above. No matter how much I look to the distance, searching for hope and possibility and all those good things, the things that keep us going, I know that the truth lurks just beneath the surface.
Thinking about a new idea for a painting is one of the few times I forget that it’s there – and that’s one of the reasons I keep doing this, even though there’s no good reason to.
