Inspiration – George Tooker

George Tooker died this week. You can read the New York Times obituary here. There’s also a wonderful short documentary that captures his gentle spirit here. And here‘s a short survey about the artist.

His work was evocative, awe inspiring, and it deeply affects those who explore it. He’s a part of the artistic lineage that I claim, particularly since I see myself as a symbolist.

““Symbolism can be limiting and dangerous, but I don’t care for art without it. The kind that appeals to me the most is a symbolism like a heraldic emblem, but never just that alone: the kind practiced by Paolo Uccello and Piero della Francesca.” – George Tooker

Sleep well.

Lamentations Series Continuing On

I’ve been continuing work on the Lamentations 3 series – see the latest work below (and an earlier note here). You can see one of the other paintings in the series here.

You can probably see that I am referencing Arnold Bocklin‘s famous painting Isle of the Dead – which he recreated many times – in this work. The connotations it carries with it seemed like a good basis upon with to embed my own reference and image.

I am also pulling from Nerdrum‘s recurring figure of alienation, seen in his Man in an Abandoned Landscape and Iron Law (center, distance).