As you know, I have a passion for restoring vintage and antique pieces of furniture. I have also been known to ‘dabble’ in art. Some pieces turn out amazing (to me – and that’s really all that matters) while others turn out… well, shit. I should throw these away but like a good hoarder, I keep them anyway in hopes of one day fixing the mistakes or repainting them into something I love 😂. In this case, it is exactly what I did.
The idea for this work started back in October 2022 while visiting London. My spouse and I were invited to Frieze. We only attended Frieze Masters sadly and I did not get to see Freize London as we were on a tight timeline. Even though we were only there for Frieze to my knowledge 😒
On a side note: I also did not realize pieces at the exhibit were for sale. 😂. I just thought it was a spectacular art show! Maybe this tells you how often I make it to these type of events. 🙈
Anyway, I fell in love with a painting at the event. I don’t like to ogle at things too long and typically walk away as I would with any other normal piece of art…. but when something spectacular catches my eye. I remember! I also tried to casually sneak a photo (see photo to the right). As I was not sure if taking photos of others work was permitted at the event either. Turns out it is perfectly fine and I should have just asked for information.
There are very few paintings that can captivate me. Only one other comes to mind and it was a lemon painting that I walked by in a Portofino gallery a number of years back. Sadly I do not know that artist.
I thought about this painting by George Chann for months before I ever asked a question. What makes this worse is one of our great friends was representing the gallery where this is sold! 😂 You would think I would have just texted and asked… but nope. In my typical fashion, I waited until the most awkward moment possible and asked in front of 10 other people at a lunch event. Ffs.
After I received the information about the painting (the professional PDF above) and realized I wasn’t going to be able to afford this piece (for at least a few years). I had to let go of the idea that it would be hanging in my home. As by the time I can afford it, someone else may own it. Though I will not forget it!
Why did this image captivate me so much? That is a more interesting question. To me it is a fancy version of splatter painting. I am sure there is a more technical name for it that I do not know. It had rustic elements and/or debris if you will, in the art itself. It reminded me of my carpenters bench I was refinishing at the time.
As you can see, I was in the middle of stripping the paint off the bench and the splatter from years of use remained. I actually loved the way the table looked in this photo but for my purposes, I had to keep going and finish it to ‘perfection’.
While I was restoring this table I had to repair rotten wood and pull out rusted nails and screws. I started saving them. I didn’t immediately know what I was going to make but after a few days I started thinking to myself “ maybe I can create ‘my’ version of Loop.”
A few months have gone by at this point and I am writing this before I have even started the painting. I immiediately know that I do not want a ‘knock off’. I want to create my version of his art using Loop as an inspiration. I do not know how yet, but these nails are going to be incorporated in to the painting. He used wood as a base and I will be using canvas – because its what I have.
I actually think it will be a fabulous story – The nails removed from my my 70+ year old carpenters bench saved and added to a large art piece to hang above it. 😱
Im excited to see how this one turns out…I will be back once its complete! [END March 21st, 2023]