I finished Taking Note this morning. This was my 15th session with the 42″ x 56″ oil. I don’t know the sitter. She is (I think) on the staff of the Cleveland Museum of Art.
To me, this painting is pretty abstract, but all my paintings seem that way to me. Perhaps a better word than abstract is formal. I know I’m cooking with gas when everything resolves in parts that can be reassembled. When I was younger, I emphasized the formal aspect of my work. These days I no longer do that; paintings aren’t treatises. Besides, if the formal approach is real, or–if you prefer–valid, then it’s natural. Putting aside this flap-doodle, I like paintings that let you discover the formal elements, like Poussin, and not shove them in my face, like so many second-raters.