Be Physical with a Mid August Art Reset - Terrill Welch by herself issue #48
Be physical in your appreciation of art! Engage with original art in person during the rest of August and beyond. What if we were to think of paintings as sculpture in the sense that they are physical objects with three dimensional qualities, in weight, depth, size and even in relation to the thickness of paint? In considering paintings in this way, then it is easier to understand why photographic reproductions of a painting, be it online, in a book or as a print, will repeatedly fail to fully replicate the experience of being in front of the genuine unique painting object in a specific location. We tend to accept these reproductions as “good enough” if we are unable to be physically in front of an original painting. However, it is always good advice to remember that these two things - the reproductions and the original painting - are not the same things. I do my level best to come as close as possible in presenting my work to you in images but there is nothing like coming by and seeing it for yourself or purchasing it and living with the work in your own home. Howard Hodgkin in conversation with Martin Gayford goes so far as to explain that even “the relationship between the colours changes” (Gayford, 2024, p. 163). With this in mind, if you can come to the Terrill Welch Gallery Pod in August, please do! If this is beyond geographically possible, go to an art museum or art gallery in person wherever you are. Take some time with the work. Read up on the artists that are being shown in advance. Move through the gallery space in both directions. Step forward and back from a specific piece that has caught your attention. Ask yourselves, why has the artist chosen this subject, size of surface and range of brush marks? Why might the artist care enough to invest such dedication and so many hours of research and physical labour into creating this work? What are we bringing to this exchange as our part, as a viewer, to this conversation? Allow yourself to ask — what do I have to offer to this painting while I am engaging with it? These questions (and resulting actions) create an opportunity to be an active participant with the artwork rather than a passive observer. I promise you, this shift and reset in your relationship to artwork will be worth it in ways I cannot even describe. If at all possible, I am forward to seeing you sometime soon at the Terrill Welch Gallery Pod. Now to share recent and new work and a little gallery representation news…
SOLACE BETWEEN SEA AND SKY NOW AVAILABLE
With its edges dry to the touch, “Solace Between Sea and Sky” is hanging in our curved hallway keeping us company until it finds its own home in the future.
The painting is now listed and you can explore it in more detail at:
https://www.artworkarchive.com/profile/terrill-welch/artwork/solace-between-sea-and-sky
COMMISSION READY FOR FINAL DECISION
A commissioned work, “Lady Arbutus” is now drying and waiting for the art collector to come by and view it in person before making a final decision. Here it is in a digital viewing room for visual context.
And then by itself…
Artist notes: A ferry whistles in Active Pass on the other side of the island and echoes a response to the August sun pressing towards it through the trees. The calm ocean behind me pools at the bottom of the ridge next to a group of scrubby polar trees. Deep shadows offer a counterbalance to the bright trunks of the arbutus trees and rich soft greens of the grove. What would it like to be this arbutus tree tucked in next to a few strong firs beside the Salish Sea? I can feel the effort of stepping up on the weathered sandstone beside it as I traverse the narrow trail from the point. I like to pause for a few moments and just share its company before moving on. The artwork is a complex interconnected view to render in paint between dancing sunlight and thick growth reaching for the skies. Much is left to interpretation in an integrated network of suggestive figurative to abstract mark making.
As you may remember, with my commission process, the art collector chooses the subject and size and a price is determined. I gather my own references and then paint the subject as I see fit. The art collector then decides if the work is to their satisfaction. If not, the work goes into my inventory and I try again. Payment for an artwork happens once a final decision to accept a painting has been made. This gives me maximum freedom as the painter and is the lowest risk for the art collector. Over the years this has been a win-win for everyone. That said, I only accept a very few commissions each year as they frequently take me away from whatever I am working in my studio practice. Not this painting though. It fits nicely into my current focus.
A NEW ONGOING CURATED OPPORTUNITY FOR MY PAINTINGS
You might remember that a curator from Victoria came to Mayne Island to view my paintings and chose several for a group pop-up exhibition in recognition of World Ocean Day. The exhibition has been so well received that it will become a permanent only feature show with StorytellART. Please feel free to take another browse of this unique presentation at:
https://www.story-tell-art.com/gallery
The show will likely change in the future with new work being added and other pieces leaving for other adventures but it is a topic that will remain relevant. My thanks to StorytellArt curator, Carolina Nakiri, for this opportunity.
UNTIL NEXT FRIDAY
Well, I have been doing these shorter weekly posts for a while now. How are you finding it? Do they fit better into your reading routine? I have been finding them enjoyable to write as I don’t need to go back so far to review material. In addition to this, I have stepped away from posting on Social media in a significant way. This means that I am writing mostly for the newsletter and for my Creative Potager art journal research blog and this is it. Overall, I experience the process as much more sustainable to having fewer hours of screen time in a week - which is one of my personal lifestyle goals. These changes for my art and studio practice are partly brought about because of finishing my MA Fine Art degree but also simply life and world events. Life is too short to be glued to a screen for a good part of each day.
All the best as always,
Terrill 👩🎨🎨❤️
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