Emerson Murray: Shadows on the Wall
Artist Statement: Painting is an emotional endeavor for me. Each piece is a distillation of a story, a theme, or a myth, boiled down to an emotional experience. Whether or not the viewer understands my meaning is irrelevant, as long as the viewer feels something, anything. I paint figures, abstracted into form and color set in abstract landscapes. The figures do not occupy the space volumetrically and light and shadow are generally not part of my tool set. I work in both acrylic and oil paint, the oil paint I mix from raw pigment in order to create my own colors. I generally work with a palette knife and my hands. I oftentimes throw and drip paint onto the canvas. The colors are selected on demand, I do not work from a predetermined palette of colors, but mix the colors as I paint, sometimes mixing colors right on the canvas. I am a disciplined painter and show up for work every day. I may stare at a work in progress for nights on end, but I am in the studio working.