New Painting – Riding the Storm

Riding the Storm, 2013, mixed media on wood, 36″ x 36″

I started this painting last fall but didn’t get a chance to get back to it until this October. Below are photos of how the painting developed over several stages. I took inspiration from Derek Mahon’s poem The Bicycle to celebrate the joy of riding around in our own city. I created a “filmstrip” of photos that I took on my mobile phone while out riding my bike. Embedded amongst the photos are layers of paint, mixed papers, labels and drywall compound.  I overlayed the painting with an excerpt of the poem written in acrylic ink. The painting title spoke to the challenges I was having with the painting which seemed to mirror the tumultuous storm of job changes I was experiencing at my day job. But now after the storm, I can thankfully still get back on the bike and continue on my adventure.