Sunrise Series
This series is supported by the 2022 Artist Support Grant made possible by the United Arts Council of Raleigh and Wake County, Raleigh Arts, and the North Carolina Arts Council, a division of the Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.
In January 2022 I was a recipient of the 2022 United Arts Council Artist Support Grant! This grant was created to fund the “professional and artistic development for emerging and established artists to create work, improve their business operations, or bring their work to new audiences.” (quote source)
My approved project was to push the use of scale in my work. Prior to this grant my work was primarily smaller than 24” and I had only ever completed 4 36”x36”x2” paintings. However, in the process of making those larger scale pieces I found myself working in a new way both physically and creatively. This small glimpse into a new creative process is what inspired my grant project application for a large scale series of work to be created in 2023.
With a solo exhibition at the Garner Performing Art Center lined up for March 2023, this grant was the perfect opportunity to challenge myself to create 12 36”x36”x2” abstract geometric paintings for that exhibition.
Initial Series Concept
Knowing that these pieces would be the start of a new series, I spent the first few months of the year diving into the concepts and imagery that they would be unpacking as they spoke to one another in the exhibition space. Rather than making pieces that were isolated in their meaning, collectively this series is an iteration of my previously established “Beauty in the Breaking” series while incorporating new elements.
Art Making Process
Art Making Energy Shift:
As a full time artist with a full time day job, out of necessity I have found in recent years that prioritizing creative time in the early morning is the only sustainable way for me to get clearheaded time in my studio. Knowing this about myself and my creative energy, this series is one that not only embraces that time, but makes it part of a requirement in the painting process.
Visual Elements - Gestural Marks and Crisp Lines:
Before the sunrises (between the hours of 4 and 7am EST) the base layer of each painting is created. Finding inspiration from the colors of the sunrise that lay ahead, gestural marks and the layering of color document the raw, expressive human energy that we all possess. During this time, you can feel clarity in your mind, in your thoughts, and in the spirit of your energy; untainted by the technology world that we are immersed in with modern society; untainted by the media, by digital content, by the noise of the voices around us.
Then as the sun rises and the world “wakes up”, the energy in the studio shifts as structure and order are imposed onto this ‘chaos’ and gestural freedom of human existence. While text messages, phone calls, emails, responsibilities, and the energy of others encroach on our collective existence, so do sharp geometric lines on the panel.
With various degrees of dominance and balance, these two opposing yet inevitably linked elements of our human existence are explored as order and chaos react or influence one another.
Titles:
The title of each work in this series is a question. Extracted from its context, these questions are pulled from journal entries, notes, or thoughts I had around the time of creating the work.
Just as we as people are ever evolving, so will our relationship to each question. How you answer the question today will be different than how you will answer it a month from now or 10 years from now. Additionally, the context and prior experiences that you bring to the table will inherently make you interpret the question very differently than the person standing next to you may.
The intention of these titles are to bring the viewer into the present moment and foster an ever evolving conversation between them and the piece of work.
When read in a sequence, the titles of these works reflect a narrative of one's mental state as they question the world around them. As a series these pieces explore the underlying themes of love, loss, hope, and fear; pressures of appearance, the need for stability, the formation of boundaries, and our personal accountability to our perceived reality.
Much like a sunrise, these questions impact each of us throughout our lifetime as experiences repeat like a spiral staircase – recognizable but in a deeper, more informed, way.
Titles for paintings in the series include:
How lucky are we?
When will this end?
Is this time different?
What will it take?
What did I miss?
Does this change everything?
Should I interfere?
Will you even notice?
Do you remember?
Will that moment ever come again?
Which version of me lives in your mind?
Am I a regret or a fond memory?
Series Evolution
Evolution of Visual Elements:
[ Crisp White ] - At the beginning of the series, order dominated the gestural energy underneath with tight, rigid, overlapping, white lines reacting to the gestural marks underneath. This can be seen in pieces such as “When will this end?” and “How lucky are we?”.
[ Color Lines ] - Then as the series evolved into pieces such as “What will it take?” and “Is this time different?”, the color of the chaos began to influence the structure being imposed onto it. Although it did not influence the crisp edge, the incorporation of color in the lines symbolized that there can be a more balanced and harmonious dance between order and chaos rather than a sharp division. It was at this point too that the concept of division, boundaries, and borders began to come into the work.
Is a line the separation of two forms or the division of one? Can an edge exist as a side of one form without inherently having to create a new form on the other side? Does the gap between two existing forms create a third line definition by the absence of a form being present?
[ Transparent Boundaries ] - Visually unpacking these questions then inspired the pieces “Does this change everything?”, “What did I miss?”, “Will you even notice?”, and“Should I interfere?” which begin to blur my definition of a line, just as boundaries are often blurred in our own human existence and community.
Whether we see them or not boundaries exist - physical, social, mental, emotional. As we begin to impose the structure of the modern world onto our natural state of being, boundaries or barriers are created as human consciousness and community histories are unpacked. Intentional or not, visible to all or only visible to some once they witness them first hand, boundaries are just as much of our modern day society as structure is.
[ Gradient Boundaries ] - Over time, boundaries are often exposed to those who are looking for them. This moment of discovery is explored in the pieces, “Do you remember?”, “Will that moment ever come again?”, “Which version of me lives in your mind?”, and “Am I a regret or a fond memory?”. In each painting lines exist across the painting, from one edge to the other, however elements range from opaque to transparent and a gradient in between.
The viewer may first identify the solid line as disappearing but may soon realize it is simply transforming. These gradients serve as a clue to the other transparent boundaries that exist in the work – representative of the moment as our eyes awaken and we experience, witness, or identify transparent boundaries for the first time.
Expanding Creative Influence:
Although this grant project was to create 12 36”x36”x2” paintings, inevitably working on this large scale and unlocking new concepts began to influence the other work that I was making in my studio. Including 18”x18” pieces as well as 4”x4” pieces, these smaller scale works are side conversations that are occurring as this large theme is being explored. With distinct styles in their own right, I am excited to continue to evolve their narrative alongside and intertwined with the 36” pieces.
Expanding Exhibition Opportunities:
Originally this grant project was to create a body of work for the Garner Performing Art Center for a March 2023 exhibition. However, as a result of this project, my opportunities have expanded. In 2022 paintings from this series were on display in my studio, in an exhibition at Artspace, and were selected to be featured in the Durham Art Guild 68th Annual Juried Exhibition.
Additionally, paintings from this series will also be on display in 2 additional solo exhibitions in 2023 that were made possible as a result of this project.
Learn More & Watch the Series Come To Life
To get a behind the scenes look at this series coming to life, check out my blog. These progress ‘check points’ document my creative process and exploration through video and pictures.
A new studio update blog and video about this series is coming soon. If you want to be the first to see it, please subscribe to my free studio newsletter here.
Shop the Series
Although exhibition opportunities for these works are scheduled out, there is always new work to be made! All paintings from this collection are currently for sale.
Visit The Studio To See Artwork From This Series
Visit J Sanders Studio in downtown Raleigh, NC! Although Artspace (where my studio is) has set open hours each week, my individual studio is open during varying times. To ensure my studio is open, please contact me directly to schedule a free studio visit with me.
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