Treffinger Daily: 2014

Wednesday, December 17, 2014

Call of the Selkie

"Call of the Selkie", 24"x24", Oil on masonite, $900 I f you are interested in purchasing this painting please contact me at katherine@katherinetreffinger.com

Lately I have been trying to get back to more cheery colors and a more definitive attack. My recent paintings have been deeper than what I was up to previously but to me they feel a little somber which makes sense to me. I am ready to return to my more cheerful roots. This period of painting, I believe, has taken some more sophisticated turns and for that I have been grateful. I think I made some progress on this one in my intention to get cheerier and more definitive.

Friday, November 21, 2014

HOMAGE

'Homage', Oil on Panel, 48"x60", $4500

It has been a long time since I have posted anything on this blog. Not for lack of awareness of the blog. This blog and the Art and Meaning Project takes comittment, some thing I have not had the where with all to do. I needed a break to process the immense changes losing my partner meant.

I watched a docudrama called The Impressionists in which Monet said he did not pick up a brush for 3 years after his wife died. His muse was gone and his art lost its' impetus. Hearing this was so validating to me. Aside from the monotypes I did at Don Grays' studio while Kirby was sick, I did not do any art for over 2 years. This painting 'Homage' was the first painting that emerged. Don, bless his heart built this panel for me. Since this painting I have continued to work on panel, with great help in building them from my friend Jaime Gustavson. Jaime has also been coming over to my studio to paint which has helped give me incentive to get in there myself.

I have learned a lot about the nature of loss and the fact that the mending process takes much longer than anyone can imagine. Living with another being becomes a weaving of two into a tapestry of its' own. When one of those people goes the cloth is rent and a new weaving must evolve as nothing is as it was. That takes time. It makes for a rich new tapestry in the end.

I am doing much better now and feel very much on the mend. I am close to finishing a body of work which is very exciting to me. Now I just need to find the way to reengage with the gallery world and show them. I have been very active refreshing my internet presence, letting go of some representation and starting new ones. I am trying out Saatchi, we'll see how this goes.

The new pieces with the exception of Homage are 24"x24" oil on masonite and are $900 each:

'Changing Lines' SOLD

'Clairvoyant' SOLD

'Guenevere' SOLD

'Fire and Rain'

'Seraphine'

'Alegria'

'Into the Mystic' SOLD

'Summer Rain' SOLD

'Take Me to the River' SOLD

'Uriel' SOLD

This new body of work, of course, is dedicated to Kirby who was a true piece of art.

The Art And Meaning Project

The Art and meaning Project is a series of responses from various artists to the question: "What meaning does doing art have for you? In other words why do you show up in your studio, or wherever, and pick up your tools day after day?"

This is something I have thought of doing for a while as
a book, but now I have the blog and, who knows, maybe
it could become a book. I am very excited about this. I love hearing the answers. Showing up for their creations is
often an irresistible pull for artists. Many of us at any given
time ask ourselves why we are doing it. All the answers have a different response. Most of us can relate to at least some part of every response.

I want to hear the artists' answers. If you are an artist
and would like to contribute please email me. I will not guarantee that I will post everyone's answer, I need to
see what you have to say first and if it contributes more to the project.

THE ART OF KATHERINE TREFFINGER

ABOUT THE ARTIST
www.katherinetreffinger.com

I spent my childhood in Sausalito, California in the 50’s. It was a magical place, teeming with artists and creative expression. Across the street from our house was one of the coffeehouses where the “bohemians” came to listen to music, and writers such as Allen Ginsberg, Gary Snyder and Jack Kerouac read from their work.

It was a time when San Francisco, Oakland, Berkeley and Sausalito were home to the abstract expressionist and Bay Area Figurative movements. My missing toys were found in the neighbor’s sculptures. I was often on tiptoes, peering into the windows of nearby studios and coffeehouses. I thrived in the wondrous mystery of this world.

Later, as an adult I had the good fortune to befriend Joseph Raffael and spend time in his studio. This was before I realized I wanted to be an artist myself. I was greatly influenced by his enthusiasm, dedication, and his ability to create beauty.

In hindsight, there was nothing else I really wanted to be than an artist. I paint and draw because I love to … and because I have to. I am primarily self taught.

When I stand before an empty canvas or piece of paper, I am lost, unaware of what to do. In fact, my most satisfying work comes from staying ‘lost’. Navigational confidence is seldom productive for me. Each piece becomes the recording of a unique introspective exploration.