I am trying to get closer to understanding and conveying what I mean by painting an empty room. My last oil painting, “Black Curtain, Rooms Beyond,” included a dark, opaque curtain that obscures the room behind it. I like the idea of something solid and weighty in an otherwise empty room because it adds a mysterious, looming, and more grounded feeling. It can also feel slightly sinister.
In this painting, there is softy-diffused light, and the browns and mauves lend themselves to the overall feel of peace and warmth. The dark shrouds are like thoughts that pervade the serene room. The pink shroud that blends in is a thought unformed, or perhaps unconsciously present, or maybe something you want to repress or conceal. Or maybe the shrouds are like lovers, of the then, now, and future, who all take up different nuances in your mind. Or perhaps they are things you can sense are coming, but do not know about yet. The point is that the shrouds are ambiguous. They are prominent in the room and convey that an empty room is a place to settle personal thoughts. Not settle as in to finalize, but rather like a feather falling and settling on the grass.
