Tuesday, September 14, 2010

Day 6: Great friends & Great Art


Clayton Beck drew this most vulnerable woman and captured her welling tears and chin up nature. He is an absolute master of capturing expressions in his models; giving them the comfort and space they need to reveal them selves as he renders their very soul. I am always impressed when a painter can do this miracle of soul capturing. It never ceases to amaze me. There are so few painters who can actually pull it off and when they do as Clayton did in this piece it simply brings you to your knees. I have been humbled this week as new visitors to our six day old gallery in Charleston have reacted to the work on our walls. We have had such kind accolades and dramatic warm reactions to the work we hang it dawned on me I had ceased seeing the work clearly. I spent part of this morning before we opened gazing at paintings, thinking about the painters, realizing the attachments I have formed to them both as friends and as beloved images. I spent an especially long time in front of Joanna. She is extremely well drawn. Clayton's mastery of values, evident. His extremely facile handling of temperature a mark for all to strive after. But the thing that sets this work, and frankly identifies Clayton as a true master is, after all the skill and mastery he has pulled a little piece of this woman's soul out to share it with us. The piece is intimate, it is personal and it is lovely. This work and others like it can be viewed at our new M Gallery at 11 Broad Street Charleston, SC or on the internet at http://www.mgalleryoffineart.com/masterpiece/searchresults.php?artistId=1002&page=1&start=1

No comments: