Evolve or Die!

"Evolve or die" is a common quote. I’m not sure I would die if I didn’t evolve, but stagnation is something I cannot exactly live with either.

Since the beginning of my art career, I have had two main bodies of work, which I call “Vintage Snapshots” and “Film Noir.” Now I am commencing on a whole new body of work! I don’t really have a catchy name for it yet, but it is inspired by my fascination with archeology and history.

I made a blog entry almost a year ago entitled “I’m in Love with Archeology.” In it I displayed some sketches, inspired by a book about Sutton Hoo, a famous Anglo-Saxon burial site, depicted in the 2021 movie The Dig. Since that seminal series of sketches, my desire to follow that path has grown and grown, and now I cannot deny it any longer.

My aim is to create art not just about the subject itself, but also about how my mind works, what I find interesting, and why.

Sutton Hoo sketch 2022

Acrylic medium test panel 2023

This will involve using not just drawing and painting, but text, layering, and perhaps some maps or schematic diagrams as well.

This is a test piece where I am experimenting with different types of acrylic mediums, layered with text and drawing.

Notice I make a lot of pencil notes on it, to keep track of what combinations I have used.

For the first time in many years, I genuinely have no idea what I am doing. It will be an adventure into the unknown.