“Loss of Common Ground” acrylic on canvas 20 x 24 by W.E Shumway
“I separated the two primary colors into similar sized areas just to see what sort of impact that might have on the viewer. The color saturation was intense and intimidating. My eyes moved from one color mass to the other, unable to focus on both simultaneously.I added the third primary color on the artist’s color wheel: yellow. True common ground is the kind where unexpected colors reveal themselves. Secondary and tertiary colors are formed and bring their symbolism to the gathering. This reminds me of what happens when people decide to talk about issues upon which they do not agree.”
“Boxed In” acrylic on canvas 11 x 14 by W.E. Shumway
“Without the addition of white pigment, I moved some of the red into the blue and vice versa. Both of those areas blended to dark purple. When I blended all of both colors, the entire painting turned to dark purple. The original colors were replaced with a new color, a condition not unlike a two- party system being replaced.”
“Crack Lets the Light In” aryclic on canvas 12 x 12 by by W.E. Shumway
“I added white pigment, to introduce light to the reds, the blues and the purples. It allowed for a much greater range of color and tonal values. The common ground areas were much more sensitively rendered, interspersed with lighter colors: pinks, lavenders, ice blues, etc. They each carried their own symbolic meanings within their primary derivatives. Light added another dimensional meaning to the imagery. Light helps delineate form and special relationships, as truth helps define what is and what isn’t.”
Q: What’s going on in your studio?
A: “It is certainly a time when we need to share and collaborate on-line with other artists and a community that has become global overnight. We can look back to other catastrophic moments, like 9/11 and the Great Depression, when large communities coalesced and found workable solutions. Those experiences serve to remind us that we can find ways to get to a healthier situation and find common ground creatively.”
Polarization and too little negotiated action allowed the virus to remain unchecked for too long. This pandemic, however, offers us an opportunity to culture the common ground we find ourselves in now. Even though there is some divisiveness amongst politicians, economists and healthcare organizations, many in each group are earnestly looking to work together to divert potential disasters. With enough critical thinking, education and planning, humankind has an opportunity to evolve into a much wiser and planet friendly species. To this end we’ll need to legislate and fund the healthy practices that we discovered while we’ve been globally challenged.
As a species we have not, thus far, shown much ability to sustain healthy behavior beyond a few generations. Our capacity to forget the past and bend to greed, addiction and abuse of power is built deeply into our genes. However, if ever there was a time for reevaluation and evolutionary change, it is now.”
W E Shumway, 3/30/2020
Read more about the artist at:
For Fairweather’s “Fresh Start”. Artist Bill Shumway. On exhibit …
Due to the novel coronavirus the gallery shut its doors on March 15, 2020
Closed temporarily until it is safe to reopen
We will see you on the other side
Hopefully … late spring 2020
Fairweather House and Gallery
612 Broadway, Seaside Oregon
Please stay in touch with the us
We are still here for you, however, in a different way
Contact us on messenger on FB, or email fairweatherhouseandgarden@gmail.com
And, too please visit us at: http://www.fairweatherhouseandgallery.com
