contrast in styles

Its a bitch day, with an Oklahoma rain falling without comment; straight down; sometimes hard, sometimes not.  I've been in neutral for a few days; waiting for a new inspiration or a new deadline to take hold.  So there has been time to look sideways, to change perspective, to see the possibility of change.

Now, yesterday was a day. Simply because, to my astonishment, I found out that "American Modernism" (and here I'm using a term of art historical reference) is considered as abstract art.  Of course, I heard it from an expert in the field; who has been making a living buying, selling and speaking of this stuff.  We were in a room full of the stuff, and had been for an hour when the statement was made.  It hit me like a slow moving train car:  with sudden and irreparable force.

It was a sudden obviousness.  "Make something of your own.  Use new tools."  And they had, those American Modernists; exuberant producers of the new. So that's what the big deal was.  Now I guess everything is post modern - in the style of this or that.

So I came from the room thinking of collecting as a confluence of value, availability and investment.

And I had some fun painting.  Here is a side by side image of two still-wet paintings. One, the ranchos de taos church, is oil on 12" x 16" canvas.  I got some of the light in there. Every home needs a good rancho de taos painting.  The other is oil on board, unmeasured, and is titled "Bitch Day".

Shout out to Kain.  I'll try to fix the filters for comments.