Portraits

Three Generations of Women. I drew the youngest of the three, depicted here, in her room. I was thrilled when she decided to draw while I sketched her. Elements drawn on the glass came from snippets of our conversation, objects in her room and her completed drawing appears in the lower left of the image. It was important to me that her work appear in the final portrait as her gesture is reflective of personal exploration and discovery.


Three Generations of Women. She restores furniture and family stories. She is caregiver to her children and her aging mother. Her gaze is direct and attentive to the person speaking. She is a master at multi-tasking.


Three Generations of Women. The image is a record of a conversation; a moment in time. The interviewer/artist is shown in the lower right of the image. Cut paper sandwiched between matt and glass. The conversation has layers; the past is overlapped with the present.  Family stories are shared through photo albums and different versions are told by three generations of women. 


Mentor. Snippets of a conversation with a mentor are rearranged and drawn on the back of the glass. An early experiment utilizing all materials in a framed work on paper.

Uncle Jim. My uncle was fond of sharing family stories. He had a deep gravely voice that was fitting to his self described simile of 'like moss on an old tree'. I would bring him various objects, relics and bric a brac discovered on the family property. In those days, they discarded items by burying what couldn't be burned. I have recorded bits of those conversations here, on the glass. The tree painted then scratched into on the back of the glass is the old maple that grew with my grandmother's offspring and continues to provide shade for my children who play at it's base. The cut paper elements are the objects of the present that trigger stories and conversation.


Oil Portrait of Rangaswamy Srinivasan




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