Amsterdam, originally uploaded by leyaevelyn.
I decided recently, after much back and forth in my mind, to give a few workshops on abstract painting. One a month for three months. The first one is Expressive Qualities in Abstract Painting; the second, Collage and Paint; and the third, Text and Paint.
The last one, text, is something I haven’t taught directly before. It often has come up in classes with art students. Sometimes it’s a political stance, sometimes personal one. Sometimes more words than art. The main issue is always to have the text work with the art, whether it blends, stands out or is obscured.
In my work, I bury words, thoughts, under the paint. I use it as inspiration, liberation. I write on my canvases and then paint over it. It’s been very helpful. Where else can I say whatever I want, uncensored, unseen, and then make it into art.