Gilt Series
scroll down to view artworks
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scroll down to view artworks
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24 kt. (a philosophical proposition)
Pure, 24-carat gold surrounds itself with a permanent electrostatic field at just the right frequency to annihilate all bacteria that come within its boundaries (leaving a corona of untouched culture around golden objects placed in the centre of infected Petri dishes). Among the metals, gold has the rare ability to resist oxidization, making it impervious to corrosion and discoloration under normal atmospheric conditions. Because of its seeming incorruptibility, the earliest civilizations, oceans apart, independently followed the cultural pattern of ascribing a spiritual value to gold, followed by a commercial value some hundreds of years later. In one period in medieval Japan gold was restricted to objects and decorations exclusively for the Emperor (descended from the spiritual founder of Shinto), or the interior of the Emperor’s palace, as well as discreet decorations on the sword guards of certain Samurai warriors (ultimately servants of the Emperor). Similar restrictions are seen in cultures during various periods, again across continents.
Beyond the obvious – avarice and murder – gold has an even darker side. The chemical process for extracting gold now in use, as opposed to the ancient (slower) smelting methods, leaves behind arsenic trioxide, one of the deadliest agents known to mankind. A couple of milligrams shuts down the nervous system within seconds.
Along with indefinitely prolonging life and finding the universal cure for all illness, turning base metals, specifically lead, into gold was one of the three main goals of the medieval speculative philosophy and chemical pseudo-science, alchemy, the precursor of several branches of the modern sciences. Ironically, modern particle physics has discovered that, with the use of a particle accelerator, gold can be turned into lead, one atom at a time, by the addition of three electrons. Despite the fact that such a conversion comes at an astronomical cost, the subtraction of those same three electrons remains elusive.
Now that “advanced art” is a branch of philosophy, the role of the would-be “advanced” artist becomes that of artist/philosopher. Naturally, nothing less than brilliance is the aspirant’s goal. The thought of merely illustrating existing philosophical propositions leads inevitably to the question of how to include the intuitive and unexplainable quality inhabiting the most sublime artworks, where form and feeling exist in total integration, achieving a perfect balance of object and concept, making possible the communication of philosophical understanding without the necessity of linguistic explanation.
Given the non-linear nature of such a goal, every decision regarding every detail of a given artwork now includes not only its aesthetic implications (and potentialities) but also its intellectual, ethical, moral, poetic, and spiritual implications, plus, most difficult to achieve, its emotional implications – the ‘je ne sais quoi’ behind the phenomenon of near-universal agreement on which the greatest masterpieces from all cultures and periods are. To facilitate thinking about absolutely every detail, including the ineffable, the now-beleaguered artist begins researching all of the above plus related fields of study the better to make the most informed, possible decisions. These extend from the form the artwork takes in the physical world to its less tangible aspects such as the title or the list of materials - especially the list of materials.
Consider the poetry of the following: ink, watercolor, 24-carat gold leaf, toilet-paper tube.
New Year’s Day, Year of the Dragon, 23rd January, 2012
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Pure, 24-carat gold surrounds itself with a permanent electrostatic field at just the right frequency to annihilate all bacteria that come within its boundaries (leaving a corona of untouched culture around golden objects placed in the centre of infected Petri dishes). Among the metals, gold has the rare ability to resist oxidization, making it impervious to corrosion and discoloration under normal atmospheric conditions. Because of its seeming incorruptibility, the earliest civilizations, oceans apart, independently followed the cultural pattern of ascribing a spiritual value to gold, followed by a commercial value some hundreds of years later. In one period in medieval Japan gold was restricted to objects and decorations exclusively for the Emperor (descended from the spiritual founder of Shinto), or the interior of the Emperor’s palace, as well as discreet decorations on the sword guards of certain Samurai warriors (ultimately servants of the Emperor). Similar restrictions are seen in cultures during various periods, again across continents.
Beyond the obvious – avarice and murder – gold has an even darker side. The chemical process for extracting gold now in use, as opposed to the ancient (slower) smelting methods, leaves behind arsenic trioxide, one of the deadliest agents known to mankind. A couple of milligrams shuts down the nervous system within seconds.
Along with indefinitely prolonging life and finding the universal cure for all illness, turning base metals, specifically lead, into gold was one of the three main goals of the medieval speculative philosophy and chemical pseudo-science, alchemy, the precursor of several branches of the modern sciences. Ironically, modern particle physics has discovered that, with the use of a particle accelerator, gold can be turned into lead, one atom at a time, by the addition of three electrons. Despite the fact that such a conversion comes at an astronomical cost, the subtraction of those same three electrons remains elusive.
Now that “advanced art” is a branch of philosophy, the role of the would-be “advanced” artist becomes that of artist/philosopher. Naturally, nothing less than brilliance is the aspirant’s goal. The thought of merely illustrating existing philosophical propositions leads inevitably to the question of how to include the intuitive and unexplainable quality inhabiting the most sublime artworks, where form and feeling exist in total integration, achieving a perfect balance of object and concept, making possible the communication of philosophical understanding without the necessity of linguistic explanation.
Given the non-linear nature of such a goal, every decision regarding every detail of a given artwork now includes not only its aesthetic implications (and potentialities) but also its intellectual, ethical, moral, poetic, and spiritual implications, plus, most difficult to achieve, its emotional implications – the ‘je ne sais quoi’ behind the phenomenon of near-universal agreement on which the greatest masterpieces from all cultures and periods are. To facilitate thinking about absolutely every detail, including the ineffable, the now-beleaguered artist begins researching all of the above plus related fields of study the better to make the most informed, possible decisions. These extend from the form the artwork takes in the physical world to its less tangible aspects such as the title or the list of materials - especially the list of materials.
Consider the poetry of the following: ink, watercolor, 24-carat gold leaf, toilet-paper tube.
New Year’s Day, Year of the Dragon, 23rd January, 2012
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Gilt Series #20 - Allegory of Self-Sufficiency - Orange Rose in an Antique Bud Vase
2013; weathered plywood, rabbit skin glue, colored pencil, enamel, watercolor, gouache, mordant size, 24-carat gold; 24.75 x 24.75 cm (9.75 x 9.75 in.)
photographed in a white room under incandescent and daylight; private collection
2013; weathered plywood, rabbit skin glue, colored pencil, enamel, watercolor, gouache, mordant size, 24-carat gold; 24.75 x 24.75 cm (9.75 x 9.75 in.)
photographed in a white room under incandescent and daylight; private collection
Gilt series #13 – Allegorical Composition - Cutting, Stabbing, Spooning v.2
2013; weathered plywood, rabbit skin glue, colored pencil, enamel, watercolor, gouache, mordant size, 24-carat gold; 24.75 x 24.75 cm (9.75 x 9.75 in.)
photographed in a white room under incandescent and daylight; private collection
Gilt Series #12 – Sunrise Farm Without Buildings
2012; weathered plywood, rabbit skin glue, colored pencil, enamel, watercolor, gouache, mordant size, 24-carat gold; 30.5 x 40.6 cm (12 x 16 in.)
photographed in an off-white room under daylight; private collection
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Gilt series #11 – Ants Inhabit The Golden Past v. 1 of 10
1990 – 2012; altered silkscreen poster, 1/10, each unique; oil based silkscreen inks on paper (1990), pencil, mordant size, 24-carat gold on tracing paper (2012), ink on acetate (2008); 57.2 x 44 cm (26 x 20 in.)
(see Multiples page for availability)
photographed in an off-white room under daylight; never exhibited; private collection
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Gilt series #10 – Allegorical Composition - Cutting, Stabbing, Spooning
2012; weathered plywood, gelatin, colored pencil, enamel, watercolor, gouache, mordant size, 24-carat gold; 30.5 x 30.5 cm (12 x 12 in.)
photographed in a white room under incandescent and daylight; exhibited, Niagara Artists Centre; private collection
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Gilt series #9 – Allegorical Composition - Three Tulips Lying, A Different One Apart
2012; weathered plywood, gelatin, colored pencil, enamel, watercolor, gouache, mordant size, 24-carat gold; 30.5 x 30.5 cm (12 x 12 in.)
photographed in a white room under incandescent and daylight; exhibited, Niagara Artists Centre; private collection
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Gilt series #8 – Allegory of Duality, Qualified Non-Duality, & Non-Duality
(Two Goldfish in a Goldfish Bowl v.3)
2012; weathered plywood, gelatin, colored pencil, enamel, watercolor, gouache, mordant size, 24-carat gold; 30.5 x 30.5 cm (12 x 12 in.)
photographed in a white room under incandescent and daylight; exhibited, Niagara Artists Centre; private collection
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Gilt Series #7 – Roof Garden [unfinished]
1990-2012; plywood, gelatin, pencil, watercolor, gouache, colored pencil, enamel, mordant size, 24-carat gold; 96.5 x 81.3 cm (38 x 32 in.)
photographed in a yellow room under incandescent light; exhibited, CRAM International
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Gilt Series #6 – Adult Classifieds - Actual Photo of Cookie [homage to Manet]
2012; found wood, gelatin, ball-point pen, watercolor, gouache, enamel, mordant size, 24-carat gold; 31.6 x 19.5 cm (12.5 x 7.6 in.)
photographed in a yellow room under incandescent light; exhibited, CRAM International
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Gilt Series #5 – Adult Classifieds - Paris $250 Hr [homage to Manet]
2012; found wood, gelatin, pencil, watercolor, gouache, enamel, mordant size, 24-carat gold
24 x 12.9 cm (9.5 x 5.1 in.)
photographed in a yellow room under incandescent light; exhibited, CRAM International
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Gilt Series #4 – Faywell Lane With Genetically Modified Soy
2012; weathered plywood, gelatin, coloured pencil, enamel, watercolor, gouache, mordant size, 24-carat gold; 30.5 x 40.6 cm (16 x 20 )
photographed in a yellow room under incandescent light; exhibited, CRAM International; private collection
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Gilt Series #3 - Two Goldfish in a Goldfish Bowl v.2
2012; weathered plywood, gelatin, enamel, watercolor, gouache, mordant size, 24-carat gold;
14.8 x 12.2 cm (5.8 x 4.8 in.)
photographed in a yellow room under incandescent light; exhibited, CRAM International; private collection
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Gilt Series #2 - Two Goldfish in a Goldfish Bowl v.1
2012; weathered plywood, gelatin, enamel, watercolor, gouache, mordant size, 24-carat gold;
14.8 x 12.2 cm (5.8 x 4.8 in.)
photographed in a yellow room under incandescent light; exhibited, CRAM International; private collection
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Gilt Series #1 - Allegory of Complete Change
2012; weathered plywood, gelatin, enamel, mordant size, 24-carat gold;
14.8 x 12.2 cm (5.8 x 4.8 in.)
photographed using flatbed scanner; exhibited, CRAM International; private collection
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