Sex in the Studio, 2021

oil on aluminum panel
36”x 48” (91cm x 122cm)

Sex in the Studio started out as a loose study for the large-scale diptych You Name It, and while the two may perhaps exist in the same pictorial universe, both pieces are unique worlds in their own right. My only goal for this painting was to make something intuitively playful, and I allowed my instincts to inform each subsequent markmaking decision, painting exclusively what felt right in that moment. The energetic liveliness that possesses the piece is the result of allowing the painting to guide me instead of being its rigid architect. The decadent checkerboard of pink and black, the multicolored striped edge running beneath it, and the various other shimmering and flexuous planes of color all came together in a way that I could not have planned out but that in the end feels exactly right.

I learned a wonderful lesson as an artist in the process of making this piece, and I find that the true value of that process is not unlike that of interpersonal intimacy and connection: if you allow yourself to be in the moment, to stay playful and responsive to the ebb and flow of energy in the space… you will achieve magical results, I guarantee it ;)