11.7.12

art | joan salo

there are so many reasons why i am drawn to these ink pen on canvas artworks by joan salo. initially they bring me back to grade school. for so many years those coloured bic pens were all the rage - and i would while away the classroom hours creating spiral graphs, grids and various doodles. 

there is also a distinct preciseness in these works that speaks to my little ocd heart. dare i even imagine just how long it took to create each canvas? in that regard it reminds me very much of briar mark's threaded artwork.

maybe it's because i'm listening to one of those songs right now - you know the ones that are equally melancholic and uplifting? but i feel like these words also play upon the lifelines you see depicted on monitors in a hospital room. i see whole lives moving by, interconnecting with one another. ups and downs, colours representing different people and their highs and lows...




4 comments:

  1. So so beautiful!
    I love all of those darker spots at the end of each line where the pen sits a bit longer and extra ink soaks into the paper, so nostalgic!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Love Joan's work and your take on it. I'm with Meghann-- the dark spots are what get right to my heart!! I still love writing and doodling with colored pens. ;-)

    ReplyDelete
  3. I really don't like work where I can't tell what it is. It doesn't mean I don't know great art when I see it, but I mush prefer older, obvious styles like the Reneissance. Having said that, this work is amazing. The colours truly smack me in the face and I just love it. I particularly love the bottom one, specifically. ♥

    ReplyDelete

thanks for your comment, i love hearing your thoughts!