John J. Hartford

Face (Empty), black and grey abstract mixed media painting

2019

Acrylic, wax and aluminum leaf on paper. 15.5" x 15.5" framed. Shown at VOLTA New York 2020. Aluminum leaf shines in the light.

The discipline of creating a drawing each day is a process, like a written diary, to clear the mind, to declutter thoughts, and to observe patterns. It is a method that allows the mind a freedom to wander and drift. A visual journal becomes a safe space for personal reflection–a self-awareness fueled by the opportunity for contemplation and immersion. The painted surface for the drawings was created by dividing five large paintings into 40 separate pieces. I chose five paintings from my Perspective Series (1993-94), which relied on day-to-day imagery that narrated a story about shifting time and how time anchors our day. The brush strokes of Perspectives are fluid, with muted colors – moving from deep blacks to taupe whites. Dividing these pieces was a means for me to rethink ideas and recurring images in my older work. The very thin gold leaf applied to each piece has a wonderful amber tone. This gold leaf is from Myanmar, where it is used as decoration for Buddha or for the dome of a temple or monastery. In the drawings, the gold element relates to the sense of infinity – like the sky in an enclosed courtyard. An architectural element is a critical component in my studio work that I wanted to carry over into these pieces. I envisioned a courtyard–a safe space that opens up to the sky. Unfolding circles define the beginnings of an open interior space. The process felt open-ended. It was an opportunity to get lost in thought and to give me an opportunity to reflect, muse and declutter my thinking. Then repeat. 40 days...

Acrylic paint and aluminum leaf on acrylic glass. 22" diameter. This is a time that has forced us to redefine. Redefine how we live, how we interact, how we see, what we value. Th...

Acrylic paint and aluminum leaf on acrylic glass. 36" diameter. This is a time that has forced us to redefine. Redefine how we live, how we interact, how we see, what we value. Th...

Acrylic paint and aluminum leaf on acrylic glass. 22" diameter. This is a time that has forced us to redefine. Redefine how we live, how we interact, how we see, what we value. Th...

Acrylic paint and aluminum leaf on acrylic glass. 22" diameter. This is a time that has forced us to redefine. Redefine how we live, how we interact, how we see, what we value. Th...

negli anni approfondisce anche lo studio della storia dell’arte e, in particolare, si appassiona ai pittori che lui stesso ama definire “fuori dall’onda”, per lo “spirito di novità” ...

In the compositions, the gaze is attracted by an interplay of harmonious balances between full and empty spaces, which compel the regarding to an observation dynamic approach in orde...

Dealing with the political and social discourse, not only in the United States, but the rest of the world, I am trying to take an approach that we create history and forget it. In th...

Even though abstract, this work deals with colonial conquer and taking what hopeful natives meant to share, as a blood-quest for the rich and religious.

Life. It will always ebb and flow. The fish swim and sleep. We are. We are.

This painting deals the color of blood and blood in itself as a metaphor for catharsis. There have been many literature metaphors for growth of a flower out of spilt blood. To me, th...