Artomatic 2009: Paul Taylor

i-a0d37a497168b0b330231e750d9e6878-paultaylor.jpg
Her Dark Satanic Mills
Paul Taylor

When I saw Paul Taylor's massive paintings at Artomatic, I immediately thought of two things: fire and Blake's etchings. So I was tickled that the title, "Her Dark Satanic Mills," refers to a poem by Blake, and that Taylor's creative process is all about fire:

The medium is essentially highly flammable furniture stripper gel - set on fire of course. They are canvas pieces mounted on Luan, covered in Polyurethane to protect the canvas. The gel is applied, somewhat in a Pollock-like manner, lit, and then the process takes on a John Cageian-like "chance operation" methodology. In easier to understand terms, this means I as the creator simultaneously become the unsuspecting viewer due to a variety of circumstances that are immediately beyond my control; primarily the thickness of gel and the degree of wind or breeze that's blowing at the moment of ignition. A slightly windier day often blows the fire onto the canvas to produce smoky brush marks. A calmer day allows the gel to burn through itself which leaves an interesting, somewhat topographical look to the substance. Usually it's combinations of both. If the outcome is successful - and one never knows if its going to be until the fire burns out - the pieces are framed in angle-iron steel that has been allowed to rust with various patinas which produce a nice leathery look to the steel.(source)

These paintings are simply luscious at night. During the day, I don't know if they'd be quite as powerful. Unfortunately, Taylor doesn't seem to have a website, so you have to go to Artomatic to check them out. . .

More like this

In preparation for the launch of startswithabang.com, I am attempting to embed a video I had found on youtube, of the slow-motion ignition of a lighter. How does this work?  The video demonstrates that to make something very simple happen (to get a sustained, controlled flame out of a compact…
It's Ada Lovelace Day! Ada Lovelace (1815 - 1852) is often referred to as the world's first computer programmer. The daughter of the famous poet Lord Byron, and the admired intellect, Annabella Milbanke, Ada Lovelace represented the meeting of two alternative worlds: the romanticism and art of her…
According to some sources, yes. News has just emerged from the Gulf Coast that BP is burning endangered sea turtles alive. 1 A boat captain who has been leading efforts to rescue the endangered turtles says BP has blocked his crews from entering the areas where the animals are trapped, effectively…
Meet Nifty Fifty Speaker, Ben Gulak. Unique, amazing inventions - and the story behind how they came about - always inspire us. Such is the story of Benjamin Gulak, who, as a teenager growing up in Ontario, Canada had a special wish: that one day he be known for his inventions - inventions that…

Interestingly, the top panel reminds me of a medieval-era map of Europe(though without Italy).