Hunger

Edgar Degas said "You must have an elevated idea ... not of what you do, but of what you can one day do; without this it is not worth the trouble working." To excel at anything you must have a strong desire or hunger to get better. It's not something you can pretend to have. I lost my hunger for still life around 2009. This happened after more than thirty years working in that genre. I hadn't by any means exhausted the possibilities but the drive to explore them faded.

Reclining Figure, oil on linen, 9" X 11", 2007
Collection of Charles Tate

There is the age old adage of the starving artist. I had a period in my life when I wasn't getting enough to eat due to lack of money. This predicament was self inflicted and in large part caused by my obsession with painting. Physical hunger is destructive and debilitating. On the other hand, a psychological hunger for exploration and learning is an uplifting and empowering force.

I haven't yet done the figurative painting or paintings that can quench my appetite. In all likelihood I won't. In a sense I don't want to - it would probably mean stopping painting altogether. But I have little fear of this happening. The human form simply offers too rich and challenging a feast.