more color by numbers

i don't think i posted these yet, and i meant to a long time ago. These were the paintings i was talking about a ways back that i did for a show and i got sick right in the crucial part. I consider them more sketches now as i learned so much about what i want to get out of this work. These went over well with a lot of people i guess, but for me they just didn't hit the mark i was looking for. I'm getting closer in the studio as we speak.

My issues with this work were that the weight of the color by numbers line was not heavy or absorbtive enough, and the images i painted on top were too tight and therefore didn't settle the right way. I had done many quick sketches on xeroxes that i was pleased with but i knew when it came to painting on top of the canvas with the color by nos. that i was going to really have to be connected to get to the heart of it. Then i got sick and was completely cloudy with the deadline looming. Oi...

Another issue i am having with this is dealing with this set underlying structure of the cbn. i am so used to painting right over the previous layers without care as to what i lose, because i know i can bring it back. But with the cbn, once its gone, its gone. The newer work i am doing now i think deals with this more successfully (at least for the moment).

I have also gathered a lot more about this concept(direction) and where i want to move with it. In the beginning i was speaking mainly about colonialism and absorption. Now I'm thinking a lot about Ideals, what it means to be "in ruins", the American fall from grace... (you can't tell i was once a catholic, can you?)

Anyway, i hate to give such and abbreviated version of this and run, but i gotta get ready for my trip today. There will be more to come soon though....