2002 - 30" x 22" - Watercolor, Arches Aquarelle watercolor paper
These masks were used in agricultural ceremonies in the country of Ghana, West Africa. For me, there is a lot of mystery surrounding each mask. I love the symbols of plants on each, and the rich, warm browns and blacks of the woods. The inlaid metals add another interesting texture, as well as the beads. I allowed this painting to develop itself, beginning with words stenciled onto the paper, and then adding the masks, as if floating. The texture and colors of a Bolgatanga basket seemed right for a background. Looking inside, the circular weave struck me as just the right thing to pull the composition together. I approached the inside of the basket as pattern, color, texture, line, and value; rather than as an “object.”
This painting needed to include the fibrous deckle edge of the paper, and the use of sedimentary pigments for a fibrous-looking background. For me, the warm, rich colors and textures of the masks and background work cohesively in this painting of Three Masks of Ghana.
A digital image of this painting was shown at Artexpo New York 2007, Jacob Javits Convention Center, Art-Exchange booth, March 1-2, 2007.