that her paintings are void of story or content - these are in fact essential to McCarty - but they reveal themselves over time. McCarty is
interested in the transitions in life, the connective tissue, losing what
was in order to find the new. ”Palimpsest” is a term borrowed from architecture, describing the imprint of former structures that have been
filled in or covered over, such as windows and doorways. Similarly,
McCarty enjoys creating and collapsing layers, piling gestures and
colors on top of each other, only to scrape them away again, cutting
through the layers of paint, sometimes all the way to the bottom,
exposing the raw canvass, and by extension “performing a sort of
psychological excavation of myself “ McCarty laughs.
There is a mercurial element to the creative process that must be
faced, if the result is to be authentic and meaningful. An artist must
be willing to take risks and allow chaos, and ultimately let go of their
attachments, trusting that they will come out stronger on the other
side. When McCarty explores her canvasses, certain areas will seem
more interesting to her than others, and her natural instinct is to preserve those areas, while discarding the less successful. At a certain
point, however, these areas will become too precious, and as a result
the vitality and spontaneity of the painting is lost. This is the moment
when McCarty gets radical and annihilates the whole darn thing. This
is not easy. These are hard earned truths. McCarty is the first to admit
that she likes structure, order and control – in fact, her colors are laid
out in chromatic order when she paints. She hates chaos. But she
has no choice. “It is that which we idealize, that holds us back.” says
McCarty, “It is in the act of destruction that the most provocative and
beneficial discoveries occur.”
Janet McCarty’s paintings are on view at GDCA through June 30th.
For more information on the artist, please call (323) 309 2875, or stop
by the gallery at 727 S. Spring Street (between 7th & 8th) to see the
works in person. Gallery Hours are Tues – Fri from 12pm – 7pm, Sat
& Sun. from 12pm – 5pm.
GLORIA DELSON CONTEMPORARY ARTS
727 South Spring Street (between 7th & 8th)
Los Angeles, CA 90014
(323) 309 2875
www.GDCAgallery.com