Hazardous Alchemy, Paintings from the Big River
October 31, 2010
Over six weeks this Fall I painted with the oil-laden water and mud of the Mississippi River.
Viral Nature, from the series Hazardous Alchemy
The result of my slightly insane efforts is, Hazardous Alchemy, my series of paintings painted by the currents of a polluted stream in Father Hennepin Park in the heart of Minneapolis, Minnesota in North America. Here is a link to their gallery on my website.
Working in the stream wearing a respirator, gloves, and rubber boots the artifacts were painted with the foam, oil, mud, and Buckthorn berry juice found in my open air studio in the Park. Besides the current and flow of the Big River I used as brushes a plastic toy truck, a gatorade bottle, sticks, styrofoam, rocks, bricks, stream-side grasses, a heavy duty metal chain, a lead pipe (found in the stream), a knife and an eyedropper.
This was intense, soulful, and sacred work. Here is hoping it helps clean up Father Hennepin Park.
deep bow, peter
