In the digital age - why paint?

Why I choose to Paint

You could argue that in this fast and furious digital age, photographs would be sufficient to describe my intended outcome, so why would I choose to paint? In direct contrast to the instant gratification, and constant demands of our smart technology world, the process itself is slow and methodical creating a lasting image to be contemplated at the same slow pace.

This quote from the book ‘A Brush with the Real’ by Valli and Dessanay, seems to describe this better than me…

“ Painting knows texture, it can still render the idea of touch (whereas the world of digital and virtual imaging has been completely desensitized to these, becoming a textural wasteland). Painters manage to entertain an intimate relationship with accident, without having to give up on purposeful action and method. Painting is not indifferent to meaning. Painting is attentive to singularity…” (Valli M, Dessanay M, 2014)

A section of one of Victoria's paintings

When painting, I am allowing myself time to contemplate and the space to transpose thoughts and feelings into actions, creating marks, texture and form. The all-consuming task of laying down paint is a cathartic experience that leaves my thoughts and emotions, bound within the canvas.

Realist painter Dan Witz says…

“…paintings are handmade, one of a kind, extremely fragile objects. They are absurd. Extravagant. Intrinsically worthless. And [sic] seeing paintings is an experience you absolutely must have in person – in real life. Direct human contact is the point”. Dan Witz (b 1957) quoted in Valli M, Dessanay, M 2014)

This ‘direct human contact’, brings back, full circle, the point I am trying to raise. There is no substitute for direct eye-to-eye and face-to-face contact. A backlit image on a screen, or a photograph in a book can never give you that awe struck wonder one feels when faced with a Caravaggio (as I have done several times at St. John’s Co. Cathedral in Valletta, Malta). Nothing can compare to the time you stand and stare and to contemplate each brush stroke. Just as in a relationship, to really know someone you must see the way they move, observe the subtle gestures and look in their eyes and deep into their soul… we need this texture, this profound connection to interpret their intentions, and fully understand their heart.

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