Last summer someone that has a modicum of medical knowledge told me that I should never drink alcohol again. I accepted that grim fact like I accepted that horrible fact of the presidential inauguration of 2000. That day, the equivalent of an high school bully entered our lands highest office and made a joke out of it. Some would say, What about the outstanding way he handled 9/11; that was good, Right? He was great because our expectation was that he would declare martial law and hide in a bunker for the next three and half years. He did what he should've done. After that, he stepped back into his character and fell for the bait Al Qaeda provided. It was the classic strike and faint strategy, only Osama bin laden got a two for one with the invasion of Iraq. Meanwhile the Bush/ Nixonian Neocon demolition squad was busy wrecking our government- The banking system was using a Neil Bush playbook with the help of some of the old crew form Enron - and his oil/coal buddies secured the lock on this nations antiquated energy system. So that leads to our impotent position in the world as a castrated superpower.
May be, could be, would it be, that Barack Obama will put the right people in charge to change our government and regain the confidence of the people. As of this writing it seems not. A retread of the Clinton government was put into place and a economic policy that has more to to with the thirties than the present. Throwing money at an deeply indebted inconfident economy so it can buy more does not seem prudent. What needs to happen is a prosecution of those people responsible. I think it's all about morality and lawlessness, the organism that is the economy reacts to this as a justified threat. The mass mental health of the economy must witness punishment for the crimes that were committed. No one gets off not even George W. Bush. Then maybe some of the cash that is sitting on the sidelines will be put back to work.
Now we get to my second point with the guiding of Barack Obama. If he and other future presidents perceive that there will be a penalty for any crime they would commit, could be we would have a more restrain executive - Could be, Barack Obama would think more than twice about sending more troops to Afghanistan. A country almost exactly on the other side of the globe, with a culture that is alien to ours, and history that does not favor invading foreign powers.
That bring me back to some one with a modicum of medical knowledge telling me never to drink again and I accepted that grim and unkind fact. As a country we need to be told, induced, pleaded with to stop consuming and start saving; Saving our money, our land, our government, and yes our moral standing. That is the grim fact we are facing. You should be told that it's stupid or even down right dangerous to have a TV in every room . The thirty two ounce super gulp Would be banned as a biothreat. Giant trucks could be taxed into oblivion. And all these freaking birthday presents kids get should be exchanged for money that is put into education. Or hey, just not buy as much crap and use our money in a cleaver and thoughtful manor.
...To compete with that electric glow of the television I give in to the saturated color scheme and give the luminosity a boost. I do this - as best I can by first laying down a opaque coat of pearlescent paint on the white gesso surface ( pearlescent gives off a glow when light hits its, like a car license plate. ) then build it up with Three or four layers of increasingly transparent pearlescent paint until I end up with a thick layer of clear medium. Over that I lay down the first, transparent set of colors; usually laying down the opaque colors as I finish. Of course I don't adhere to this method religiously, Of late I have been drawing a good portion of the image in pastel chalks then painting a clear coat over that; then I finish it off, using that method of clear to opaque. This process can also be referred to as thick to thin when using oil paint, I use acrylic medium...
...Content, for me, is usually taken from my surroundings. I sketch something either on a surface or commit it to memory. Then take this preliminary image and simplify it, edit it, tune it, and usually end up with my completed image. Sometimes the - "simplify it, edit it, tune it"- is done before I lay down the first bit of paint; Other times I make It up as I go along. Usually the preplanned image turns out representational and the stream of consciousness image is abstract. There are times where the two processes synergize; which is I look for representation in the abstractions and simplify the representational, that's usually the fun part. Tedious parts of my process are always at he end and most always involve putting in detail that I feel I must put in.
Ian Mitchell