Gallery Artists: Carolyn Cole
 
For me, Painting is a passion.  I love to create surfaces that are visually intriguing and mysterious, with expressive colors and shapes.  Each of my paintings has many layers of paint.  I begin each one on canvas or paper, painting on thin collaged papers over and over, continuing until a rich texture emerges.  I use acrylic paints, gouache, pencils, and charcoal.  I also work with copies of old handwritten letters, pages from old books, and found objects, all as collage elements under the painted surfaces.  I paint over the images, obstructing much of the text and communication.  Scraping the surface with a palette knife to reveal the layers underneath, I then paint into exposed areas.  By building up layers of paint and collage, the paintings become infused with a cultural history, at the same time allowing the viewer to create a personal history.  
 
This series of paintings reveals the introspective part of my personality.  Each one is inspired by its collaged elements and the layers from my past and present.  I hope that they reflect my desire to paint and my intense need to create work that expresses that desire.

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