I now know the Vodňany sequence will be 7 paintings although they are not complete yet. Four of them are in the Czech Republic so will not know if I have second thoughts on those until the summer, but was without doubts when I last saw them.
Now I can concentrate on the next group of paintings. I started these nearly a year ago, when I tried to paint a wedding present for some friends. I abandoned the first version and went with the second version. Whist the first painting worked well it did not meet the occasion for what it was conceived, a perfect term for the second version would thus be a Ossia, but not a good description of what I think I have in mind.
The original idea was using little balloons of DNA sequences, plus the material derived, amongst other things, from paintings done in South Bohemia. Piano study as exemplified in late Debussy or Ligeti perhaps come towards a model.
The structure is simple, 4 or 5 layers that are cut to reveal the layer below with conventional shadows to emphasise the separate layers. Hoping this simple devise will give enough space to understand some ideas I can otherwise not voice, so far the omen seems good. I have been working on number 3 for the last 3 days and apart from a little tightening here and there it should stand.
Film as comfort blanket, High on my list is Amarcord by Fellini. However I am not as comfortable with his other films, I watched Orchestral Rehersal recently and just at the point I was going to abandon I kept looking and was glad I did, so on to Ginger and Fred wholly delightful but also pertinent and moving, then And the ship sailed on (1983), something I know I will come back to again and again, I have found yet another comfort blanket!
