The next step in Part Two of Petra’s work A little madness in the Spring (see previous entries for the various stages of this work) involved not only additional layers of watercolor and thinned acrylic gesso washes to the front surfaces, sides and back of the 4 inch x 6 inch panels, but also the addition of mirrors to the interior space of what would be the reverse side of the panels.
Petra had expressed a desire to create a ‘hanging garden’ of the sixteen small paintings. For this she enlisted the assistance of both Franz and myself. Petra prefers to stick to the gentler parts of the painting process -making the material flow across a surface- and leave the more laborious work to others. She and I discussed ways to create a hanging garden, for now in the basement portion of our studio space. The wooden rafters in the ceiling that support the floor above could easily be outfitted with larger eye-screws through which dowel rods could be inserted, creating a ‘bed’ from which the panels could hang. I suggested using the hanging system Mark Roth applied to the installation of my work Sonata when he exhibited part of this winter in New York City. Franz agreed to drill small holes into the sides of the panels through which filament from which the panels would hang, could be threaded. Petra, finding my idea of not predetermining the orientation of the Sonata panels but leaving the installation to the curator and gallerist good, decided to have Franz drill holes in all four sides so the orientation of the flowers could also be left open to new variations with each installation.
I acquired the sixteen small mirrors for the work, painted the interior space of the panels black with India ink, and mounted them using silicon to the panels. Then, per Petra’s instructions, the panels were suspended from the dowels.
Here are some pics and videos of the process and current installation.
A video of Petra working.
Franz drilling.