Jackson Pollock, the great American abstract expressionist painter, lived and painted just down the road from Art House. His work and his presence, like the natural beauty of Springs and the Hamptons itself, continuously inspires me. Moves me to play with process, color, form, and language. When I stated on my new project, a pairing of vibrant colorful paintings with vivid poetry, I couldn’t help buy think of Pollock. Here’s one pairing from the book in progress.
Making Art with Jackson Pollock
Art arises.
Belly, heart, throat, head.
And then inches above me,
hovers—
Teases me into her realm of play.
A universe emerges
from sticks and brushes.
Jars and tubes of glowing paints
draw me into conversation
with my muse, her insistent voice
a way of letting me through
a secret gateway.
My tools, my muse,
and Pollock’s proximity
in harmony, tame chaos,
outpour into and through me.
I am conjoined with the maker
as my hands dance, persuing entry.
I am flying into a place
that is not me.
I am making
with the maker.
Canvas conjoins with
arms, wrists, body,
Voices of light and color
merge with my breath.
This is where I live and paint
one mile from Pollock’s home
on Accabonac Creek,
his barn floor splattered
with what is left of his imaginings,
his spirit alive in the trees
along Springs Fireplace Road.
