Gerri Rachins

Artist Statement

Gerri Rachins
Artist Statement
2023

The title Almost Everything is Going Well implies that some things are not going well. Personal responses to understanding the meaning of world events can fluctuate, as the context in which they are perceived shifts. In the painting, Almost Everything is Going Well, poured transparent acrylic inks contrast opaque areas of color painted with a brush using Flashe paint. Boundaries may overlap, negate, reinforce, and intersect, resulting in an image that concedes to the coexistence of conflicting elements.

It is within the complicated and confusing zeitgeist of the past few years, that I have been creating these paintings. An imposed isolation provided more time for exploration and discovery in my studio. I began to use the contrast of visual elements (such as color, shape, line, texture) in abstract compositions, to convey personal meaning that addresses the ongoing uncertainty and turbulence of this current moment in time.

Changes to my studio practice included adding colorful acrylic fluid inks and Flashe vinyl paint on smaller heavyweight watercolor paper. With assistance from gravity, I use my hands holding the edges of the paper to move the acrylic ink around the paper. From the palimpsest of inky lines, inherent shapes are excavated, establishing an initial structure to explore.

I selected the titles for each painting from my ongoing compilation of excerpts from the weekly Science section of The New York Times. These excerpts used as painting titles, exemplify the concept of meaning as contextual. They may invoke irony, paradox, and surprisingly even a sense humor in these challenging times.