Archaeology

Looks at both the archaeology and history of the painterly surface exploring both its destruction and rebirth. Many painters through history prepared their surface and painted them in a particular way to achieve the results they wanted, this management of the painting surface, subsequent preparation and finish results enabled uniquely individual painterly processes.

The art of conservation is littered with overworked and failed attempts at trying to capture that uniqueness. Gino is concerned with how a contemporary perspective places its own aesthetic on a painting, he feels better archaeology into the individual painters process is paramount when looking at conserving. The loss of the painterly material of a painting can be a difficult to witness and the need to save and reclaim the original can be overly stressed. Archaeology will allow for less intrusive repairs, sympathetic cleaning and defer overpainting by a non original hand other than the artists.  A partial Velazsquez is always going to be better than a  unsympathetically restored Velasquez.

The other need to engage with the traces of pentimenti held beneath the layers of a paint to refashion the intention of the artist is perhaps archaeological in nature but for the artist is merely history. For the painter a painting evolves, the adjustments and decisions of the artist may be interesting to conservators and historians who can then reflect on these to propose their  ideas about the artists intentions and process. But in the final analysis they are not relevant to the finished painting because the artist already made their final decision. The ever present analysis of the investigators intentions, ideas, philosophy and aesthetic when compared to the artists intention in the finished painting is academic and supportive, nothing more.     

Surface Actions

The process of painting is a point of reference for many artists who epitomise the idea that paint is gestural and can be splashed, dripped, splattered, dribbled, smeared onto the painterly surface in a spontaneous way usually emphasising the physical act of painting. The idea that it represents the physical act of painting ,enables those who subjugate the individual actions of the painting process to be termed avant garde. The reality however is that it never added to the internal language of painting which has for centuries engaged with all the physical and gestural techniques latterly heralded as new.

Gino observed and painted sections of his studio floor which had accrued a variety of marks over the years, these paintings are observations of the unconscious reflex used in the painting process no matter be it figurative, abstract, physical, conceptual. Gino argues that no matter the historical viewpoint painting always reaches back through history to offer a continual conversation unless co-opted for the art market where trends and Mannerism have become more important than art.. 

Gino reflects, "The layering of paint represents the accrued knowledge of the past, present and future holding within it time, history, light and fragments of 'ruth'."

Optical, Flats, Field, Data

AI, Digital, Aluminium, Acrylic

Digital painting and AI offers much which are usually framed as surface and spatial possibilities. Usually existing within a variety of platforms as a piece of data which is neither physical nor tangible. A painting can be produced in many formats using a variety of outputs, printing technologies tend to be the most used.  However the technologies currently available offer very few surface possibilities and this can limit any real unique creative expression.  But when these factors are grasped it is a data medium which can generate some interesting approaches to painting usually as a barrier art form creating visually adroit images. Its limitations usually work best when taking a minimal approach, which can be a plus, but overall its surface potential restricts further transformation, mainly because it lacks any sense or feel of the human touch and a any uniquely individual expression. 

It can copy, reorder, store reassemble and procreate visual disorders as a party trick but a sentient internal and external creativity from a singular determinant is still not there. But like any children's toy it is initially fun to play with.  

Particles Matter

Paintings are objects that occupy space they have mass can be solid, liquid, formed of tiny particles called atoms and molecules. Particles in a solid are close to and attracted to each other, they vibrate but don't move past one another.

When using paint it is clear the chemical process harnesses liquid (medium) as a vehicle to suspend pigment, allowing motility and time for the paint to dry and set. The Characteristics of paint is determined by the medium it is suspended in. Viscosity (how thick)  drying time, how two substances mix with each other (miscibility) and how easily two substances mix with each other to form a solution (solubility) i.e oil paint mixed with a solvent.  The chemistry of paint is such that it is susceptible to an array of changes when drying due the fluid mediums used in their making.