For the last 3 years I have been exploring cloud patterns as a subject matter for my paintings. Sifting through my photos of sunrises and sunsets, I selected one with gorgeous pinks, purples, yellows, and oranges. In it, the sunlight seemed to emerge from behind the cloud forms. I imagined little Parthenon symbols placed among the sunbeams, as if emanating from the clouds. I thought that a stenciled Parthenon symbol over a shimmery gold metallic background would be the perfect way to incorporate the Winery’s symbol and tie it in with my subject matter of the sky. You have to look closely to see it on the label, but on the original painting, the symbols are very evident.
My paintings have a textural surface as I use rhythmic palette knife marks to create an abstracted viewpoint of the sky that is ethereal and feels uplifting. In this painting for Imagery, it was the first time I had used a stencil along with my usual textural marks. It took quite a bit of time to create a good stencil that looked like the Imagery symbol of the Parthenon. I used several different sizes in the finished painting. Before applying the stencil to the paper, I practiced about 20 times until I was sure that I could create the symbol successfully. It was a really fun process!
Elaine Coombs lives and works in San Francisco, California. Born and educated in Ontario, Canada, she moved to the Bay Area in 2001 after several years of travel and work abroad. Her paintings have been exhibited across the United States from California to Maine, as well as in Canada, Europe, and Asia. Her work can be found in over 400 private, corporate and public collections, most notably the U.S. Department of State – Art Bank Program; The City and County of San Francisco Civic Art Collection; The Alameda County Department of Environmental Health; various Kaiser Permanente and UCSF medical facilities; the Mayo Clinic; Imagery Estate Winery; and the Ritz Carlton Highlands Hotel in Lake Tahoe, California.
