Description
Green Rider
Note from Keith: Water is everywhere. It falls out of the sky on a regular basis. Dirt is pretty common too. Look down; chances are good you’ll see some dirt. Get water and dirt together, which happens a lot, and of course, you have mud. In the house it appears automatically, even magically. I find myself asking, how did mud get there? And most of the time, there’s no possible way it could be there, but there it is, in spite of the fact that it’s impossible. Mud doesn’t care. It’s immutable, enigmatic, and apparently can move about freely on it’s own.
While I tolerate mud’s intrusions into my house, I encourage it to appear in my paintings. Mud is slippery stuff sometimes and can be very difficult to get into a painting. I think mud must be part cat. Of course, I don’t want it laying about the house, and that’s exactly where it wants to be. I do want it in my paintings and no, no, sorry, it can’t be bothered. You have to be Zen when it comes to mud, and cats for that matter too. So, I studied mud — observed how it changes everything it touches, how it comes and goes, where it’s most likely to pop up, the different colors of mud, the different consistencies, its very essence. I became one with the mud, and realized that there’s a little mud in most things. Now, that has a dual meaning, meaning … Realistic colors, especially in a painting like this, all are pulled back a notch or two in purity. The colors have mud in them. It is what makes them appear natural, earthy, and believable. I like to portray mud in paintings too. There is a connection we all have with mud, we all know it, we have felt it, and when we see it, it triggers a powerful response. So, revel in mud, and know there’s a little in all of us. (as I typed that out of his art book … I really can’t understand why he wrote that regarding “Green Rider”, lol!)
