Stan Berning
 "The painting from last year titled "A Natural
History Part Two #8" is a Charcoal and Watercolor painting done
on Arches Hot Press. It was begun the night we invaded Iraq. Ted Kopple
was on TV with the tanks rolling across the border behind him when I
began the drawing." (www.stanberning.com)
"I
just took a look at the artist's profile section of your website. It
always amazes me just how many exceptional artists we have living here
[Santa Fe]. They encompass such a broad range of approaches and concerns!
We're all so serious about what we do and we each believe so strongly
in the relevance of our own work, as we should! My Achilles Heel has
always been that I often feel as passionate about a well done landscape
as I do towards a far reaching abstraction. I have always had little
concern for 'isms' and so  have explored it all to some degree or another.
Getting beneath the surface of the subject is always more intriguing
than the subject itself.
Recently I have become concerned with the visceral quality of paint.
How it may describe the underlying nature of the subject. In this regard
Sam Scott has become my hero! I am, as always, exploring color, but have
begun thinking of it in terms of an emotional firmament; a daunting challenge
given my propensity towards intellectual rigor and reason. Paintings
of the late-great David Barbero come to mind.
My first medium was Watercolor. It remains my first love and I have
returned to it regularly over the years. But I have worked with most
mediums. Ron Pokrasso introduced me to printmaking over 20 years ago
and since then I've explored etching, calligraphy, lithograph and monotype.
I am presently working on a series of Oils after a long stint using Egg
Tempera. Acrylics were in there too. All these mediums, combined with
an openness to new possibilities, will result, I trust, in work of substance.
Since I moved to Santa Fe in 1981 Artisan has quietly
been at the core of this remarkable community. While the city has grown
and changed and people have come and gone, Artisans has remained a
constant. You've got a very cool store!"
— Stan Berning
|
