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StevenDaLuz.com Threshold
I am equally interested in abstraction and figuration, so I embrace it. It is simply how my brain is wired. Most of my “abstractions” are only partially abstract, in that they refer to something real or that could be real. I like to create the “idea” of a place, whether steeped in reference to landscape, or to celestial forms. As I paint these, I am transported to another realm in my mind. Because they are entirely from my imagination, I just allude to the notion of some environment that may allow the viewer to bring up a memory of someplace they have been, or would like to be. They have a vague recollection, but the place is not literal. The ethereal properties of light suggest a source that can be otherworldly. Light has the ability to reveal...and the capacity to blind. Is it the sun? Is it from within? Is it beyond? I leave that for the viewer to decide. By creating voids and vaporous depictions, I increase the likelihood the viewer will complete the picture for themselves. In synthesizing the figure into some of these works, I engage my passion for painting the figure...but, I also believe that because we are humans, we relate to the figure. If I disguise features, or obscure identity, I allow the form to become more universal. In doing this, I hope the viewer can relate to the figure and imagine themselves in such a setting.