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December 2, 2010

Carolyn Jean Martin: Alchemy=Energy



Alchemy=Energy. Alchemy is the science of deconstructing and reconstructing matter, turning one element into another, while energy in one form can be transferred to create another form. Elements interacting among one another create energy that is being exchanged and transferred.

The black powder that alchemists created in the 6th Century B.C. is similar to the black powder that I use to capture gesture and emotion on canvas. The three ingredients — Sulphur, Saltpeter and Charcoal — interact with one another, undergoing intense energy exchanges until combustion happens. Heat expands gasses at a rapid rate and produces the effects that can be seen and heard from the powder. What is left is the line I have created. My energy, which created the line, and the energy of the black powder have now become smoke, gas and ash.

I have also used gunpowder on the canvas. Gunpowder is the chemically altered and tightly confined cousin of black powder. Gunpowder burns quicker and hotter than black powder. It is heavier in volume than black powder and leaves more ashes after it has expended its energy. The line it leaves is dark and intense. Black powder and gunpowder are the perfect tool to use for my gestural, abstract expressionist painting style. The direct dialogue that I engage my viewer with is spoken with a gesture that is seared on the canvas. When I use the powder I am left energized, as if I have been part of the energy transfer between the elements.

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