San Francisco artist Ani Thompkins has always held a pencil, filling thousands of pages, books, walls and canvases with her interactions and observations.
Her current preoccupation is with intimacy, using large silhouette-sized canvases and abstracted, disembodied figures to represent an externalized dialogue about relationships, the pull of the crush, sexuality and need or aversion. Always an outward presentation of a very personal experience, each piece survives the artist's solipsism through an entry point that allows the viewer to find their own experience inside the frame.
Sensual imagery in these paintings is heightened by staining viscous paint and liquid acrylic into un-primed canvas, so that the material soaks into the fabric rather than staying on the surface. This process creates depth, through thin layers of color, and luminosity, as light filters in through the back of the raw fabric without being hindered by gesso or primer. Muslin, canvas or linen surfaces are affected differently by the viscosity of the material and the amount of light showing through, creating another tactile element.
Paintings in progress are mostly flat on sawhorses, often with jars of water poured over semi-wet paint so that a puddle spreads across the plane; the artist manipulates the watery mess by using a spray bottle to encourage seepage, by lifting one side of the frame or by pressing her palm against the surface of the water and sweeping it. Lines are drawn with a filbert brush or palette knife, preferably when the surface has dried to just slightly damp. When a piece is finished, a high-gloss polymer finish brings out the bright acrylic color that otherwise dries to a dull matt.
Because the pieces are moody, taking advantage of a specific deliberation or emotional state becomes fundamental to creating a finished piece with impact. The paintings are refined over the course of several months.
Education
Exhibitions
Spring 1998 San Francisco Art Institute Senior Show Walter McBean Gallery
Summer 1999 Solo show (Open Studio) 298 Texas Street
Summer 2003 Solo show at Jackson Place Salon
October 2005 Open Studios Potrero Hill
Spring 2007 Solo show at Filter Talent San Francisco
Spring 2007 Heidi McBride Gallery and Art Consultancy (Portland, OR)
Summer 2007 Chez Poulet Gallery
Awards
1997 Recipient of the SFAI Council Scholarship grant
1997 Recipient of the Golden Artists Color Award
1998 Recipient of the Supplemental Art Materials Award
All work copyright 1998-2007, Ani Thompkins. All Rights Reserved.