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| "My Source", acrylic, circuit boards, self-lit, 42x42x9 inches, 2003 |
I had just lost my Dad to cancer and the gray skies were pressing down on me. The Indianapolis Art Center's call for artists for their Light and Life Solstice show was a chance to focus on something positive - an homage to the sun.
I had selected circuit boards for those with lots of round elements - the red spots - and painted the boards crudely trying to mimic the color variation in the real thing. I decided to make it self-lit because I was frustrated by how dull it looked, even though it was bright yellow, orange and red.
I still remember the thrill I felt when I switched it on for the first time! I liked it so much I made a 4 foot square one the next summer - "My Source II" to go with "Blue Moon". You can see the process at http://marilyngatin.com/Art/Galleries/The_Process/the_process.html
In April that year, before my Dad was diagnosed, I made some drawings of the sun while my friend drove us to a Florida beach and away from the tiresome gray skies of Indiana winter. We couldn't wait to see the sun!
Some of the drawings were inspired by the real thing - a deep space telescope image of the sun - I had recently discovered the SOHO telescope project online and was captivated by the chaotic images.
Handy for those too-short gray winter days when you might begin to wonder whether the sun is even 'up there' anymore. We are so spoiled - you can click a button on a website and see the source of all energy and life on our planet.
Now that's a higher power we can all believe in.
See real time images of the sun at:
http://plop.nascom.nasa.gov/data/realtime/eit_304/512/
Geeky side note - in spectroscopic instrument diagrams, the radiation source is represented with a circle with spikes. Like this one at http://www.chem.uiuc.edu/chem103/spectroscopy/introduction.htm
Welcome back, Sun!
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