ABOUT
@bu_graphicdesign
@bostonpainting
@pmp.bu
@bostonsculpture
@buvisualnarrative
she/her
Stephanie Petet
My work and process are a constant unfolding of variables, vibrations, and planes of sensation. Through abstraction, my paintings strike a balance between material reality and felt frequency by employing a range of paint applications and color combinations. As material objects, my paintings can sometimes fit in a purse or be wider than my own wingspan, evoking a sense of entity or experience.
Each composition begins with chance and collaboration. I ask a friend to pick a color and lay down painted marks in whatever way they see fit. Other times I draw a grid or a connect-the-dots pattern in the shape of a form only known to me and then have someone respond to that configuration. This allows me to react and create a spontaneous dialogue in a way I cannot predict, and acts as a reminder and metaphor for performance for an audience.
Formal construction, using a variation of paint application modalities, informs my vocabulary of intuition. Subtractive methods such as wiping, scraping, and sanding allow me to orchestrate internal light and resist impulse. Carefully dialed-in color relationships are tuned to my conceptual and scientific interests in frequency, sound, and space. Foundational elements of music are a primary component of my spatial building language. Tempo and rhythm operate in relation to the kinetic speed of paint gesture; dynamics and pitch operate in relation to scale and proximity in tandem with color, value, saturation, temperature, and opacity.
Every piece arrives at its finality at different speeds or boiling points. I invite the viewer to dive in, complete the sequence, peer around a mark, or imagine peeling back the glaze of paint to get a glimpse of how it all started. Through this practice, I uncover hidden liminal spaces within my mind that are echoed in the oscillating lived possibilities of memory and emotion.
Oil on canvas, 80 × 72 in.
Oil on panel, 42 × 48 in.
Oil on panel, 30 × 42 in.
Oil on panel, 30 × 42 in.
Oil on canvas, 70 × 72 in.