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melinda hannigan statement
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My oil paintings are inspired by the colors and textures of ships----not glamorous yachts, but tankers, containerships and rusty old bulk carriers.
I've known this environment all my life. My father and his ancestors sailed the world, and as a young girl I often visited the docks of San Francisco and Honolulu. As an adult I have had continuous access to all the working waterfront of Puget Sound. Ships and seaports have always been my neighbors.
The colors and markings on ships are endlessly varied and often starkly beautiful. The rust marks, drips, scrapes and smears, the lettering and numbers give each vessel a personality. These ships travel the world and each port they visit leaves some mark. Rather than paint a ship from stem to stern, I most often focus in "close-up" on these markings, which are the story of each ship inscribed on its skin.
Most of my work begins with an image from this seldom-painted side of the maritime world. I keep in mind a favorite saying of my teacher Charles
Emerson: "Reality is highly over-rated." I thus play with color, perspective, composition, and texture. As a result my paintings include realistic images that become abstract canvasses. For me, painting is a challenge that is intense, exciting, and limitless.
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