Artist Statement

I am a “reactionary” painter and I rely on colors and textures to push me in one direction or the other. I usually have an idea that becomes a roadmap for the painting. However, I am as impulsive as one brush stroke. I am drawn to literal compositions with an expressive and colorful approach. I believe that color affects us in ways we’re not even conscious of most of the time. People react to and experience color much like music. I hope to create a visual language of felt experience, memory and emotion. I paint quickly with layers of colors and quick gestures, using paint brushes, trowels and spray bottles. I drip, scrape, brush and splatter. I react to what is left on the canvas pushing or instigating the next action in the painting process. I can tell that one of my paintings is finished when I stand back and squint my eyes. If all the colors work with or even against each other to keep my eyes searching for the next “great moment”, then I know I’m done. - Maggie O’Neill