Saved.  (2015)  18" x 24"  Fuse. Acrylic. Paper.

This artwork is currently, exclusively offered at The Century House. 

Strong, luminescent vertical stripes, light and burned textures. Blues, teals, black, oranges, and snow split by burning 2mm fuse.

The color grooves create their own relationships through the blending and burned connections of the high-speed fuse and the working and reworking of the surface.

I worked on the teal colors for quite a while, then lit the fuse. I thought everything was fine until a big blast of winter wind took the art off the blast board. It landed upside down in a snowbank.  I hustled after the piece and used my air compressor to blow it off.  It dried out and looks great.  If you look really carefully, there are a few snowflakes burned etched into it. It was a a great save.  So I named it Saved. 

Unframed.

Primitive.  Modern.  Explosive.  

American gunpowder artist, Vega carefully places powder and fuses on the surface of the art, which he positions horizontally on the floor (or blast table). When ignited, first the fuses burns instantly along the cord lines, igniting the gunpowder and creating a blast, which then vanish in clouds of smoke. The result is a textured surface that looks and feels like an explosion—the art is blackened, charred, and erupted, arrested in a state of being created in a flash.

When the fuse is lit there is a moment of uncertainty. What will happen? It is at that moment that true art exists.