What is the blue made of? Is it oil paint?
It is! Moffett developed this paint extrusion technique after taking a cake decorating class in the early 1990s. The title of the work, "Lot 043017" refers to the production notes in one of the notebooks that Moffett keeps on his paintings. It indicates that he started the painting on April 30, 2017.
Can you tell me more about this piece and about the artist Donald Moffett?
This work by Donald Moffet was made by extruding paint onto linen. He often uses this technique to produce works that are relatively monochromatic and play with the idea of the surface of painting. They evoke associations with organic forms such as plants, like the name of this work suggests. Moffett actually studied both biology and art in college which is how his interest in the natural world came to inform his work.
Tell me more.
Typical of Moffett’s work, this piece is relatively monochromatic and is made by extruding paint onto linen, in the same way you would decorate a cake!
Moffett plays with the idea of the surface of painting, while evoking associations with organic forms, such as plants. He studied both Biology and Art in college, and his interest in the natural world has informed his work. In addition, he has spoken about this series of work in terms of sexuality, calling the pieces “glory holes” and sometimes hanging them at waist level.
I love looking at this but I don't know how to interpret it. Is it the letter R?
It's not meant as a letter R, but it does definitely look like one, you're not the first person to say that!
One of the things that stands out to me is the hair-like surface, which was made by extruding paint onto the canvas. What else do you see?
The pattern of the holes in the middle and on the sides remind me of designs and shapes I've seen in Islamic architecture. It also looks like layers of icing.
The artist, Donald Moffett, started making works like this after taking a cake decorating class in the early 1990s. He squeezes oil paint onto the canvas to make the work! The holes might remind you of Islamic architecture because, much like a lot of Islamic art, they borrow and abstract floral shapes!
The artist's focus in a work like this is to explore natural forms like hair and flowers. Moffett even studied Biology in school.
That's amazing! Thank you so much for all the info. I just told my family everything you said and was met with a chorus of "ohhhh"'s.
My mom taught high school biology so she was very excited to hear that :)
They said "we appreciate the upside down R so much more now."
Ahahaha I'm glad to hear it, that's one of my favorite works to talk about!
I would like to know how this work was made.
This work was made by a process very similar to the way you might decorate a cake!
The artist works with oil paint that has been thickened, and then extrudes it strand by strand onto the stretched linen canvas. He actually arrived at the technique after taking a cake decorating class in the early 1990s.
So cool! Thank you!
