THE CREATIVE PROCESS

The Inside and Outside:

In all works of art, there is a ratio  between the external world of appearances, and the inner world of experience. The composition to the right was made from a monoprint and stencils to represent an inner experience rather than to duplicate  the actual appearances of things in the  visible world.  In all art, there is a ration between that which is felt within oneself, and that which is experienced outside of oneself.

Kate Reynolds,"Duplicity," 15"x12" monpirnt with stenciling, 2001.

In contrast, I relied heavily on what I saw external to myself in the self-portraits below.  But even in these images, based on my outer appearance, an inner dimension of my identity  is evident.  In art, there is always a ratio between what is felt and what is seen.

Self-Portrait, done in grad school, 1982
Done for a self-portrait unit, stenciling and paper collage, at Seoul Foreign School, 2012
Painted for a self-portrait unitI taught at Pacific Collegiate School, Santa Cruz, 2016

Cultural Context

Both of these portraits are of Pope Innocent X.  The first was painted by Diego Valazquez in 1550, and the second was an interpretation of Valazquez’s version in 1950 by the painter Roger Bacon.  These two paintings well demonstrait the difference between interior experience and external appearances. Yet still, Valazquez’s painting expresses much about the personality of Pope Innocent X, beyond his appearance.