Face the Wolves

11x14" Oil and acrylic on canvas. Available

Aliza and Her Monsters x Cormac McCarthy collaboration preview April 2022 show at the University Business Center. Available.


“If you can’t face the wolves, don’t go into the forest.”
🐺

Cormac and I have three important things in common: We like to paint, we work super frigging hard to pursue our art, and we’ve both lived on Whidbey Island. he has a beautiful gallery there right off the ferry boat in Clinton, and I was born and raised there. It’s a special little community where we never crossed paths-I moved to Seattle when I was 18 and didn’t start seriously pursuing my art until 2020.

When I first saw Cormac’s landscapes on instagram last year I immediately envisioned my monsters inhabiting them. I reached out and an unexpected friendship evolved during the pandemic.

We talk about studio struggles, various painting problems and art marketing. I was elated when he agreed to combine forces and see what we could accomplish together. He paints in textured acrylic so it was decided that would be best to paint first as I can layer my oil subjects over it. I did not anticipate the painting problems I encountered or the drama that came into the studio when I was very much concerned my marks might destroy his.

It took me awhile to get over that and I didn’t start on these until the fear of messing up his work was out of the studio, or at least quiet enough for me to ignore. I didn’t want to paint scared- I know I’d be holding myself back. When you hold back, it shows. Your marks are timid and the process is agonizing.

Now that I’m well into 4 of these, I’d be lying if I said I didn’t love every single one.
Here’s to facing the wolves in the studio and stepping up to that easel to bring them to life.