Paintings by Emily L Joseph
I am a survivor/feminist/artist. My paintings over the years began to unravel and reveal the silence, the fright and the tribulations throughout childhood to the end of a destructive marriage. The screams never heard, the tears never seen, the fear not shown, constant fear, the shame of body and mind. Yet there had to be strength to change and to provide a healthy life for my children. That became the road to healing and recovery. The paintings became the venue to self-liberation. The art pieces depict the evolution from childhood terrors to adult rebirth and owning my true self as an artist. There is light to the darkness. In addition, there is growth in execution of work, reflecting the joy found in other areas of my life. During the isolation of COVID, painting began again with zealousness, ease, and found a genuine newness and expression to work that began to sing. The current political struggles increased the volume. A deepened voice came forth and was stronger again in painting. The whisper became a roar.
My work utilizes color, shapes, and lines. The use of lines centers on the thought that the shortest distance between two spots is a straight line. The core of my work focuses on color and the use of color theory. Through observation, it was found that if I placed a black box on a page, it became stagnant – a black box. However, when I drew a jagged red line through the box, it became dynamic, a new form of energy. Using circles, swatches of color and lines, gave liveliness to the painting, creating movement. When painting, I find it beneficial to execute a series of work either similar in color, expression or design. During my education at Rochester Institute of Technology – (MFA, BFA), I began to follow T. S. Elliot’s Objective Correlative. This is a means of expressing emotion in art by using either set objects, a situation, or a chain of events. Through this method, the painting becomes that emotion. The choice is to do abstract painting, because it supplies the necessary tools allowing the portrayal of thoughts and emotions in work. In my work, I do not dictate the emotion found in the painting; but leave it for the viewer’s own discovery and interpretation. This work subjective in nature, utilizes color to illustrate feelings, dreams, or emotions. Representation is alluded. It is not portrait or landscape or still life, it is passion, sensation or a reaction. This gut feeling leaves the hand and heart of individual and leaps to a medium to portray that fervor and intensity.
Tools such as spray paint, Conte crayons, graphite, charcoal and acrylic paint are used. Color draws the eye over the piece to the core. The lines keep the eyes moving, while symbols quietly state, “look at me”. The exchange between colors, lines and shapes tell the story—her story,
My work utilizes color, shapes, and lines. The use of lines centers on the thought that the shortest distance between two spots is a straight line. The core of my work focuses on color and the use of color theory. Through observation, it was found that if I placed a black box on a page, it became stagnant – a black box. However, when I drew a jagged red line through the box, it became dynamic, a new form of energy. Using circles, swatches of color and lines, gave liveliness to the painting, creating movement. When painting, I find it beneficial to execute a series of work either similar in color, expression or design. During my education at Rochester Institute of Technology – (MFA, BFA), I began to follow T. S. Elliot’s Objective Correlative. This is a means of expressing emotion in art by using either set objects, a situation, or a chain of events. Through this method, the painting becomes that emotion. The choice is to do abstract painting, because it supplies the necessary tools allowing the portrayal of thoughts and emotions in work. In my work, I do not dictate the emotion found in the painting; but leave it for the viewer’s own discovery and interpretation. This work subjective in nature, utilizes color to illustrate feelings, dreams, or emotions. Representation is alluded. It is not portrait or landscape or still life, it is passion, sensation or a reaction. This gut feeling leaves the hand and heart of individual and leaps to a medium to portray that fervor and intensity.
Tools such as spray paint, Conte crayons, graphite, charcoal and acrylic paint are used. Color draws the eye over the piece to the core. The lines keep the eyes moving, while symbols quietly state, “look at me”. The exchange between colors, lines and shapes tell the story—her story,
