Tony Maridakis

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Artist Statement

I explore the threshold between inner life and outer life in two bodies of work.

In the “Lone Tree” series, a tree stands alone, barren and naked of leaves, on top of a mountain unsure of its place and uncertain of its future.  Yet the tree does not look distressed or out of place, but rather contemplative – it is dormant, hibernating, processing – it is waiting out the transition of the season.  The tree is observed as it observes, while it undergoes its inquiry, its metamorphosis.  Does it realize it will bloom again?  It seems clear it will when the time is right. 

The observer observes in the “Océanos Imaginadas” series.  A boat out of water, a man holding an apple looks toward a far off tower illuminated by the light of a television, all are situated in a desolate landscape.  What do these symbols represent?  Does the boat out of water look toward a future devoid of life?  Is the man holding knowledge in his hand?  Do people devour delusive information in the tower, disengaged from the reality of circumstance?

The “Lone Tree” and “Océanos Imaginadas” series represent imagined places, places we may visit in a dream, in a nightmare, places that may not be of this world, yet foresee this world.  In the “Lone Tree” series, these imagined places come from a psychological interior, a place of searching.  The imagined places of the “Océanos Imaginadas” series stem from a place of mythology and religion.  Both are places of mystery.

While both series evolved independently, they have begun to merge in both symbolism and visual expression.  For me, the interior dialog concerned with the determination of self, of place, of purpose tie directly to the stories of mythology and religion.

The works in these bodies are oil on canvas, with an occasional foray into acrylic on canvas.  The “Lone Tree” series has been created in a fluid manner, put down on the canvas quickly and with a style that is stream of consciousness, yet with elements placed in a relationship based on the natural ratios of nature – the Golden Mean.  The “Océanos Imaginadas” series has been thought out in terms of its symbolism and has been painted in a more precise and determined manner.  Each body of work is limited in its overall palette, still each offering vibrant and complementary colors.  When creating a color field on a painting, I mix three to ten paints in order to create a dynamism and intensity that help transport the painting to an imagined place.  The strokes are applied so the painting, while depicting a still scene, has a feeling of fluidity and motion.