Star Trip Origins 2007

Curator: Looking at "Star Trip Origins," a 2007 acrylic on canvas by Jack Armstrong, what strikes you first? Editor: Well, total chaos, in the best way possible. A head-rush of yellow, battling it out with that almost angry red... It's exciting! Feels a bit like peering into the sun. Curator: It is quite dynamic. Armstrong works within a lineage of action painting, and here we see him layering, dripping, flinging acrylic paint onto the canvas. It's a real record of his physical engagement with the materials. Editor: Action is right! You can almost feel the artist's energy, that moment of creation frozen in the thick impasto. I'm imagining him just...going for it. I bet the studio floor was a sight. Curator: Absolutely, this "going for it" as you put it is key. It's contemporary work, but evokes abstract expressionism, very matter-painting focused in its exploration. Armstrong's technique blurs those old high art/craft lines. The labor, the pure physicality... Editor: It almost dares you to look away, doesn't it? But I’m hooked. There's something so raw and vulnerable about pouring yourself into a work like this. Maybe a bit reckless? Like a painterly daredevil. Curator: Interesting choice of words; reckless may indeed play in Armstrong's work. Beyond the visual excitement, "Star Trip Origins" prompts questions about artistic labor, commodification of process, doesn't it? It is held in a private collection today, and, considering materials and context, what does this particular ownership reveal to us? Editor: You're bringing me down to earth, I was having too much fun picturing the paint splatters, not about the economic realities. Okay, yes, good point, how something so explosive and spontaneous ends up locked away… slightly ironic, isn’t it? Still, I will hold on to the joyful ride, so... Thank you, I suppose, for widening my gaze? Curator: And thank you for letting yours wander, revealing your perspective. Let's hope this dialogue provokes visitors' personal impressions.