Support
canvas, graphite, University of Florida's 4 standard paints
30 x 30 inch canvases

In a recent collaboration with the University of Florida Physical Plant, I was interested in addressing how maintenance functions within the academic landscape. The work done in the Physical Plant’s Paint Shop, reminiscent of many art practices, becomes critical when presented as field paintings with pentimento. Pentimento, the invisible underpainting, mirrors the stylistic transparency and attentiveness of university maintenance.
            To accomplish this work I exchanged services with three employees of the Paint Shop: Brody, Ben, and Bobby. For my part I helped paint by first embedding my under-painting, a quote by Aristotle stating “a thing whose presence or absence makes no visible difference is not an organic part of the whole,” before painting over the now pentimento with one of UF’s standard colors: special off-white, pussywillow grey, mayonnaise bronze, or black. Then each assisted employee wrote their own pentimento, a personal job description, on one of my canvases and then similarly painted over it.

            *This project has since been donated for permanent display at the University of Florida.