Saint and Sinner 2010 Solo Exhibition Painting

THIS EXHIBIT IS DEDICATED TO MARCY, so much more than my best friend for 16 years, whose death focused me more clearly on what matters, helped me drop my defenses more quickly, gave me more compassion for suffering and made me more grateful for the courage to love unconditionally. Time and again people view Deb’s original Saint and Sinner painting and ask, “How much is this one?” Her reply is always, “It’s not for sale.” Quickly followed by their response, “Well if it was, I’d buy it. I love this one.” Her current body of work, Deb Massa: Saint and Sinner, investigates the simple straightforward question, “If I create a series of this image, very similar to the original, would people in fact also love and buy them?” Finding the self-restraint and discipline to focus on one medium, acrylic paint and one image was in itself a huge challenge for Deb. “Each piece must have it’s own life,” Deb explains, “Painting isn’t solely about producing a final result that will sell. The act of creation, the mixing and applying of the paint, the choices and decisions made, the "I wonder what will happen if I..." moments, these are what makes painting an enjoyable challenge, not a mundane job.” To exercise even more freedom and variety for this series, she stretched the canvas, cradled the wood panels, painted directly on the surface or built up a multi-textured foundation. Focusing solely on this body of work from July 20, until August 27, 2010, Deb says she did what she always does, “ignore everything and create until my fingers curl up, palms punch the air, I feel the big belt buckle, high collar and jumpsuit against my skin-that moment when I’m 5 and Elvis at the same time.” While her paintings are best viewed from a distance, a close up inspection can reveal a very different piece of art. As she often does, Deb managed to conceal text in some of the pieces. “Like any artist, I am especially thrilled when my work calls a viewer to come closer, spend some time engaged in the piece and experience the challenge and pleasure of decoding my art.”

Painting:Acrylic on Canvas

Original:One-of-a-kind Artwork

Size:64 W x 96 H x 2 D in

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