Patricia Goodson, Artist Statement

I paint imaginary beings and their habitats with water-based media, using chance techniques and spontaneous methods.

I experiment with materials to tell stories I didn't know I'd tell - stories of creation, destruction and wonder with roots in mythologies stretching back millennia. My improvisational process allows forms to coalesce into expressive shapes: a mark becomes a creature, while a wash of colors brings forth a new terrain. This approach gives rise to both narratives and pure abstractions.

One recent project, Wish You Were Here, explores the formation of the earth through the eyes of imaginary onlookers—curious, innocent, intelligent beings, perhaps only half-formed themselves—as they witness a world materializing around them. A second project, When the Moons Came to Visit,  tells a whimsical story through sequential watercolor panels.

My background as a professional musician affects what I do visually, as the fundamentals of painting, such as line, composition, color, and tone, have their analogs in music. The mix and flow among these elements has an abiding influence on my painting but for the most part, the exchanges stay on a subconscious level, and I am continually surprised by what emerges.