Randi Matushevitz
Cluster 3
2020
Oil on Linen
30 X 24 inches
In selecting this image, I own up to the freedom I feel while under corona lockdown—the freedom to take risks and make connections through my studio practice. Without deadlines and self-pressure to be out there making connections, I have been able to dive into the depths of my creative impulse. It was while watching b&w Vincent Price and Orson Wells movies that I realized that I am finding peace in the macabre, the art-horror genre. I embraced my love of the style and reflected on my experiences as a teenager in Las Vegas. The people-watching, thousands of tourists, strangers, their body language, and facial expressions repeated as they walked through casinos, hotel shops, and the strip. Since then, I have been obsessed with the inspiration that comes from appearances and psychological impressions that I perceive when people-watching. Dystopian Lullaby is a collection of paintings influenced by the art-horror genre presenting relationships in gothic settings. The composition and palette lead to the larger existential experience. Cluster 3 is an example of the dual nature of the solitary self who lives within clusters. Groups of clusters passing through each other. Herds.