Undercover in the Age of Droplets
By Marsha Nouritza Odabashian | August 22, 2020
In ordinary times I create large paintings in an enormous studio in the South End of Boston. During the Covid-19 pandemic, however, I have been drawing, painting, collaging and photographing from a small room and a porch on the outskirts of the city. My work involves sociopolitical themes expressed through onionskin dye stains splashed onto canvas and paper.
The pandemic was upon us when the call for entries on the theme of droplets came from HallSpace Drawing Project 2020. The watery nature of the theme appealed to me and my work shifted direction. I created “Flurries,” a trilogy consisting of “Nozzles,” “Moon Drops,” and “Lunar Flurries.” Ubiquitous in the media and in our lives, droplets are rarely noticeable except through a telescope, a microscope or a magnifying glass, or when they form parabolas in the wake of water fountains, garden hoses and water pistols. On my daily walks I have become preoccupied with droplets that I spot in morning dew, sunrays, moon dust, and crashing ocean waves. I fastidiously avoided droplets in the form of spittle, tears, and blood out of fear that they might contain the dreaded red Coronavirus. This period of isolation has given me an opportunity to explore graphite, acrylic and ink in the creation of layers, transparency and movement of marks to evoke droplets: ever present, fearsome, peaceful.
“Uncertainty 1,” HallSpace Drawing Project, graphite/ ink/acrylic, 7.5 “ x 7.5” (2020)
“Uncertainty 2,” HallSpace Drawing Project, graphite/ ink/acrylic, 7.5 “ x 7.5” (2020
“Splash 1,” HallSpace Drawing Project. graphite/ink/ acrylic, 7.5” x 7.5” (2020)
“Splash 2,” HallSpace Drawing Project. graphite/ink/acrylic, 7.5” x 7.5” (2020)
Copyright © 2020 Marsha Odabashian
Marsha Nouritza Odabashian draws on human rights issues, history and current events as themes in her drawings and paintings. She exhibits in galleries and museums in the United States and Armenia. Odabashian studied art at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and the University of New Orleans prior to receiving an MFA from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts/ Tufts University. “Flurries” will be on exhibit at HallSpace Dorchester, MA September 5-October 10, 2020.
A beautiful sense of space, Marsha!
Thank you, Philip! I was thinking a lot about layering and space in these.
Marsha, these are wonderful tiny paintings–and I love your description of them as “ever-present, fearsome, and peaceful.” On instagram, the paintings look like they are in an artist’s book. Are they separate paintings? I remember our Sunday painting sessions with such fondness–and still have one of your unfinished books. And books by Robert and Christina and Emilia. I loved those gatherings and wish we could return to that time, that sense of community.
Hi Pam, thank you for commenting! Yes, they are in 7.5” square booklets for the Drawing Project 2020 at a very exciting gallery called HallSpace in Dorchester. A requirement was that all of the artwork be done in the same type of booklet. They are two different paintings within the booklet. “Uncertainty 1” is the left side of the page and “Uncertainty 2” is the right side. Same with “Splash”. They can be viewed as one painting or two. I have fond memories of those Sunday afternoon, evening painting session as well. We had so much fun painting in those repurposed children’s books. And remember Alice, Tom and Sue! I miss those days. Count in if you ever decide to resume. Covid makes us appreciate community even more than ever. We’ll make a plan!
What stunning pictures! I particularly like the ambiguity about the represented or implied medium. Uncertainty 1 seems very submerged, while Splash 1 obviously implies a splash in a surface, and Splash 2 reminds me of an image from a cloud chamber. All in all a lovely set of responses to dire circumstances.
Hi Robert! Thank you for your insightful comments. I love your image of the cloud chamber.
Love your work!
Thank you, I appreciate your comment!
These are beautiful and evocative, Marsha!
Thank you so much, Janice! I thoroughly enjoyed exploring the watery, otherworldly aspect of the theme.