WELCOME TO PROJECT 60
I'm about to join the 60 club.
It's common to say "I can't believe it, how did this happen?" and truly, as strange as it may sound, this realization lands on most of us without prior preparation.
Before a Bat or Bar Mitzvah we prepare – so why not before turning 60?
I decided to embark on a unique project: I created a wooden surface on which I will paint 60 stages of one painting.
There will presumably be stages in the painting that I love, and I'll have the thought that I'd like to leave it exactly like that. Just as it is.
But that's exactly the idea – to deal with letting go even when we love something. Because that's how it is in life, isn't it?
During the work I will document the stages and upload them here, so that something will remain...
THE PROJECT
How to choose a format?
I chose wood because it allows me the most possibilities. I can glue, add infinite layers of paint, and also sand and remove parts.
I wanted a rectangle that would allow both vertical and horizontal work – not too narrow but also not too square. And I wanted it to connect conceptually to the subject.
I chose a surface measuring 72×90 cm (multiples of 6), with a 4:5 ratio.
Preparing the Surface
The first step was to cover the surface with clippings of old papers. Letters and notes that are a kind of memories for me. Some good, some less so, but they are part of who I am. They became the secret base layer of the work – I will never be able to see them again.
This is part of the point: to keep the memories but not cling to them. To let go.
Work Framework
Each encounter with the work is a stage. It can last two hours, one hour, or 20 minutes – it's a stage. I gave myself a little more than 10 months, understanding that there will be dry periods, weeks when I won't touch the work. That's okay.
It's part of the process.
Let's begin.
