Shane Guffogg: "The Bay of Naples" paintings

In this episode, my guest, Shane Guffogg and I discuss his current project, which consists of two oil on canvas paintings, (6 x 8 feet), and (40 x 30 inches), created for a group exhibition at the Royal Palace of Portici and the Museum of Herculaneum in Naples, Italy. This exhibition is  curated by Cynthia Penna and opens on December 10^th, 2021.

The curator assigned each of the 6 American artist, an American author who wrote about Naples. Guffogg was given the 19^th century historical romance author, James Fenimore Cooper, and the book, Gleanings of Italy. The artist took the following passages for his inspiration, 

“The Mediterranean, on the other hand, is unusually blue, and its bays and gulphs appear to have as deep a tint as the open sea.

The bay itself was asleep, with its bosom dotted with a thousand boats, and crafts of different sizes. The deathlike calm that pervaded everything was in exquisite accordance with the character of the entire view. The mountains were dreamy, the air was filled with drowsy repose, while the different objects of historical interest over which the eye rather lingered than glanced, gave the whole the semblance of a physical representation of things past, adorned and relieved by a glorious grouping of so much that is exquisite in the usages of the present.”

- James Fenimore Cooper

“Gleannings of Italy” (Naples, 1838)

In this discussion, Guffogg shares how he created his paintings and the developments that ensued. He further explores how he planned-out the beginning layers of each painting, which were devised from aspects of the I Ching, which was the bases for the patterns. Guffogg spent long periods of isolation in the studio working, which was a necessary task in order to paint in this systematic format. But as is Guffogg’s working style, he had some wiggle room for his intuition to respond to the continuously changing colors and shapes that came out of the countless layers of glazes. The industrious project took two-months and the significance of the conceptual blueprint set down the truth to the inherent outcome. The final composition that transpired from mind to heart, and hand to canvas is astounding. But this was not done without difficulty. Guffogg shares some of the tough stages he went through to complete the finished works. Towards the end of this discussion, I sarcastically ask, “Is painting dead?” Of course not! Guffogg reveals his testimony. Listen in, to hear first-hand what he has to say.

Shane Guffogg is an American artist who looks through the lens of humanity at civilizations, both past and present, and views time as threads that connect all people. His work is a visual language that is informed by the spiritualism of abstraction and the realism of the old masters. These two ideas are usually seen as separate but Guffogg fuses them seamlessly into works that transcend and become testaments to thoughts that inform us of who we are in the 21st century.

To learn more about Shane Guffogg visit, www.shaneguffogg.com