Having seen the Tamayo exhibit for the first time last month, I can conclude that the experience of viewing Tamayo's paintings up close is simply incomparable to just viewing the painting themselves. I mentioned in my last post that I worked on a mural inspired by Tamayo over the summer; we extensively researched Tamayo's paintings to better interpret his influence. During our research, we watched a video of Tamayo in his studio working on a painting, and I was intrigued to discover that he sifted sand directly on the wet paint to create texture. I recalled his use of the sandy 3-D texture when I saw many of the pieces face-to-face, and, with this in mind, I felt such an intense connection with the work that I probably would not have otherwise appreciated. I can only imagine that the experience of seeing Tamayo's artwork upfront is akin to that of witnessing a Van Gogh face-to-face for the first time.
-Janey
Pictured below are a few images from the mural project: