Constraint Versus Restraint

Bed of Red Day Lilies © 2014 J. Travis Duncan

Quick vocabulary lesson. According to Webster's, a constraint is something that limits or restricts someone or something and a restraint is a way of limiting, controlling, or stopping something.

I know my limits. I'm not a gymnast. I'm not a surgeon. I'm not a mason. There are many things I am not. Yet, there are times when we look at what we do or don't do and in that moment, we subconsciously turn a restraint into a constraint. To put it another way, we tie our own hands behind our back.

For my artwork, details have always been paramount. Be it an illustration of a comic book hero or a barn, the lines had to be correct or my satisfaction would be absent. Thinking back, I wonder where such a thought would come from, for my taste in art is quite diverse. The art movements that have come and gone are delightful in their own way.

Since brushes allow me to paint even the smallest details, what could I do to break from my self-imposed restraint with my art? The answer is simple; I imposed another restraint upon myself: a palette knife. No longer tied to detail-oriented tools, I was forced to paint unimpeded. "Bed of Red Day Lilies" is an acrylic on canvas panel with a palette knife. A slight impasto technique was used with the acrylics. It is liberating to loosen the weak knot I placed upon my own hands. The greatest shame is how long I've imprisoned myself. Lesson learned.

 The Art of J. Travis Duncan