Gibbs Rounsavall

Speed

The Speed series began as a peripheral project while I worked more intently on a larger graphite series. It was intended to be a quick, self- satisfying color exercise, but I found myself immediately engrossed in the possibilities and efficiency of these small studies. I have been working within a circular format for a long time so it seemed a natural progression to pare it down to working with concentric circles, circles within circles.

It started as a focus on light and its effect on space and progressed to an investigation of color relationships and their ability to create a sense of tonal harmony. I have been largely influenced by street art and textile design, but with this series, my love of music really played a big role. These pieces were my, “recorded in one take” sessions where I freed myself up to allow more imperfections and even a bit of randomness into the process.

The work took a conceptually different direction after I began working on the Shelby Park Mural. The neighborhood is going through a revitalization centered on the idea of community, with people working together to “create something bigger than themselves.” I took this idea of movement, progress and the idea of interconnectivity and developed a sketch for what would ultimately become “Sunshine and Shadow”.