Sadie Benning's watercolors

"TO MAKE THE "DAILY FORECASTS," the first thing I do is clear my head-so I can receive words in a state where I'm not consciously thinking them-as a kind of psychic exercise. The words then become the search terms for finding images that I make digital collages from-the language acting as an invisible armature or skeleton. I find all the images and make all the mock-ups on the same day before midnight-that's the only rule. I don't paint them on the day of their genesis,"

"The idea to do photo-based watercolors stemmed from the process of inserting actual photographs into my paintings. But the real thing I would cite is that I made a series titled "Psychic Portraits" (2016) for Julie Ault to raise money for Triple Canopy. These works attempted to communicate the aura of a person without depicting them physically. I would channel language that would then be the basis of a photocollage that portrayed the person's inner life, their energy, their spirit."

"First I made digital mock-ups on my phone, so they weren't tangible in a physical way. I tried different scale shifts for them, but what felt the best was 4 x 6" which is like a photographic print, or a postcard. It's close to a head, in a way: the space inside the head. The finished watercolors have an analog read to them; technology isn't what you're thinking of when you're looking at one."

The process begins by clearing the mind to receive words unconsciously, then using those words as search terms to assemble digital collages. All images and mock-ups are gathered the same day before midnight, while painting often occurs days or even years later. Photo-based watercolors evolved from inserting photographs into paintings and from a series designed to convey a person's aura via photocollage. The Daily Forecasts originated during Covid as phone-made mock-ups and settled on a 4 x 6" postcard scale. The finished works emphasize an analog watercolor appearance despite their digital sourcing and varied time-period imagery.

Read at Artforum