<i>Fern</i> (Fronteuac Park, Ontario, Canada) <br>2024 Acrylic <br><br>#C6183

Gaétan CaronEntitled Fern, this 2024 acrylic on canvas board scene from Fronteuac Park, Ontario, Canada is by contemporary Mendocino/Bay Area artist, Gaétan Caron (b. 1964), co-founder of Lost Art Salon in San Francisco. Gaétan developed his own technique of integrating oil paint with raw clay on stretched canvases to create organic texture in his work. The black clay is harvested directly from the bottom of a valley on his land in the Mendocino hills. After painting a first layer with oil paint, Caron hand molds the clay applying it while still wet, using a strong archival adhesive which remains flexible. This process allows for durability as well as for the natural craquelure to organically form as the clay dries and transforms into the texture of this abstract painting reflecting a romantic love between two pairs of sky blue eyes. "And just like bark on trees naturally breaks and chips, it is perfectly all right if with time bits of dry clay fall off to reveal the beauty beneath." s