In a 2019 series, Elizabeth Noerdlinger explores a more intuitive approach, building layers of water based paints with collage, and finishing with oil paint. She follows the shapes and marks into stories of personal myth and Metaphysical inquiry. The deaths of her younger sister and father in the past three years, have spurred her to delve deeply into ideas of life’s purpose, struggles, creation and dissolution. She finds inspiration in the work of Carl Jung and Alfred North Whitehead, as well as scientists who examine the “hard problem” of Consciousness.

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Noerdlinger experiences a natural pull toward water, and depicts its essence as a symbol of chaos, transformation and rejuvenation. Her dreams of difficult, curious travel, or multi-roomed, nocturnal houses reinforce the sense that she is searching, trying to synthesize the pieces. She feels uncertainty and unease connected to the social and climatic upheavals the world is experiencing. For Noerdlinger, art and imagination are essential to life. Her painting is an inquiry, and a tribute to the beauty she finds.

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Video: Liz Noerdlinger In Her Studio:  Artist Elizabeth Noerdlinger in conversation with Peter Foley