Pursuit

She glances out the back window at a waiting yellow taxi. Who is it that pursues her and why?

©lesliepetersonsapp Pursuit 24x48

Scenes of women in trouble is very touchy. I do not want to perpetuate stereotypes of helplessness. I always want to make it seem like she has agency. Though there may be danger, you get the feeling she has a good chance of pulling through and landing on her feet!

This is a piece that went through many changes. Originally I had multiple people in the street scene as if there where a bunch of people milling around. But as things developed I could see the figures were just a distraction from the real drama. I even considered taking out the figure near the door and just leaving the car- I still don’t know if I made the right choice. Don’t be surprised if you see another version of this one. (I often feel compelled to do certain images again and again.) 

This one was just really fun. I loved working with the street light creating a cone of a lighter color. The back window of her vehicle creates a frame within a frame, and the dark color flows into her silhouetted profile and the buildings on the street. I tried to make a contrast with the bright yellow, the cool watercolor blues, and the flat dark brown/black.

Keep your eye open for a woodcut version of this piece!

Incognito

©lesliepetersonsapp Incogito 10x8 Acrylic on panel

A voluptuous, glamorous woman leans against the doorframe, silhouetted by the bathroom light. Over her shoulder we see, hanging on the shower curtain rod, a maid’s uniform. 

In conversation about classic film noir, a common subject is that actors and actresses of color were relegated into narrow stereotyped roles, often as domestic servants of white protagonists. But of course, this didn’t just happen in the movies, it happened in real life, too. African Americans had limited opportunities and were often employed as domestics in white households. What individuality was denied or hidden?

I see a dynamic, powerful, sexy woman who has to masquerade as a demure, uniformed domestic by day- but who knows what mischief or adventures she may be involved in after hours.

And... who knows what she may know about her employers…?

 

Search

The spy is being spied upon.

2019 Leslie Peterson Sapp Search 48x40

A young woman is being witnessed as she has snuck into an office at night, perusing documents on a desk. The green glow of the desk lamp illuminates her black jacket. Her profile and veil are silhouetted by the hall light shining through the office door window. Windows within windows, spies spying spies, rectangles framing one another, frames within frames. 

What she is reading, what information she is hoping to find, who is she spying on, and who is spying on her? What will her fate be?

Lace

A youthful figure, silhouetted in front of a lace curtain, dons a tie while looking in an ornate mirror. In the mirror we see a mysterious figure. Is the scene in the mirror real, or imagined?

2020 Leslie Peterson Sapp Lace 40x40

The figure in the mirror is mysterious. In real life, the only thing we would see reflected in the mirror is the blue curtain because of the angle. I used artistic license so that it may look like a person standing in the room with the young man, maybe behind him. One person suggested that the figure in the mirror is actually a reflection of what is the young man’s mind, or a reflection from a different time. I love learning about what other people see in my work!

This is an unusual piece for me in that there is so much pattern. There are times when I really crave that patterned, over all ornamentation. I like the way it is contrasted with the clean silhouette of the young man.

This is a bitty video where I discuss the piece a bit at my opening at RiverSea Gallery. A more detailed description of the materials and techniques I used is written below.

The curtain lace is purchased paper that I had to work very hard to preserve as I glued it down- it wanted to dissolve with the moisture of the medium. The blue curtain in front is all from a roll of tracing paper I tinted with acrylic. The wallpaper pattern is all acrylic, utilizing a metallic and interference colors, using a stencil I made and applying it with a stencil sponge from the craft store. The mirror was created by finding the mirror for sale on line, distorting it so it looked like it was in perspective, then I simply printed it out, cut it out and turned it over to its blank white side, then glued in down. The pattern reflected in the mirror is meant to look like a smaller version of the lace curtain. This created by cutting up a paper lace doily.

Backlight

 Although the man looms large in the picture, the woman seems to dominate somehow. Is the man leaving or just arriving? Is he being sent on an errand of sorts? Is there an agreement between them, or is this a confrontation? There is a sense of urgency- is it inspired by passion or fear?

2019 Leslie Peterson Sapp Backlight 38x48

There are two previous versions of this general image entitled Egress and Egress II

In this video I discuss how I developed all three from the original inspiration from the classic film noir "Nightmare Alley" through several sketches, to multiple complete images.  

2017 Leslie Peterson Sapp Egress 16x20

2017 Leslie Peterson Sapp Egress II 38x48