Searching for Daiquiri Ice
This summer I have been taking a special class through the NYC Crit Club called “Color as Code.” Led by the phenomenal painter, Sangram Majumdar, this course pushes against the idea that color can be taught, thought of, and/or talked about in only one way. Even professional artists find themselves at a loss for words when describing color and its varied interactions. We often learn at a very young age to associate certain colors with words that may be harmful or inaccurate (think about all of the negative words that are associated with “black”). One of my many favorite takeaways from the class material comes from a lecture given by Amy Sillman in which she offers that “color is the name given to forces that allow us to confront the uneasy task of marking difference.” It has been a pleasure and a challenge to wade into this task of talking about the color that is in my work, and the work of others, as well as looking more closely at the colors I see around me. I encourage you all to try out the exercise I describe below:
Taking a Color Walk: Notice one color that catches your eye and try to look for it as you continue to walk, noticing it in all its variations and nuances.
“I was walking down the boulevard when I looked out I was seeing all the blues in the street in front of me, blue on a foulard…blue on a young workman's ass…his blue jeans…a girl's blue sweater…blue neon…the sky…all the blues. When I looked again I saw nothing but all the reds of traffic lights…car lights…a café sign…a man's nose.”
—noticing color in Paris, a conversation between William S. Burroughs & Brion Gysin,1960
Color and Memory
I went on more of a color hunt than a walk, which first required that I stop for ice cream. For me, summer brings memories of standing at Baskin Robbins and looking at the buckets of ice cream behind the glass counter. Of all the 31 flavors, I always found the Daiquiri Ice. Not being old enough to associate it with the cocktail, I thought the word “Daiquiri” sounded enticing and exotic, but the illusive, icy color drew me in. Looking deep into the bucket, I imagined myself diving into it, passing through ice caverns with a faint green glow. After snapping the above picture of my cone, I went looking for that color in my day-to-day life. It proved rather difficult to find, but here is a brief collection of photos that came close.
Photos from top to bottom: Single scoop of Daiquiri Ice, packing peanuts, hydrangea, hand sanitizer in the sun, a pair of fancy socks, and a cluster of sedum.
