James Gortner
Tarot Card Paintings
James Gortner's "Tarot Card Paintings" series represents a body of work developed over several years, exploring themes of temporality, transformation, and personal connection. Each piece combines elements of realism and abstraction through a distinct multi-layered process.
The foundation of each work begins with an assemblage of found canvases—paintings discarded or abandoned by other artists. Gortner physically rivets these canvases together to create larger composite surfaces. He then paints over the assemblages, incorporating existing elements while adding new imagery that ranges from photorealistic to abstract. The resulting works contain visible traces of their original components while presenting entirely new compositions.
The series takes its inspiration from the Tarot, the ancient system of divination that preceded modern playing cards. Each painting in the collection corresponds to specific cards drawn during a 2007 Tarot reading performed by Carolina Palmgren, who would later become Gortner's wife and the mother of his children. This personal connection establishes a biographical framework for the series, embedding each piece with layers of meaning that extend beyond its visual components.
The works present multiple entry points for viewers. Some may focus on the technical aspects of material transformation, some may value the ecological and green gesture the work represents, while others might connect with the mythological elements of the Tarot imagery. Gortner's process embraces this multiplicity of interpretation, allowing the paintings to exist simultaneously as physical assemblages, personal narratives, and visual compositions where diverse artistic styles converge.