"Once I've got a direction I'm pretty infatuated and its all encompassing. I'm trying to keep away from being
conscious.  If I start to think about the work, thinking `shall I put that colour there?' I stop and go and clean my
brushes.  To be unaware is my discipline, trying to control and keep the power of the paint."

Well, I must say that if ever painting was dead, it seems to be now alive and well in Porl's exhibit.  One would
think a small gallery nestled in a tiny burb of old houses (in the middle of Ontario?) would be an unlikely spot for
his work, but his paintings fit the space like a glove.  The energy that the space holds creates an exciting
atmosphere for any artist's work.  In Porl's case however, the energy created through his media gave it a very
strong ethereal connection that I, and I'm quite certain most other people, felt upon entering the gallery space.

        Something I actually didn't know before coming to see the exhibit was that Porl did all of the work for `100%
sky' specifically for the Homer Watson Gallery.  This seems quite rare, both for established and emerging artists.
His agreement to do the show, and his approach to creating the pieces both seemed unusual, but it made the
viewing so much for interactive and pleasurable.  Often artists don't have the luxury of creating that sort of
relationship with the space, and in turn allowing that intimacy to be passed down to the viewer. Porl's interaction
with the gallery seemed incredibly natural and effortless (though no effort was spared) and the effect was both
innovative and stunning.

        I also had the pleasure of speaking with Jennifer Kelland Wood, the Guest Curator about this exhibit.  I
raised the question of whether or not there was a concern about Porl's previous success as both a musician and an
artist, considering the previous work shown at the gallery was mostly local emerging artists.
She cited the very first examples of Porl's artwork that she remembers seeing, and particularly the work he did on
the cover of Disintegration. "It just made me wonder," she said, "it was so layered, and was exactly in-tune with
the music itself, which he was also a part of.  At a pretty young age it got me thinking…"

She proposed the idea of doing a show, and over the next year and a half `100% sky' was born. Porl's connection
with the gallery itself was made initially with some of Homer Watson's personal life and his career as an artist.
Being a Spiritualist, Watson was very receptive to his own unconscious.  Porl's work previous to `100% sky' is
very intuitive, and both he and Jennifer felt that the concepts that Watson recognized worked very well with his
own painting discipline.  As an interesting side note, Jennifer also felt that the selection of an artist residing in
Britain was a good choice, since that was where Homer Watson first became successful.  One hundred years later
she felt that the gallery had really come full circle in terms of the connection with the country, and she seemed
immensely pleased with the entire result.

        100% sky is built out of a dream state, just after waking.  It seems to be a sort of bridge between the
unconscious and "real" life, which is then transferred into sentence fragments and layer upon layer of paint on
canvas and paper.  In the exhibit publication, this description of sky is given:

sky (skeye) the apparent/ dome-shaped canopy over/ head: the heavens:sky'clad/ naked 100% sky of the/
moment… a total contact with/ the self… to be true… the sub-/ conscious realized… at one/ with the inner sky/
inner sky a place to be…/ total mindscape… sky'high'/ up there sky wave radio/ waves reflected back from the
ionosphere;

        The whole body of work flows beautifully, one after the other, but each piece could stand proudly on its own.
The use of colour, texture, and line, are well worth seeing in the flesh, and I highly recommend it to whomever
can make it to Kitchener to see the show.
A friend of mine once told me that if she considered a painting well done, it would be good enough to eat.   She
would want that painting badly enough to reach out and have a taste.  While I don't believe that applies to all
painting, and certainly not all good art, that thought really struck me when seeing Porl's work.  The use of layers
and half-hidden text makes one want to dig deep and read everything there is to know (though obviously I can't
eat it…).  Touching with ones eyes has never been so enjoyable. "I really believe he's a modern master," said
Jennifer, "he knows the paint,  he knows exactly how to use it."

Porl's work is visceral, even when no figures are present and his unconscious is very interesting to observe!  This
show is the result of a man's heart bursting open if ever I saw it.  It's pure love, every layer.

A special thanks to all who stuck around to chat, it was a pleasure to see so many people there!  Extra special
thanks of course to the lovely Ultraviolet for her photos.  Unfortunately I missed meeting Porl (by not very much
I'm told!) but finally seeing his paintings up close was enough loveliness for one day.  Also huge amounts of hugs
to Jennifer for taking the time (sitting down and relaxing - wow) to put up with my questions!

All quotes from Porl are taken from the `100% sky' c. Porl Thompson and Great Atlantic Publications, 2002.

- caro x
 

I was very honored to be one of the first people to visit 100% Sky at the Homer Watson Gallery. This was truly
a privledge to be able to finally view Porl's paintings (and meet him as well) in person! As well, as a young artist,
I am very interested in learning about different types of art and of course, being exposed to professional art.
There was not one painting in the entire gallery that I did not find to be absolutely stunning to the eye. I was
captivated by the shapes, colours, and the innovative techniques that Porl uses to create all of his breath-taking
masterpieces. Porl Thompson is truly a gifted and brilliant painter! I am looking forward to seeing more of his
gorgeous work in years to come! It was so lovely to meet Porl in person and I had a great time at the show!!

- Zowiey
 

I'd been looking forward to seeing Porl's art exhibit since the first time I'd read about it on CoF. I'm fortunate, as
I live in Niagara Falls, NY, which is only about 90 miles from Kitchener. My mother was nice enough to drive me
to the opening. When we arrived out in front of the Homer Watson House & Gallery, my mother and I noticed that
there were several goths by the front walkway. Other Cure fans and CoF readers, perhaps? :)  (Since it's taken
me so long to write this review, a picture of them is now up. It's kind of funny actually, since my mother and I had
walked into the gallery moments before that picture was taken.)

In one of the reviews it says that Porl was there at the opening. He must not have stayed for very long, since my
mother and I had arrived just about an hour or so after it began, and I don't recall seeing him. Anyway, my mother
and I walked into the gallery, which is a quaint older building in a relatively quiet area. We looked at Porl's
artwork, starting with the rooms that held the smaller pieces, then working our way into the room holding the
larger ones. We both enjoyed the exhibit quite a bit. I had brought my camera with me to take pictures of the
paintings, but was told that photos of Porl's work weren't allowed. I did take some pictures of the building
afterward though, and the sign in front of the gallery advertising the exhibit.

On an interesting note, my mother was curious as to how the transparencies that were hanging on a couple of the
windows were transported, so she asked the woman at the front desk. The woman told her that they had been
rolled up, and when they unrolled them just before they put them up, they found that the transparencies were still
wet.

Before I left, I spent $30 Canadian on a book that included pictures of Porl and his artwork, and comments and
poetry by him. The poetry is good, and the comments provide a bit of insight into Porl and his inspirations. As for
the photos, they provide some as well.
It seems that Porl likes to do some of his painting au naturale, as a few of the pictures are of him doing so. Maybe
that provided the inspiration to the painting titled "naked in my studio" .

I recall reading earlier on CoF that there were supposed to be cds and prints of the artwork too, but I didn't see
any. Did Porl or the gallery decide not to sell them?

Anyway, I included scans of the covers of the book, a couple of the paintings (photo credit: Michael Jay), and a
picture of Porl (photo credit: Maria Mochnacz), and a price list, in case you want to buy Porl's artwork. All prices
are in Canadian and are subject to a 15% sales tax.

$1,250

5/24  mirror boy              40x40cm
7/24  detail from liquid x   40x40cm
10/24 guitar shaped girl    40x40cm
12/24 100% sky               40x50cm
13/24 automatic eye         40x50cm
14/24 looking back at me  40x50cm
 

$3,750

4/24  automatic sky                50x60cm
6/24  midnite girl                     61x61cm
8/24  seed text number three   50x60cm
9/24  inner text                       50x60cm
11/24 txt msg                         50x60cm

$7,500

1/24  contact sky     120x80cm
2/24  contact hand    120x80cm
3/24  contact heart    120x80cm

$10,000

10/24 the first star cuts the sky  91x122cm
 

$12,500

16/24 stream flow dream               100x100cm
17/24 a poem of dreams                113x100cm
19/24 naked in my studio               110x112cm
20/24 dancininkman                       93x93cm
21/24 you - me boy                        100x100cm
22/24 you - me girl                         100x100cm
23/24 girl on the end of the line        94x94cm
24/24 you are my sky to dream in  100x100cm
 

$15,000

18/24 memaninme     93x122cm
 

other

transparent panel (located in Ferrie Room)   $8,750
transparent frieze  (located in Ferrie Room)  $10,000
large transparent panel (located in Ferrie Room on window)  $22,500
large transparent panel (located in Cayley Room on window)   $25,000

 - Shawn
 

I just wanted to tell everyone that I attended the opening of Porl's art exhibit 100% SKY at the Homer Watson. If
you get the chance to attend it would be a worthwhile trip. The internet does not do justice to the amazing color and
texture he uses in his work. I was so very impressed with the exhibit. It was like being in a beautiful, warm, colorful
dream. Everything was amazing!!!! Many thanks to Porl (and to Jennifer Wood) for this wonderful opportunity to
experience his work. It was definately worth the drive from Indiana.

- Jo
 

"I was very very fortunate to only live an hour away from the Porl's exhibit in Kitchener. I was also very fortunate
to have arrived at the door of the gallery just as Porl was walking out. He said Hi generally to the few of us on the
porch and repeated his "Hello" directly to me. I just simply said "Hello" I was so taken in by the moment. I didn't
say more or take a picture since I simply thought Porl was going for lunch and will return later, where at that point I
would take a picture or speak to him. It turned out that Porl was heading back to New York City and that was my
only opportunity to see him in person.

My deepest regrets to Jo and Andrea who traveled all the way from Indiana to see the exhibit and missed the
chance to meet Porl. Porl left the gallery so quickly and quietly. It was a pleasure meeting Jo and Andrea who
support my belief that Cure fans are the nicest people in the world and I hope we are able to stay in touch.

Pictures of the artwork themselves were not allowed although I did take a pictures outside the gallery and through
the window you can see a bit of Porl's art (to be sent in later). You can visit Porl's web site to see his artwork, but
truthfully you have to see the art in person. There is a lot of texture and layering in Porl's art that just doesn't
translate through a picture. Some of the pieces of art Porl actually did the night before the opening in the gallery
itself. Simply amazing.

I had a wonderful time and a big big thank you to Jennifer of Homer Watson House for taking the initiative and
asking Porl if he would like to show his art at her gallery. Of course a huge thank you to Porl for allowing us the
opportunity to see his art and saying Hello to me :) "

- Maria

Dearest Chain of Flowers Web Ring

Thank you so very much for being SO KIND to Porl and handing out flyers all over the world. Due to your love of
the music and the art, we have had contact from people as close as five minutes away and as far away as 22 hours
via plane. If it were not for your efforts - this exhibit would not have had the reach and scope that it now does!

Hopefully I will meet personally all of you who will make the pilgirmage to see the most wonderful dreamscapes of
art that are hanging upon our lovely old gallery walls. Everyone is correct that the pictures do not do the actual art
justice. Porl's love of texture is far better viewed in person. It is best to come visit us and get lost in these works
yourself.

Once again thank you to all who helped out. Anyone interested in visiting, purchasing or ordering catalogues for
100% sky please feel free to contact me at the gallery - www.homerwatson.on.ca  or at eternalart@rogers.com and
it will be my pleasure to help you in any way I can.

Lots of Love,
Ms. Jennifer Kelland Wood, Guest Curator