Painting of a Bubblegum Machine

Bubblegum Machine Painting (acrylic and spray paint on 18"x24" panel)

Artist, Illustrator: John Potter

This work is the fourth in an ongoing series that investigates the use of custom linear halftones, which is the structured line systems that function as the darker tonal elements within the image. For this painting, I employed a particularly dense and intricate, yet intentionally irregular, halftone pattern, allowing certain areas to remain fully dark. Select areas are rendered in a limited, monochromatic palette to make the role of the halftone structure in constructing the image more readily apparent. Compared to earlier works in the series, this piece represents a more complex and refined application of the linear halftone approach. The halftone pattern itself is based on a star motif, chosen to reinforce the broader pop-culture sensibility underlying the work.

The composition is derived from a photograph I took with my phone in a shopping mall. The subject matter struck me as playful and subtly retro, making it a fitting source for this series. Conceptually, the piece also reflects an effort to move toward imagery that is more grounded and mature than that of the preceding work, which centered on overtly whimsical exaggeration.

The painting is executed using acrylic resin spray paint in combination with brush-applied acrylic paint and is finished with a clear artist’s resin. While the work reproduces well in photographs, its full visual and material impact, particularly the interaction between surface, pattern, and image is best experienced in person.

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