Action Painting brings together the adrenalin-filled culture of action cinema and the formalist canon of modernist painting. It is a line of inquiry into spontaneity and self-expression that contrasts user-generated web 2.0 culture against the work of the genius craftsman — and action as a form of expression versus pure spectacle.

As action occurs in the original film, abstract forms move across a high-definition screen like paint flung onto a canvas, creating an animated composition. Action Painting is an example of an aesthetic digital image-making process where the material used in the production of the image provides additional layers of meaning. All of the source material was collected from Internet top 10 lists — top 10 explosions, movie fights, car chases, gun fights.

Action Painting consists of three distinct single-channel works that explore the visual language of a different action film trope. Monochromatic Bursts of Color is composed of the bursts, flames and smoke of explosions. Revving Motors, Spinning Wheels features spatially arranged car chases — humming motors, crashes, and screeching turns. Unrelenting Physical Aggression is created using violent punches, kicks, and smacks. Pitter Patter Splatter uses smoke and fire from pistols, handguns and automatic weapons.

All of the compositions are projected on large scale canvases using high-definition projectors — in homage to the monumental surfaces used by abstract expressionist painters that hang in modern art museums around the world. Like the works of Rothko and Pollock, these screens will immerse viewers into an overwhelming cinematic experience.