CONTROL OF THE CENTER

Davis W. Morton / 1996 / oil on canvas / 38 X 38 inches

     Throughout the year, regardless of the weather, chess players from every walk of life play their game on Dupont Circle in Washington, DC.  In my chess paintings I use the game to represent what it already represents, the game of living.

     Normally, a chess player’s first objective is to take control of the center four squares on the board.  In warfare, this is the equivalent of taking the higher ground where you can shoot down on the enemy.  

        In relationships with other people, some of us also like to establish a feeling of control as soon as possible. Through competition or other means, we try to control the other people or the situations that surround us.  But people that do have some control over the centers of themselves never need to “win other people over.” Being the “center of attention” is not the center they are after. “Control of the Center” represents the kind of control that I would like to have.

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