Tuesday, December 21, 2010

Lucy Mink


I was introduced to this painter's work over at the great new site called (standard) INTERVIEW which showcases artists at work using a simple interview template . I had to giggle at the tag line; 'attempting insight since 2010'.

Lucy Mink is a painter I can really relate to. She plays with form and colour and clearly revels in the process. Her paintings are vibrant and dynamic. I love it when I see a form that breathes life and these paintings certainly do that! In her interview I was struck by her list of influential artists in which she includes Australian painter Elizabeth Cummings, also one of my personal favourites. I like her artists statement too;

I am consumed by combinations of color and form as a visual, abstract diary of my life where time does not belong to me, but to others. I am frequently organizing their things while they dance. I am in a situation.

Tuesday, December 7, 2010

Painters' Table


Just when I thought I had exhausted my quest to find good painting sites on the web I stumbled on this site; Painters' Table. It describes itself as a magazine of the painting blogosphere and seems to have a wide variety of links to news, multimedia, books, interviews and more. Created recently by Brett Baker, this site has great potential and just might become a definitive guide to painting resources on the net. I look forward to reading more.

Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Gabrielle Jones

"This too Shall Pass" 2010
122cm x 122cm 
Oil on canvas

Gabrielle Jones has a series of gorgeous works on display at the Goulburn Regional Gallery. The show is called 'Paint as Landscape' and the works ooze movement and light. I love the way paint is used to capture a fleeting moment, a memory of a sensory perception. Paint is applied generously and in equal measures of thick and thin so that the works breathe. 

I am interested in the slippage between the real and illusion, fast and slow, movement and static; the point in which nature disintegrates or decays (and the decay of the image); the time between light and dark; and nature as a site of flux and impermanence - that is, the transience of the real. - Gabrielle Jones 'Paint as Landscape' 2010 catalogue.

Gabrielle Jones has produced a very strong body of work and it is so gratifying to see this dedicated painter hitting her stride. Do yourself a favour and go see for yourself. The show ends December 4th.

Sunday, November 28, 2010

Ben Young

Homo Sacer 2009
Oil on Linen
117 x 117 cm



Imp Castrato 2010
Oil, Collage, Permanent Marker & Oil Stick on Canvas
100 x 100 cm


Reactionary Primitive 2010
Oil, Collage, Oil Stick & Spray Paint on Canvas
100 x 100 cm

Passion, paint; more passion, more paint. I'm happy to have stumbled on Ben Young's energy soaked work. Check more of it out here.

Sunday, November 21, 2010

Lesley Vance

Untitled (41), 2010
oil on linen
27.9 x 22.9 cm

I came across Lesley Vance's work a while ago. They are moody dark, velvety abstract compositions. Veils of paint are densely layered and appear to be applied in a variety of ways. They remind me of Caravaggio doing abstraction.

In her own words: My paintings originate from still lives of natural forms composed in the studio: I put together an arrangement of objects from my collection in a box where I control lighting by cutting openings for light to shine through. I'll paint this image, and once it reaches a certain point of resolution, the composition begins to evolve and I'm no longer looking at the source material. From there the the surface becomes a malleable space as the objects dissolve into pure form, although traces of the original image frequently remain in the finished work....

read more here about Vance's intelligent and intriguing process as well as her varied influences.

I love the process Vance uses and the results are gorgeous jewel-like paintings.

Thursday, November 18, 2010

Sabine Tress

Dresscode 2010
acrylic and spraypaint on canvas
60x60cm

Gunx 2010
acrylic on canvas
80x100cm

Whenever I see new work by Sabine Tress I feel like a kid in a lolly shop. I swoop on it, devour it and feel totally satisfied from the experience. Sabine is a painter who continues to surprise me. She has an ability to approach paint with the skills of an inventor - continuously exploring, playing and experimenting with colours and applications. I'm loving the continued investigation of a raw graffiti style, evidenced by the gutsy use of spraypaint. See her new website here.

Anthony White

Fugitive
50 x 50cm
oil on linen
2010

A show of Anthony White's will be held in 2011, which I'm looking forward to. I've posted about Anthony's work before purely and simply because I love his obvious passion for paint. He will be taking up a residency at The Leipzig International Art Programme. Lucky him! I can't wait to see what he produces.

Monday, October 11, 2010

Anne Smart

Anne Smart 
Those Greens, 2001-6
various media
, 127 x 204 cm 
image from: Poussin Gallery

Beautiful abstracts. Thanks to APE for the link. 

Friday, October 8, 2010

Ken Kewley On Colour



Pink Abstraction, 2003
3 7/8 x 3 3/4 inches


Here is an article that reminds me of the reasons to paint. Ken Kewley - writings on colour. Thanks to Painting Perceptions for posting this one and MW Capacity for drawing my attention to it. (ETA: Here is an updated version)


Here are a few gems from the article:
Put down the one color that excites you the most, then the next, relating it to the first. This is the relationship that excites you the most. Then the third color, relating it always to the whole. You are emphasizing what interest you and minimizing other things by putting them in the service of your true passion and leaving out altogether what distracts. Keep it simple.


In painting you never do what you set out to do. Something else happens. If it always turns out right you are probably doing something wrong.


Do not try to make a picture of something. Make something.



I'm awake now!

Ken Kewley

Thursday, August 19, 2010

Fresh discoveries

Chicken, 2007
Casein on paper
30 x 30 in

Untitled Monument
20x20cm



Beehive Bedlem 2010
oil on linen


Monday, July 5, 2010

Painting blogs

Today I discovered some excellent painting blogs. First: http://blogaart.blogspot.com/ (and thanks to NSP -nice paintings! - at Word of Hand for posting a link) Next, check out Glaze : http://avanttarde.tumblr.com/

Saturday, July 3, 2010

...not a statement - Douglas Witmer

....not a statement by Douglas Witmer

Tell the birds -2009
Black gesso and acrylic on canvas
28x22inches

Fruitville - mixed media on wood

I found the work of Douglas Witmer online some time ago. On reading his 'artist statement' I was instantly captured by the circular structure and the simplicity of his words about painting and what it is (or isn't). When I recently got in touch with him to ask if I could post it here he told me that the words took him some time to write. To my mind the best 'artist statements' have clarity and need to get straight to the heart of an artists practice -even if they do take time to write - and Douglas Witmer certainly writes clearly and simply about his process. His insights into the nature of painting are thought provoking and particularly meaningful for abstract painters where the task of negotiating a position; attempting to work in a relevant and fresh way, can be difficult. Indeed, to put these challenges into words is a personal thing but also, when overdone, can become meaningless and detract from the work. Visit his website to look at his paintings and mixed media on wood. Like his words, his work is a direct and honest inquiry into the nature of paint and the surfaces on to which he applies it.


Douglas Witmer's current show, "Fruitville", can be viewed at Some Walls, Oakland CA, June 20 - July 25th 2010

Sunday, May 30, 2010

Ken Weathersby (update)


173 (lnd), 2009, Acrylic and Graphite on Linen, Reversed, with Removed and Replaced Areas, 18 x 24 inches

Above: Full image; Below: Detail view


image from: Pierogi Gallery

Ken Weathersby is an artist I wrote about last year because I was really drawn to the intellectual nature of his work in which he plays with our expectations of painting as an object of pleasure. It's a dialogue between painter, materials and surface that he engages with; his 'constructions' are visual conundrums that play with the viewers notion of what painting is and what might lie behind or underneath the surface. But, as I said in my post last year, there really is so much more to explore and I urge readers to visit his blog - including a great list of links - for a very interesting read. Ken has been showing regularly however his first solo in NY opened recently at Pierogi Gallery. So a big congratulations, Ken!

Saturday, May 15, 2010

Trudy Benson

Tape Deck 2010
oil and acrylic on canvas
66 x72 inches
Image from: Freight and Volume

Been thinking a lot lately about how to make a painting in these times, how to stay connected and to feel that painting is relevant. I like painting that adds to a dialogue about materials, the craft, the effort. I love these paintings by Trudy Benson - a New York painter who is currently having a show at Freight and Volume Gallery. Why? I think the press release says it all:

Working in the rich abstract vein of Hodgkin, Oehlen, and Murray, Benson conjures up a dazzling theatre of mark making and pure delight in paint. She is unafraid to explore new avenues of proof that painting never dies, it only becomes more emphatically alive in its varied and stubborn pleasures. Benson provides a framework of superimposed and overlapping picture planes, thick sculptural relief, and brash color to convey this enjoyment. From subtle vignettes such as "Basketball" to bold tableaus such as "Space Jam 1" and "Painting", we share in the artist’s unbridled enthusiasm for the medium..... read more here.

So yeah, 'pure delight in paint'. I can't ask for more.

Here's a link to James Kalm's video of the opening night. Thanks to Untitled Painter for drawing my attention to it.

Sunday, April 25, 2010

Amy Sillman



For those who live under a rock, Amy Sillman has a new show up at
Sikkema Jenkins & Co. Video courtesy of James Kalm - it's the next
best thing to being there. Thank you James.

Monday, April 19, 2010

A few gems

"Untitled"
acrylic on wood
30x40cm
2010

"Are You Lost"
55 x 45 cm
acrylic on canvas
2009

Scraped, squeegeed, glazed, covered, recovered, scumbled and scratched. Just a few verbs to describe the playful approach to paint by these two different but equally strong abstract artists. Great stuff and a joy to stumble on such interesting work. Both artists are English, I believe. Click on their names to check out their wares. Vincent Hawkins has a blog (you must look at his inks on paper too) and Untitled, who keeps a painting diary, is currently anon.


Tuesday, March 9, 2010

Gemma Smith

Baraba 2009 acrylic on board 34 x 27.5cm

Soft Battle 2010 acrylic on board 27.5 x 34cm
Images from: Sarah Cottier gallery

Is anybody out there feeling the love for abstraction in Sydney this month? I am, because Gemma Smith is showing her colourful abstracts at Sarah Cottier Gallery until April 1st. These are process paintings that harness fresh, clean palettes and bold, confident brush strokes in which thin washy marks meet smoothed out blocks of masking shapes or lines; they are entirely seductive and beg to be gazed at. I'm planning to get down to the gallery next weekend to do just that.

Gemma Smith is a featuring artist in this months Art Sydney 2010. This exciting first time event is hopefully doing good things for artists, galleries and the public's appreciation of art in general.

ETA: Gemma Smith talked about her show Sudden Double last weekend. Here's a summary.

Monday, February 22, 2010

Scott Richter

Scott Richter
Cluttertrap 2008
oil paint medium on carpet
15"x16"

Scott Richter's work is steeped in the language of paint - paint as subject; what it does, how it feels and how it can totally involve the senses of the viewer. For me I think my taste buds have reacted accordingly. Yum. Scott Richter concerns himself with the process and material of painting.

Anyway, here are some links to folk who have actually seen the show:
great video by James Kalm



Sunday, January 31, 2010

Mali Morris

Bird Ghost - 2007
122 cm x 153 cm
acrylic on canvas
Image: courtesy of artist

Buried Scarlet - 2009
26 cm x 31 cm
acrylic on canvas
Image: courtesy of artist


It's official. It seems I have been living under a rock - otherwise, how else is it possible for me to have missed the wonderful, luminous works of the London painter Mali Morris. Really, these are so breath taking. Look at them; simple, clean colours that sing, generous brush work, fresh surfaces that are deep enough to dive into, yet never overworked - these are the works of a longstanding gifted and intelligent painter; they provoke a conversation between the viewer and the paint.
Predominately working small with acrylic on canvas, Mali Morris' process might resemble that of an excavator - starting with the application of rectangles of colours, overlaying these with lush broad strokes of colour glazes and then wiping away parts to reveal what lies beneath. With her process Mali Morris seeks to find rather than add colour. It's a delight to see a painter who can balance bright geometric forms with gestural abstraction and be able to pull the two formal elements together with such ease. I'm so enthralled that I've immediately ordered the latest issue of Turps Banana which features an essay about Mali's work by Peter Suchin. (There's also an interview with Thomas Nozkowski!)

Mali Morris is a painter who makes you think about paint, and whose paint asks you to think about light. She is not concerned with making paintings represent recognisable objects, but the world, through light effects, is in her paintings... Her paintings are alive not just to a history of abstraction, but in a dialogue with her own method of experimentation. The issues seem to be light and rhythm, and what painting is - From the catalogue essay ‘Strange Links: Giude to Morris'2008, by Matthew Collings, artist, writer, critic & broadcaster; author of This is Civilisation 2008 Read more here
I could not have put it better myself.

Saturday, January 16, 2010

Anthony White

Anthony White

Rendezvous

2009

oil on linen
51 x 51cm
Image from: Iain Dawson Gallery

Anthony White's Paris Paintings are on show 2 - 13 Feb 2010 at Iain Dawson Gallery, Sydney.

'The work in this exhibition was made in residence at Australia's Storrier Onslow Studio, at the Cite Internationale Des Arts, Paris. This studio award, enable me to paint and live in Paris for three months.

The architectural surfaces of Paris are laden with centuries of graffiti, posters, filth and humanity. The works draw upon these references and the sense of transience, the passing of time, the organis and the antique' Anthony White - 2010

Tuesday, January 12, 2010

A muse - part 2


Al Taylor

MTAMBO: A Trap with a Spring Action
1982

Acrylic paint on linen-backed paper
(24.8 x 20.3 cm)
Image from: David Zwirner Gallery - New York

Monday, January 11, 2010

A muse


Art to gaze at; soak in.
First up ....

Howard Hodgkin
Embrace, 2008-2009
Oil on wood
10 1/4 x 12 3/4 inches (26 x 32.4 cm)
Image from: Gagosian Gallery - New York


Christopher Wool


Untitled

2007

Enamel on linen

320 x 243.8 cm

Image from: Galerie Max Hetzer - Berlin



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