I went out with the intention of going to the George Billis Gallery in Chelsea because I wanted to look at Adam Normandin's work. His very geometric approach to painting highly detailed trains and engines caught my eye because my work has very much to do with detail. When I arrived the gallery was closed, but I ended up finding 2 other shows in particular that I found even more interesting.
The first was at the Nancy Margolis Gallery- Maysey Craddock. Her work consisted of architecture and nature in which most of the buildings or telephone lines were being taken over by roots and plants. The images were based on photos, but she had simplified them down to their essentials. The forms become a little more abstract in their reduced form, but her hand is soft in the background and layering techniques so that the beauty is not lost in the hard edges of all the shapes. The photograph of the area is what drew her in, but she wanted to see what her hand could express out of it. I found myself agreeing with that for my own work. I have these cityscape images and they are so complex and beautiful, but I like seeing what I really see once I start to put my own hand to it. I want my painting to resemble the architecture, so I don't want it to become abstract in that regard, but the way I unmake and remake the buildings by the forms that I see with my eyes becomes a really abstract process.
At Axelle Fine Arts I saw a large show of Albert Hadjiganev. Also someone who considers himself a minimalist, Hadjiganev captures the moments of daily life and landscapes with only a few elements. He paints almost sensitively. His hand is soft on the canvas. He uses a palette knife and seems to wipe away most of the detail to create a mysterious environment filled with grace. The images are dream like. He had a few cityscapes too. They had a sketchy unfinished quality with attention to flatness and space, reserving the most detail for the foreground or places to draw your attention and wiping out other parts softly to push them back. It was interesting because I tend to paint everything in my cityscapes so the idea of wiping things out is something I may try.
The first was at the Nancy Margolis Gallery- Maysey Craddock. Her work consisted of architecture and nature in which most of the buildings or telephone lines were being taken over by roots and plants. The images were based on photos, but she had simplified them down to their essentials. The forms become a little more abstract in their reduced form, but her hand is soft in the background and layering techniques so that the beauty is not lost in the hard edges of all the shapes. The photograph of the area is what drew her in, but she wanted to see what her hand could express out of it. I found myself agreeing with that for my own work. I have these cityscape images and they are so complex and beautiful, but I like seeing what I really see once I start to put my own hand to it. I want my painting to resemble the architecture, so I don't want it to become abstract in that regard, but the way I unmake and remake the buildings by the forms that I see with my eyes becomes a really abstract process.
At Axelle Fine Arts I saw a large show of Albert Hadjiganev. Also someone who considers himself a minimalist, Hadjiganev captures the moments of daily life and landscapes with only a few elements. He paints almost sensitively. His hand is soft on the canvas. He uses a palette knife and seems to wipe away most of the detail to create a mysterious environment filled with grace. The images are dream like. He had a few cityscapes too. They had a sketchy unfinished quality with attention to flatness and space, reserving the most detail for the foreground or places to draw your attention and wiping out other parts softly to push them back. It was interesting because I tend to paint everything in my cityscapes so the idea of wiping things out is something I may try.
Glad it worked out and you found something that related to your work
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