Elemental Abstraction

ELEMENTAL ABSTRACTION

ELEMENTAL ABSTRACTION is the first post pandemic open exhibition at the Barn @ Downing Yudain.

We are delighted to re-open with this exhibition of six very talented artists.

Each artist explores the meaning of abstraction and its relationship with nature and its mystical powers. Abstraction, by its very nature, is an act of letting go, freeing oneself from the boundaries established by centuries of realism.

Inness Hancock I use oil paint and watercolor to develop richly s a t u r a t e d , l a y e re d p a i n t i n g s . I f o c u s o n transparency and gesture to create dynamic, bold compositions that contrast with a subtle and well-defined palette. I am most interested in the natural world, how we interact with it and what we can learn about ourselves from it. My practice includes creating on-site watercolor studies and notebooks sketches, during which I am sensitive to the energy and history of the location. I develop this work into larger-scale contemplative abstract oil paintings which represent an intimate bond between nature and spirit.

My fascination with light and landscape developed very early on while growing up in Maine drawing and painting the dramatic coastline. I continue to be inspired by the everbrilliant reflections, strong linear quality of the jagged rocks and the dramatic skyline. My deep connection with nature informs my spiritual and artistic practices and through this exploration I believe we are able to know ourselves and others more completely.

Solace, 2016, oil on canvas: 36 x 24 inches

Clearing, 2017, oil on canvas: 48 x 36 inches

Lily, Lily, Lily, 2018, oil on canvas: 40 x 36 inches

Hebridean Skies, 2016, oil on canvas: 48 x 36 inches

Moonrise, 2016, watercolor on paper: 10 ¾ x 14 ½ inches Mavi 2, 2021, watercolor on paper: 10 ½ x 14 inches

Mike Glier My landscape paintings are propelled by a number of things, including the love of paint and abstraction, but most importantly, by a desire to do my part to help make the changes in philosophy that are required if humanity is to create a sustainable future.

By studying the land and responding to it freshly, I hope to demonstrate attachment, respect and engagement. And if the paintings are good enough, they will find their way into public life to do their job of representing the joy of living in the world and the wonder of perceiving it, and if they succeed at this, to evoke the will to create balance within it.

Mike Glier, Joy Arriving, 2018, oil on linen: 48 x 78 inches

The Sound of Surf, 2017, oil on linen: 45 x 69 inches

The Forests of Antarctica 436 v.2, 2017, oil on linen: 45 x 67 inches

Sydney Hopkins People often ask me “What kind of painter are you”. Since being invited into this show “Elemental Abstraction” I have my response….“I am an elemental abstract one”. The show’s title struck me immediately as a look into the heart and soul of abstract painting and expression; abstraction’s evolution, from inception around the turn of the 20th century until today.

I am rooted in this history, be it Cubism, Abstract Expressionism, Fauvism, and many other titled art movements of the period. I am in tune with these disciplines and structures set out in those early days, yet embrace discovery and rule breaking to achieve personal breakthroughs. My studio practice and imagery are very intuitive, focusing on energy, movement, and story; accomplished, on a good day, with the simple uses of color and line and texture. Ever hopeful that my efforts and resulting art pieces will convey feelings, and evoke in the viewer a response….to look again, to see more, and to reflect.

I am very pleased and grateful to be included in this group of accomplished artists.

The Fall, 2020, watercolor and ink on paper: 16 1/2 x 13 1/2 inches

It’s Complicated, 2020, watercolor and ink on paper: 16 1/2 x 13 1/2 inches

The Limbo, 2021, acrylic and graphite on canvas: 30 x 24 inches

Beautiful Debris, 2021, gouache and ink on paper: 11 x 8 inches In the Dark, 2020, gouache and ink on paper: 12 x 14 3/4 inches

In Flux, 2020, gouache and ink on paper: 12 1/2 x 17 1/2 inches

Beauty Below, 2021, watercolor, gouache and ink on paper: 16 x 14 inches

Bob Knox I try to make paintings that are beautiful, original and inspiring. These works combine Abstraction and Realism, transparencies and built-up layers of depth, and references to art history, past and present. My paintings are really about painting.

I often use images of other artists paintings in my work.

I always make preliminary working studies for my paintings. These studies are quite spontaneous and intuitive and usually involve collage. I then enlarge these working sketches, exactly as they appear, to large canvases - a very deliberate process that hopefully reproduces the original inspirational energy. Basically, these large paintings are really reproductions that combine spontaneity and control with a myriad of art historical references. I want them to create a world of their own.

Venice, (Canaletto), 2019 acrylic on canvas: 87 x 68 inches

The Sleep on Reason, 2021, acrylic on canvas: 84 x 68 inches

The Island of Gustave Moreau, 2021, acrylic on canvas: 78 x 62 inches

The Kindness of Strangers, 2019, acrylic on canvas: 92 x 69 inches

Kathleen Ryan Painting is the attempt at transmuting the beauty and interior travels of the soul onto a canvas to try explain the unexplainable.

Printemps, 2020, acrylic on canvas: 48 x 67 inches

La Mirage, 2021, acrylic on canvas: 43 x 90 inches

Eau d’archipel, 2021, acrylic on canvas: 15 x 15 inches

Edward Holland As a series-based artist, I like to explore a theme, whether it is formal or conceptual, across many works of art over a period of time. This current series, Vigils of the Dead, was begun in 2014 and is my longest running series. I have always been in love with mythology and mythmaking and wanted to build a body of work that dealt with both without being illustrative. The work needed to be open to interpretation and be abstract. A Zodiac sign, I realized, is exactly that: an abstract shape signifying a narrative. It is form and content.

Embedded within each piece is a Zodiac sign – not a picture of a bull or of a fish, but the positions of the stars. This is the challenge that each work presents: how to make an interesting and unique work of art while dealing with the same set of circumstances. The stars themselves are almost always represented by small Xs placed across the work. I allow the Zodiac sign to govern other aspects of my process as well. Choices regarding color and collage elements are filtered through a specific sign’s references and associations.

I believe that every person has their own unique set of understandings, memories and feelings which inform their reading of an artwork. Abstraction and collage feed into that. That openness of interpretation has always driven my work.

The Twins (Version 16), 2020, mixed media on canvas with collage: 36 x 36 inches

The Goat (version 16), 2021, mixed media on canvas with collage: 24 x 24 inches

The Bull (Version 17), 2021, mixed media on canvas with collage: 36 x 48 inches

The Water-bearer (Version 17), 2021, mixed media on canvas with collage: 36 x 24 inches

Downing Yudain LLC info@art357.com www.art357.com Copyright is retained by all the artists who created the works in this exhibition, courtesy of Downing Yudain LLC