Artists Describing Their Art:
Nicholas Down - During the past few years I have had the privilege of visiting some of the most beautiful landscapes on earth including California's Sequoia National Forest, Yosemite and Joshua Tree National Parks, the red rocks of Sedona Arizona, the tough deserts of Canyonlands and Arches in Utah, Monument Valley in Navajo Nation, and of course the Grand Canyon. I was awestruck with the beauty and silences of these places and deeply inspired to create a number of new paintings and films which attempt to capture the essence of what I felt both as an artist and as a human being. I am increasingly aware of the threats to these landscapes, not just in the short term, but in the future, as the effects of climate change begin to alter rain patterns, glaciers and local ecologies in ways we are only just beginning to comprehend. My paintings are part of my extended homage to nature and are my abstract impressions of colour, mystery, and the spirit of place. My recent paintings have been hugely influenced by the winter here in New York State... frozen waterfalls, ice, snow drifts and landscapes blazing in winter hues. Technical Notes I continue to use the ...
Jim Lively - Whether portrayed in the abstract, realism, or somewhere in between, I am most influenced by both the beautiful and unattractive components of contemporary urban culture. Many times, one painting will reflect both components. My art tends to focus upon interesting juxtapositions of close-up images of human faces. Often, the larger images border upon realism and are caught expressing a panoply of emotions usually directed at the other images that share the canvas. Several of my recent works such as the tongue in cheek entitled "Lenin and Things" contain unlikely combinations of images such as a statue of Lenin which is dwarfed by a billboard size fashion model displaying a vacuous stare. A number of works contain both large images and interrelated small images. For example in the painting "Staring at Natalie", all the smaller images are a depiction of a collective group of voyeurs staring at a larger image of a posed fashion model. I want those viewing the painting to be the ultimate voyeur. The viewer is not only drawn initially to the larger image in its own right but also cannot help but then notice the relationship of the smaller images to the large image. Works displayed ...