Friday, October 11, 2013

'Finding What Was Not' Recap


Below are some images of work from my two person show.  The first five are my work, and my personal favorite five out of eleven total pieces I have on display:

Blue Between our Beds, 2013

Hedging Around the Night, 2013

St. Lucia in our Living Room, 2013

One's Getting Old, 2013

For Biala, 2013

Below are five of Lauren's beautiful paintings from our show: 

Lauren Garvey, Flowers in Cellophane II, 2013

Lauren Garvey, Flowers in Cellophane, 2013

Lauren Garvey, Petrichor, 2013

Lauren Garvey, Brief Wafture, 2013

Lauren Garvey, Two Times Duped, 2013

So, our show is up and the opening is over.  It has taken me a week to post this because it has taken me some time to sort my feelings on the whole thing.  The opening was wonderful, I was so surprised to see how many people were there to support us. Many people had really positive, interesting feedback too. It felt really good and I was sort of buzzing internally.

But like the Monday after a great weekend trip, a sort of mild misery set in by Saturday.  I think most of it had to do with the fact that everything I was working towards for months was finished and final.

 Another aspect was seeing the work installed and processing that.  It is always a different experience than anticipated.  I had thought our work would be intermingled but we had two separate areas which was a surprise, but one which I have come around to understand and somewhat like.

 What I am still a little unsure of is I felt my newest, most challenging two paintings (first two above) were a bit hidden in their placement.  And that sort of exacerbated something I have been thinking anyway which is my work needs to go somewhere a little harder or sadder or something for it to express what I am after recently.  It felt a little easier to digest hanging on those pristine white walls than I'd thought.

Overall, I am pleased with the show.  I look forward to going back to see it next week already knowing how it is hung and while it is quiet and empty.  I have had a really strange few weeks in that I have not been making much work and have been hyperanalyzing my paintings in a way I don't normally do.  But this has been a great thing because I am absolutely itching to get back to work with no pressure and make some things that really push my boundaries and push into the territory I just touched with my most recent work.

If you want to see all the work in the show click here.

edit:  I went back to the gallery to look alone a few days after this post.  It was such a different experience, I felt the show was much stronger than I had in my mind.  Without all the people and with the light of day, so much of the quiet nuance was present.  I am happy.

2 comments:

Isabella Di Sclafani said...

Hi Aubrey,
Congratulations on your show and thank you for sending me an invite. If I could, I would make a trip to see how your larger works look in person. They must be quite powerful and full of emotion (just like your smaller works).
I find that it's always good every so often to take a step back before making that next leap of faith that will take us to the next level. It gives one a certain sense of objectivity and perspective that can get lost when our heads are always down looking at paint and colours.
Best regards,
Isabella

Aubrey Levinthal said...

Thanks Isabella. You are too kind. You always have good words too "a certain sense of objectivity and perspective that can get lost when our heads are always down looking at paint and colours." Love that. Thanks.

Post a Comment