Ellen Chuse "Fertile Ground”
440 Gallery
This event has ended.
Chuse's paintings and drawings explore landscape and the body in deeply personal ways. She examines organic forms in nature and moves between representation and abstraction. Fertile Ground continues this process with images that emerge from her connection to the ocean and the spirit that inhabits it. “The ocean is the mother of us all,” says Chuse. “Life begins in water. There are deep mysteries within.”
This exhibition represents a body of work created this year. The artist combines graphite and acrylic or oil on paper. The works vary in size: some are small oils on treated paper while the acrylics are larger. Some paintings have little indication of the graphite while others emphasize the drawing with both line and brush stroke. Working intuitively, the artist builds both the form and the color over time, sometimes rubbing, scraping and even sanding the surface to create a layered texture and depth of color. Having worked for years in black and white, Chuse has plunged into color with an intensity that she often finds startling. “Color has such deep emotional content which an artist must respect even as she balances formal considerations,” says Chuse. These strong, colorful and evocative paintings certainly demonstrate this balance.
Media
Schedule
from January 14, 2010 to February 21, 2010
Opening Reception on 2010-01-17 from 15:00 to 18:00