Previous Shows: 2016: Open Pomegranate: Essay

OPEN POMEGRANATE 

The thing that runs through all the work of invited painters is the figure, the human figure. There is a feeling of intimacy in everyone's work, a tenderness and an openness in the way humans are depicted that is nourishing… there is a sense of awkwardness, accessibility, and non-perfectionism… I feel I could be any of these people. There is also a sense of compassion for the humanness… these beings are not superhuman heroes… they are down to earth, living with struggles with a very human and fallible kind of strength. The story telling is very appealing and how these artists use paint is full of vitality.  

Fairy tales, myths, and everyday occurrences are potential subject matter. Paintings become very interesting when there is a kind of slippage, when something slips in unexpectedly. The conscious mind controls results, yet things are most alive when something else happens without forethought. Where is the power in a painting? Is it in conscious choice? Or in something that we can not predict?  

There is often a tune, or a note, which can be heard in painting.  

I met each of these artists through Facebook and am riveted by all of their work. 

~ Frankie Gardiner