An abstract painting on gallery wrapped canvas with clean sides. Ready to hang.
SKU: EM004
Year: 2023
Medium: Acrylic on Canvas
About Elizabeth Magness
Artist Statement
"As an abstract artist, I want to swim in color and live in its expanse. The relationships between colors, and increasingly, the way colors meet at the edge of shapes is incredibly important. I am continually inspired by the natural world and my surroundings. Summer yellow peaches, fuschia peonies, golden marigolds, the blues of water from crystal azure to a dark lake. When I mix colors, I like to reuse the same color base from one section and keep adding to it and remixing the paint. In this way, the colors on the canvas stay related and connected but intentionally not exact. In my work, I also explore the infinite variations within select sections of color. With Rembrant and the Old Masters in mind, I gradually build up thin layers of pigmented glaze to create a glowing depth.
"Each painting’s structure and the shapes within are drawn from things that are unfiltered, uncontrived and organic. I take cracks in a sidewalk or the lines of pollen that remain after a heavy spring rain and reimagine them as ways to divide space on the canvas and create an emotional landscape. I strive to find balance without symmetry and adjust the lines to achieve a harmony that coexists with imperfection.
"Often I sketch out an idea for a structure on paper and pair it with some color experiments to serve as a springboard. Holding this initial kernel loosely and ultimately releasing it is key. From the first paint mixing and application, the painting develops as a plan immediately overtaken by a meditative process of discovery filled with surprises.
"I want to create an absorbing encounter where someone can get lost in a swath of color, notice small variations, and witness the history of the work in the layers of paint. Additionally, most of my shapes appear to continue off the canvas. The viewer is thus deep inside the world of each work and is an explorer in the core of the idea.
"The work reflects an honest experience. It is intentionally uplifting, but it must be with an earned joy, a hard won happiness. It reflects a personal journey that must return to optimism, though frequently difficult. The paintings themselves ultimately assist this journey because they serve as a reminder of beautiful possibilities and a capsule for hope and pleasure. Each work is a forged consonance amidst imperfection."
