Elizabeth Patterson & Gregory Thielker (2)

I posted Gregory Thielker's work last year (Oct. 15, 2009). At the time I made the point that if you do something really, really well and no one else is doing it, then you've got gold. Well, I was wrong about no one else doing it. Elizabeth Patterson is pursuing precisely the same kind of imagery, specifically a photo-realist take on how rain transforms our view through the windshields of our cars. It has an immediate appeal. For one, we Americans experience landscape through the filtering effect of our car windows far more often than we do directly. Mostly we are unconscious of the fact that we are observing landscape in this way, since we are (hopefully) concentrating on driving the damn car. The interference of weather is an experience we've all shared and, eventually, that transformation of our ubiquitous viewpoint enters our conscious awareness. At that point, it is not surprising that an artist or two somewhere decides "I'm going to paint that".

Having a unique approach or subject matter is highly valued in the art world but nigh impossible to actually achieve. There are hundreds, probably thousands of artists, busily painting realistic pears who don't even seem to care. So I guess there's room enough for these two. And anyway, the results may look similar but the techniques are completely different. Mr. Thielker paints in oil. Ms. Patterson uses colored pencil, graphite and solvent. If you don't think that makes a world of difference you need to look at art online less and in real life more.

Check out their websites:
www.eapatterson.com
www.gregorythielker.com











Patterson "Sunset Highway, 3pm" color pencil and solvent 25" x 40"














Patterson "Wilshire Boulevard, 5pm" Color pencil, graphite and solvent 18"x26"
















Patterson "Sepulveda Boulevard, 5pm" Color Pencil, Graphite, Solvent 20"x 30"


















Thielker "In Between" oil on panel 11"x14" 2008


















Thielker "Until Now" oil on linen 36"x48" 2010


















Thielker "Coming To a Complete Stop" oil on canvas 36"x48" 2008


















Thielker "Transference" oil on linen 36"x48" 2010

I came across the work of Elizabeth Patterson via visualinventory.blogspot.com

Kate Clark

If you ever saw the 1978 version of Invasion of the Body Snatchers there was a great little horror moment towards the end when an old hobo and his constant dog companion appear to have been copied as one creature by the alien pods. The old hobo's head stares up from the little dog's body for a very brief moment but it is a powerful jolt. Kate Clark takes that same simple recipe and keeps the jolt alive with a sustained note of unnerving dissonance. Throughout history and human culture, people have been fascinated by the idea of this sort of human animal mash-up, from ancient Egyptian, Indian and other mythologies to more modern cautionary tales like H. G. Wells' "The Island Dr. Moreau". Ms. Clark's use of real taxidermy, and the implied reality of the faces complete with seams and stitches imbue these mythical creations with an ominous presence. At the same time she is able to imbue in their expressions a note of innocence, a fine trick that hangs the whole thing in a delicate balance of discomfort and appeal.
You can see more on her website: www.kateclark.com
and through her gallery: www.claireoliver.com























Untitled (Black bear) bear hide, foam, clay, pins, thread, rubbereyes 27" x 42" x 16" 2008
















Bear detail
















"Little Girl" infant caribou hide, foam, clay, pins, thread, rubber eyes 15" x 28" x 19" 2008

















"Lit From Within" Gazelle hide, foam, clay, pins, thread, rubber eye, cardboard, wood (lifesize) 2009















Installation view of 'Perfect Strangers'
solo exhibit at Claire Oliver Gallery, Nov 2008

Lori Field - 2

Lori Field has done quite a bit of new work since I last featured her here in August 2009. I hardly know what to say about her subject matter. It's stream of consciousness and critical analysis is probably pointless (psychoanalysis maybe...). The effect is dream-like images that somehow manage to be both ethereal and visceral at the same time. Part of this is due to her technique. She often starts with collage, as a source reference only however, a way of gathering and recombining images in an unstudied manner. Then she'll draw the image using colored pencil on rice paper (or sometimes vintage chalk boards) or silverpoint on gessoed paper combining it all with with encaustic painting, and finally adding bits and things like flower petals, a piece of lace or whatever strikes her fancy or is at hand. It is the work of an artist who is fully committed to letting the creative process flow through her rather than trying to channel it into a preconceived vision.
Check out her website (www.lorifieldfineart.com) or go to her Flickr page to see the very latest.

For those of you in New York City (anyone?) the last piece will be included in a show that opens September 9th called :
"The Sky is Falling"
September 9 - October 7, 2010
opening reception September 9th, 6-8pm
Claire Oliver Gallery
513 W. 26th St.
NYC, NY

Good luck Lori!






















"Fantastic Voyage" colored pencil and encaustic 2010






















"Do You Like My Hat II" colored pencil, encaustic, small shiny things 2010






















"Cat and Mouse" colred pencil and encaustic 2009






















"Love and Fear, Love or Fear"

Erik Berndt

Erik Berndt draws and dreams just like many of us once did as children, with only pencil and paper and a sense of limitless possibility. He creates whole worlds that can pull you in to the wanderings of his imagination. His work often oscillates from the frenetic extremes of urbanization to chaotic botanical exuberance, occasionally the latter slowly overtaking the former. But these are not statements per se about contemporary society or post-industrialization. They seem to be mere excuses for his exploration of complexity and pattern, vehicles for him to create Escher-like visions of an alternate world reflective of our own but a good deal more entertaining and spirited.
He has a phenomenal number of these richly detailed visions on his Flickr page and, as far as I can tell, nowhere else.
















"The Plumbers at Work" 20x30cm 2010
















"The Forgotten Brewery" 20x30cm 2009
















"The Railway Station" 20x30cm 2009
















"Remote Relay Station" 20x30cm 2009

















"The Ferry" 20x30cm 2009
















"The Open Heart of the City" 20x30cm 2009