Jacques Jarrige

Artist Q&A with Jacques Jarrige

Jacques Jarrige is a Paris-based artist working in the confluence of fine art and decorative art with sculptural and functional objects in relation to the body and human scaled spaces. He is represented by Valerie Goodman Gallery in New York.

“Double Dining Table”, beech wood, 42 x 30 x 120 in | 107 x 76 x 305 cm, 2020

Who is your favorite artist of all time?

I love the work of Henry Moore. I first saw his work at the Château de Bagatelle in the 16th arrondissement of Paris, which is famous for its rose garden. In this naturalistic English landscape style park setting, Moore’s work gave me the feeling that I was meant to be a sculptor. It was his work that made me believe I was meant to do it.

How did you become a professional artist?

I have always felt strongly connected to art. My father was an avid art collector, so there were a lot of paintings in my home as a child. There were also two small, distinctive Rodin sculptures that were always in the house, and now, in the back of my mind.

Through studying architecture at the École des Beaux-Arts and decorative art at Ecole Supérieure d’Art Moderne, I became drawn to creating more sculptural works. The first object I created was a chair made of rebar I had envisioned in my mind. I bought a welding gun and created the piece in my kitchen. By physically creating a work of art in this manner, I understood it more and became less reliant on drawing in my practice. I was inspired that I could directly create what I had envisioned.

In school I was not interested in pursuing anything other than drawing. Not music, math or any other field, and later architecture wasn’t really satisfying. … Click here to read more

Jennifer Small

Artist Q&A with Jennifer Small

Jennifer Small is a Wilmington, DE-based painter and visual designer whose work focuses on elevating everyday routine through representational abstraction. Small’s work combines hard edges, patterning, and bold use of color.

“Diner Windows to Tennis Courts”, acrylic and spray paint on canvas, 36 x 24 in | 91 x 61 cm, 2020

Who is your favorite artist of all time?

My favorite artist of all time is Georgia O’Keeffe. She was directly inspired by her environment to create abstract paintings and during the process of her life and career. She was a bold, inventive, and fearless leader in paving the way for American abstract painters that followed.

Why did you become an artist?

I’ve considered myself an artist from a very young age. I grew up in a creative family. Both of my parents, and brother and sister, are all very artistic, so making art was always encouraged. The steps toward becoming a professional artist started in high school and continued through my undergrad and graduate studies. During this time I developed my skills and found my voice as a painter, but was also surrounded by encouraging teachers and classmates who helped me to connect with people and opportunities beyond the school community where my work could be shared and enjoyed by a larger audience. After finishing graduate school I continued the process of honing my skills as a painter, applying for opportunities, and expanding my network as a result. My journey as an artist is ongoing. With positivity and hard work, I am confident I will see continued growth in my work, and success as a painter.

When is a piece finished for you?

A piece is finished for me in a formal sense when it achieves balance, a focal point, and engaging visual interest through the juxtaposition … Click here to read more

Jeane Cohen

Artist Q&A with Jeane Cohen

“Angel”, oil on canvas, 60 x 48 in | 152 x 122 cm, 2020

Why did you become an artist?

I couldn’t help it. At this point I would have to say that being an artist chose me. It sounds cliché but that’s how it has worked out. I used to think I should do something more practical, I still think that actually, and so I worked in the social services and as a counselor for a long time, even recently at the Chelsea Foyer in Manhattan. I would work these jobs and then go to the studio to paint. When I had less time to paint I felt terrible. Eventually I realized that I should just prioritize painting so I’m on that track now.

How is your work different than everything else out there?

My work has vitality and momentum. It is emotionally real, wild and alive. The union of the painted materiality and subjects are what give my painting a demanding immediacy. One important thing to understand about my work is that it transcends the traditional dichotomy of figuration and abstraction. Instead of operating within these binaries the works range in their loyalty to referential space and they track what I see as I move through the world. It is perceptual in that way and built of many sensations strung along together. The work resists an easy categorization although there are constantly emerging themes such as growth, nature, instability, transition, lurking danger, and survival.
I think the work is unusual because it is earnest and generous without being didactic or thematically concise. The work gets to the reality of simultaneous contradictory experiences and the discomfort of interruption or not having an easy answer on hand. In Split Fires at Slag Gallery there are … Click here to read more

Pat Gainor

Artist Q&A with Pat Gainor

“Magical Mystery”, oil, acrylic, and mixed media on canvas, 36 x 48 in | 91 x 122 cm, 2019

Why did you become an artist?

I could not not be an artist. I have been passionate about art all my life and through the course of several successful careers. While a model in New York, then an actress and TV host in L.A., I always painted. Now I am a full time artist. I have been rewarded with shows and sales all over the world. I love people’s response to my work and the excitement of working on and seeing my finished pieces.

How is your work different than everything out there?

As a second generation painter, I have concentrated on developing a unique language with my art incorporating pattern as texture.

How do you know when your work is finished?

When it takes my breath away! It may not happen every time, but when it does it is a good signal that I am done. You may have to move it to another wall or location to get another take on it. Don’t look at it until you are a distance away to get the full impact. If you are amazed it is a good time to stop.

“Summer Times”, oil and acrylic on canvas, 30 x 24 in | 76 x 61 cm, 2019
Pat Gainor at the National Art Center Museum Tokyo, photo by Ed Tar.

What’s different about your current body of work?

In much of my latest work, yet unpublished, my exploration of pattern, color, movement and shapes evolves to its next stage of unique abstraction.

What’s coming up for you?

My work and show concept were selected for a 2021 solo exhibition at Gallery 825 in Los Angeles. which will take place August 14 through September 10, 2021. I have … Click here to read more

“EXODUS V: Aesthetics in the Political”

The Elixir of Ataraxy in a Sea of Trouble

For nine long months the United States has been facing severe distress from the coronavirus forcing the closing of galleries, museums and art centers in New York City. But WhiteBox Harlem continues to independently operate as a community engaged nonprofit venue, a beacon for art lovers for 22 years despite facing numerous crises over the years. Over two decades, it has nurtured many outstanding artists in New York City and abroad, continuing its mission as an experimental center for experiencing new art with social èlan.

“Exodus V: Aesthetics in the Political” is an exhibition curated by New York-based Kyoko Sato. This remarkable curatorial creates new metrics putting under scrutiny a diverse, singular group of 17 contemporary expat Japanese women artists aged 31 to 84 who chose to emigrate to New York to continue and expand their careers in a less constrained atmosphere than back home. Due to the increasing number of practicing female artists in the art scene in the past 30 years, art museums in Western countries have begun to have many feminist inspired exhibitions awakening the public’s attention to this voluminous subject. Most exhibitions tend to emphasize the inequality between men and women, or talk about women’s sexuality openly such as women’s awareness of the autonomy of their bodies. Time and again, some of these thematic shows unfortunately become cliché. In the spirit of finding a differential, I was quite curious to see how “Exodus V” may be different from many of these other women’s exhibitions I have witnessed.

At the opening reception I went through the entire exhibition and interviewed several of the exhibiting artists. I must confess my experience and exchanges observing the whole affair felt like an awakening stream of fresh … Click here to read more

Paul Brainard

Artist Q&A with Paul Brainard

“Lexicon Leader”, oil on linen, 40 x 55 in | 102 x 140 cm, oil on linen, 2020

Why did you become an artist?

I really don’t think that I had a choice. Making art is something that i do every single day; it is in my blood.

How is your work different than everything else out there?

II think that it is an interesting blend of the absurdity of existence, modernist formalism and vulnerable self effacement.

What’s different about your current body of work?

I am simultaneously trying to combine elements of the personal and the formal in a way that makes a very diverse visual language.

“Moron at the Genius Bar”, oil on linen, 18 x 17 in | 45 x 42 cm, 2020

What’s coming up for you?

I just did two shows back-to-back at the Java Project Brooklyn. The first one “Covid Kids Club” was work that was made during the Covid – 19 lockdown in NYC. March and April were especially difficult in Queens with constant sirens and death all around you. I was a few miles from the epicenter of the epicenter of Covid -19 in the first wave, so it was comforting to stay home and make art. The second show at the Jave Project is “The boring Gaze” a group show of NYC and Danish Artists co-rated by myself and Frodo Mikkelsen. It was very difficult to install 15 artists in such a confined space but i am very happy with the result . The gallery is open by appointment from November 7th to December 7th, 2020.

What advice would you give to an artist just starting out today?

Listen to your own inner voice because this is the thing that makes you a … Click here to read more

Ned Martin “Spirits Through Time”

The Duality of Ned Martin

Ned Martin created a dual style presentation that features both sides of his personality in “Spirits Through Time,” his second solo exhibition with Robert Berry Gallery, and challenges the viewer to contemplate the notion of time, the balance of humanity, and to reflect on the state of the world in these 15 new works mostly painted in the past few months during his unexpected quarantine in South America.

There are two parts to the show: the abstracted landscapes that Martin has been working on over the last few years, and the new portrait paintings combining elements of abstraction and figuration. To anyone who has been following the artist over the last four decades, you’ll know that he was classically trained at the Schuler School of Fine Art, and to this day still mixes his own colors and always builds his own painting surfaces to ensure that he has full control over every element that goes into his work.

For the last few years, he has used reclaimed aluminum printing plates on which to create his landscape works. The metal plates were originally used to print tabloid stories and advertising, which tend to be disposed after a few uses since there are remnants of images and text. The artists states that, “All of that imagery, paired with the landscape work, creates a sense of beauty mixed with commercial messages.” It’s the juxtaposition of the natural beauty of the landscape imagery that is combined with consumerism which is the driving force behind a lot of Americans that creates such a powerful dynamic. Martin also discusses his background of living in rural Pennsylvania on a farm, and his recent passion for camping, which has changed how he relates to nature compared to … Click here to read more

John Opper “Harmonies”

The 1980s Color Fields of John Opper

With his first solo show “Harmonies” with Berry Campbell Gallery, John Opper’s (1908-1994) late-career work is presented in new light as one of the leading colorists of the New York School. Featuring 19 paintings predominately from the 1980s, the exhibition aims to elevate Opper to a new level of both scholarly and commercial acclaim.

Born in Chicago, Opper became interested in Modernism after a visit to the Pittsburgh International Exposition in 1928, where he first discovered the works of work of Picasso, Matisse, Braque, and other abstract painters. He studied at the Cleveland School of Art, and later took classes at the Art Institute of Chicago. He quickly befriended Hans Hofmann after moving to Gloucester, Massachusetts, and joined the WPA Easel Division in the 1930s. Opper stated that he credited the WPA experience with introducing him to a modern way of creating.

Installation view of John Opper “Harmonies”. Courtesy of Berry Campbell Gallery.

After his time with the WPA Opper fully left behind nature and the physical world, and pivoted to pure abstraction. Like many artists of his generation, leaving behind any sense of figure or narrative was initially derided by critics and collectors, but nevertheless, they moved forward with their work. As much as we understand the abstract in the 21^st century, it was a very radical departure for many at the time, and wasn’t fully appreciated until the 1950s. Later in New York, he painted at Milton Avery’s studio in New York, and became acquainted with Adolph Gottlieb and Mark Rothko. After leaving the city, he would frequently come back to spend time at the Cedar Bar associating with Franz Kline, Philip Guston, and Willem de Kooning.

After a heart attack in 1966, he permanently switched from oil-based paint to acrylic, … Click here to read more

Patricia Abramovich

Artist Q&A with Patricia Abramovich

“Psifas 2”, oil on canvas, 31 x 39 in | 80 x 100 cm, 2009

Why did you become an artist?

I always have been creative. I loved to draw from just an early age, learned to play piano and guitar, and wrote poetry as a teenager. I began to paint again at the age of 40, and it was a became a sort of obsession where I painted every free minute I had. In 2009 I published some of my paintings on several art sites, and was invited to show at the Biennale in Florence soon after. I think that is the exact time I would say I became an artist.

How is your work different than everything out there?

“Patricia Abramovich presents colorful abstract paintings, with almost sculptural strokes of frenetic color forming the basis of the painting’s composition. The oil on canvas works are performed in spectacular colors that show great boldness, expressing the personal language developed by the artist over the years, a coloristic language with an identifying character and presence. In this completely abstract and well-constructed language, the paintings are made of strokes of color, placed in an intensive process using only a spatula on the canvas.”

–Daniella Talmor

I always search for different ways and new techniques, and always painting from my imagination. Sometimes I look at inspiring landscapes, whereas other times I just put color on the canvas or paper giving my hands total freedom. It almost feels as the painting appears by itself. The moment I look at the blank surface brings an exciting feeling, as my next creation is on its way. I need to be totally in the mood with nothing around me, only my painter knife or water moving the colors on the paper. It is only me and … Click here to read more