Abstract expressionism and the contemporary artists who plays and push the boundaries of color space and structures.
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Throughout history art has undergone transformations and evolutions, however painting repeatedly announces itself as ever inviting medium. Its development has challenged the definition of what a painting is and the notion of what makes a painting. There are artists that have shaped the story of abstract expressionism, from Pollok to Cy Twombly and Mark Rothko. They have pushed the boundaries of colors, paint and the materiality of paint itself. The new forms of abstract expressionism were born around 1940, since then it continues to attract audiences worldwide with its bold and expressive work, persisting and evolving in the contemporary world.
Contemporary abstract expressionism embodies a spirit of freedom, spontaneity and emotional intensity influenced by its predecessors. However, today artists use new techniques as they embody new perspectives. Nowadays, new styles and approaches emerged, such as thick brushstrokes and dynamic compositions. Some artists use a more experimental approach, exploring abstraction through mix media and the use of unconventional materials. We have selected five emerging and established artists that this month cannot be missed.
Gianluca Patti was born in 1977 in Monza, where he currently lives and works. His research focuses on the study of color and matter as tools for narrating personal experience and the temporal dimension. His self-taught study of the history of art has played a fundamental role in the evolution of his artistic research: at the beginning of his career he became fascinated by the pictorial work of great artists such as Pollock, Vedova and Basquiat, exploring their chromatic balance and seeking his own unique approach to color, in the context of a personal research in continuous evolution. He was then attracted by the artistic currents of Arte Povera and the Readymade approach, fascinated by the contextualisation and new life attributed to everyday objects. He thus began to study the materials most evocative of his own experience. The result is stratified works in which cement products, resins, nets and pigments become metaphors for sedimented memories and traces of the past. He is an artist exploring and pushing the boundaries of materials as a way of expression.
The first artist is located in Perù. Daniela Marin was raised in Venezuela, Dominican Republic, Chile, and Argentina. She was educated in graphic and textile design at the CHAVÓN School of Design, affiliated with Parsons School of Design in the Dominican Republic. Marin’s work speaks its own language, void of cultural expectations. Vibrant Caribbean vibes dance across complex compositions of the subconscious. Incandescent, whimsical, biomorphic forms flirt with geometric structures and stripes. Her brushstrokes are a contrast of stability versus fluidity and her movements reinterpret her childhood memories. The colors such as the fluorescent pink and orange backgrounds create an atmosphere for cool and neutral-toned forms. Meanwhile, furry textures on playful organisms taunt the viewer’s curiosity. In the work, the artist reconnects with her inner child, expressing intense and very personal emotions that are given to the public as they can interpret them in a personal way.
Estelle Asmodelle is another artist that defines herself as an abstract expressionist. She is an Australian born artist who uses her art to help people explore their personal feelings. They can mirror herself through her artistic practices, as she tries to restore their pareidolia, which is the mind’s ability to see familiar objects in abstract scenes. For her, the more abstract the painting, the better. Her work, “Quick Burn, represents the direct aftermath of a bushfire that has devastated a forest, often very fast leaving behind blackened burning cinders. The representation is an emotional depiction, but using red and black on white also has a slight figurative aspect as well.
Mr. Jago is a painter who has formerly worked in the graffiti scene. He has been an acclaimed figure in Bristol’s environment. He has initiated the Scrawl movement, a street art school. Throughout the years Mr. Jago’s art has evolved into something more abstract and expressive. He has pushed the boundaries of spray painting to levels never seen before, his colors are mature and very deep. Through his art practices he describes the natural world and the cosmos. His love for nature has been the biggest influence on his works, the form and the flows that exist within seems to be appearing ever more nowadays. His references to landscape imagery have less emphasis on gesture and brushstrokes, combined with a strong focus on color and its emotional function.
Michael Burges is a German painter that takes color seriously in itself, defining himself as a non figurative painter. He does not use painting as a means into his artworks, but he uses it as the subject itself. His works can be called abstract, expressionist or even absolute. Burges developed its own style and vision. His art wears a coat of colors, trying to give the voice to the voluminous patterns the paint can create and the vibrant colors that can come out when mixing them. His paintings follow an almost scientific plan, as the artist explores the aesthetic possibilities of color and space and their relations and the relation they have with the public.
Abstract expressionism is a form of painting that has evolved through the years and decades. However, the influence of its first roots never disappeared. Contemporary artists have experimented with colors, shapes and space giving them new forms and creating new forms of expression.
Cover image: Courtesy of IdeelArt.
Written by Asia Artom
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