Ice Water Flyswatter, curated by Douglas Witmer
August 2 – September 1, 2013
Reception: Friday August 2, 6-10pm

[Images]

Featuring:
Alain Biltereyst (Belgium)
Mary Bucci McCoy (MA)
Donald Martiny (NC)
Cary Smith (CT)
Mark Wethli (ME)
Paige Williams (OH)
–with a special poem/drawing by Ian White Williams commissioned for the show

ICE WATER FLYSWATTER is a focused group of paintings, selected by Philadelphia artist Douglas Witmer, conceived specifically as an exhibition for the summer. The seven international artists represented in the show share an approach to contemporary abstract painting that may be seen as rooted in the tradition of reductivism. These are painters who begin with cold-minded conceptual intentions about the outcomes of their works. Yet in their varied bouyant colors, off-kilter compositions, and an openness to process-related incident, they sacrifice nothing when it comes to the celebration of visual delight, fun and joy. As the artist Cary Smith has said, “I believe you can make intense rigor that also feels good to have around.”

Alain Biltereyst makes small paintings that recall hard edge geometric work of the 1960s. Through his use of raw plywood as a support and the presence of deliberate errors the geometric shapes, Biltereyst teases fresh references to contemporary everyday life. His work has recently been exhibited at Devening Projects in Chicago, Jack Hanley Gallery, New York, and widely throughout northern Europe. He lives and works near Brussels, Belgium.

Mary Bucci McCoy lives and works in Beverly, MA. Her tonal paintings in ghostly pastel colors are often punctuated by moments of heavy impasto application, sometimes addressing the side of the panel, calling attention to notions of scale, the painting surface, and the idea of the painting as an object on the wall. Bucci McCoy was the recipient of a 2012 painting fellowship from the Massachusetts Cultural Council, and her work has recently been exhibited at Kingston Gallery, Boston and Rhode Island College, Providence.

Donald Martiny’s hybrid painting/reliefs appear as single brushstrokes blown up to monumental scale, almost leaping off the wall in jubilant monochrome colors. Recent exhibitions of his work include George Lawson Gallery, Los Angeles, Galerie Urbane, Marfa and Dallas TX, and Carrack Modern Art, Durham NC. He lives and works in Chapel Hill, NC.

With an impeccable sense for color and painting technique, Cary Smith makes what appear to be hard-edge abstractions, often with “goofy” images that suggest deeply personalized narratives. Over the past three decades his work has been exhibited widely in the United States and Europe and is in numerous collections including the Whitney Museum, the Brooklyn Museum, the Yale University Art Gallery, the Fogg Art Museum. He is the recipient of awards from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Gottlieb Foundation, and the Pollock Krasner Foundation. Cary Smith is represented by Feature Inc. New York. He lives in Farmington. CT.

Mark Wethli’s imagery is firmly and physically linked with his sensibility for materials. His work evokes the rustic Americana of the early 20th century like folk art, game boards, and architecture. Wethli’s work has been exhibited widely and is in the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Portland Museum. He is the recipient of fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts and The Pollock Krasner Foundation. He is Professor of Art at Bowdoin College in Brunswick, ME.

Utilizing the energy of colors interacting with each other and the edges of the painting surface, the work of Paige Williams reveals the tension of one at the edge of relinquishing control and reveling in the absurd and unexpected. Her work has been exhibited internationally and she is the recent recipient of an Ohio Arts Council Individual Excellence Award. She is Professor of Painting and Drawing at The Art Academy of Cincinnati, OH.

Exhibition curator Douglas Witmer commissioned Philadelphia-based artist Ian White Williams to make a hybrid poem/painting specifically for this show. Formerly the lead singer and lyricist of a internationally touring punk band, Williams’ work in painting combines delicate surfaces and improvised gestures and often includes or is informed by his poetry. Williams work has recently been exhibited at Parallel Art Space in Brooklyn, Larry Becker Contemporary Art, and FJORD, Philadelphia.