Kim Dorland - Nemophilia at Equinox Gallery

While I was in town for the Bombay Sapphire Artisan Series Finals reception, I went to see the show of Kim Dorland's paintings at Equinox Gallery in Vancouver. The show is titled "Nemophilia." One definition of that word is:

Nemophila species are mainly native to the western United States, though some species are also found in western Canada and Mexico, and in the southeastern United States.

I've been interested in Dorland's work since he had an interview published in Border Crossings magazine a couple of years ago. I was drawn to his subject matter (teenage memories) and his garish use of colour. At the time, thick paint bugged me so I didn't dig that in his work. Fast forward a few years, and however many paintings I've made since then, and now I think that thick paint is almost necessary to convey the idea of paint! 

Viewing Dorland's paintings is a confrontational experience. The paintings attack you with their vibrancy (playing with simultaneous contrasts of greys and complements) and their materiality (the paint is literally slathered on in some areas giving the image a precarious feel). 

I left the gallery very energized because I want my paintings to do that too! It was just the kind of recharge I needed to start off my school year :) Below are some images.

It's my dream to have a show in this amazing space.

Landscape Painting, this was my favourite of the show. You can't see it here, but that grey wall was pulsating from the simultaneous contrast caused by the neon pink under-painting.

Side shot. Look how much paint there is one there!!!

Junkyard dogs

For my multidisciplinary studio class, our first project is to create a response to the space known as the "sculpture yard." It's located just outside the Visual Arts building and acts like a junkyard of sorts for leftover materials and old projects from years past. It is hot and dry in the space with little cover from the sun. Weeds, dirt, and pebbles occupy the yard, a couple of bees buzzing around.
The projects in this class are a handle on which we can define and explore our interests in our preferred discipline and materials. With that in mind, I'm going to respond to this space by making a painting; experiencing the space through a painter's eyes. I did a little sketching and I've decided that my approach will be to create a panorama, using multiple panels (maybe on board instead of canvas because of the harshness of the space, although it might be interesting to have a more poetic response to the space). I want to capture the light and colour of the space and it might be interesting to paint it in several sessions to record the various lighting conditions (and evoke a sense of time passing).

Sample view of the yard

Some inspo!

John Hartman

Kim Dorland

Paul Cezanne