I’m thrilled to share with you that my next exhibit is finally opening at Madrid’s La Fiambrera Gallery March 4th! This series has been in the making since before the pandemic began, so I’ve had quite a bit of time to work on it and I couldn’t be prouder of the results. The focus of this show began with Frank Lloyd Wright and his influence on the architects who would proceed him. But the more I studied these iconic buildings and the connections between the architects, I realized that the scope of Modernism was much larger and much more complex. Here is the official statement on this series:
“The story of American midcentury Modern architecture actually starts much earlier than the middle of the twentieth century. The foundations of the momentous stylistic movement were laid in the late twenties and early thirties, as European architects where beginning to form a new visual language, one in which ornament was stripped away and the geometric essence of a building was exposed. These ideas and even the architects themselves, would immigrate to America and join the melting pot of cultures to create a style all their own and push the limits of the medium. Aided by opportunity and advances in technology, this group of visionaries would shatter pre-conceived notions of architecture and spatial thinking, going on to produce some of the most ground breaking architecture ever created.
My latest painting series begins with Modernism’s early influence in America and how it evolved through these different architects. Starting with Frank Lloyd Wright, I show how the fundamentals of his work informed the minimal, streamlined architecture that his students would go on to produce. Associates like Rudolph Schindler, Richard Neutra, and John Lautner would combine European influences, teachings from Wright, and the advent of new materials and techniques to push the medium of architecture to new heights, literally. Forms became more dynamic and daring, focusing more on the interplay between natural settings and the human-made environment. The projects I’ve chosen to paint in this series traces this evolution, from basic post-and-beam construction in wood and blocks to the development of steel structures and sprayed concrete. As the science of building progressed, so too did the imaginations of the architects. In order to truly convey how fantastical these masterpieces are, I’ve rendered them realistically in gouache and oil paint, capturing their nuanced details and their bold overall shapes. I’ve also enhanced the color saturation to communicate the bright optimism these structures signaled to the world, especially in the post-war era.
In painting these examples of iconic midcentury Modern architecture, my hope is to show how their development was not immediate, but rather a complex process. It would be informed by different architects from diverse backgrounds, new discoveries in construction engineering and technology, and by the environment itself which Modernism strived to incorporate more and more. It was a process that today we can study and learn from, and hopefully incorporate into our approach for building tomorrow’s world.”
Unfortunately I won’t be able to attend the opening in person on March 4th, but the gallery and I will be planning a video element or a live streaming talk - stay tuned for details. The show will be on view for the month of March, so please stop by if you can and see the work - 2 years in the making - in person!
La Fiambrera Gallery
Calle del Pez 7
28004 Madrid