Susiehyer at Saks Galleries

Artist Statement

I have always been close to the land, felt part of it. As a child, it pained me to tears every time a new housing development went in near our house, or a new road was carved into the ground, destroying the woodlands that I felt connected to and was playground and companion. And while I eventually resigned myself to the fact that this was just the way things go, I never have felt entirely comfortable with it.

Prairie's Edge (Western Slope 3)
oil on paper, 24 x 36 inches

The idea that these landscapes are cut up and carved out, and broken down, reflects what has happened to much of our Colorado landscape in sometimes intelligent and many times misguided attempts to make life better in some fashion for its inhabitants. The sometimes unintended, and sometimes intentional consequences have resulted in lands, waterways, and natural features taking a beating..... stamped on, trampled over, bulldozed, cut up by highways, destroyed by drilling, fracking, and abuses. In these pieces I have broken down large landscape pieces into smaller bits, dripped and thrown paint, scratched and scraped back some of the shapes the way I would approach a pure abstract painting, in order to see some of the history of the painting process. I have also erased some of the process in other parts of the painting, very much the way  much of our natural history has been erased, not just in Colorado, but everywhere. 

Prairie's Edge (Western Slope 3)
oil on paper, 20 x 24 inches

These pieces were the result of a lot of studio experimentation and process toward my goal of abstracting the landscape, but I didn't really see the connection to some very old buried feelings that had surfaced until well after these particular paintings were completed. I didn't set out to make that statement. But over the course of a lifetime of pursuing art, I would imagine that, all that I feel, all that I experience, and everything that has made me what I am will eventually find its way into the art making process. It is the result of a lifetime of exploring the question as to why I paint.

Contact us at 303.333.4144 or info@saksgalleries.com for more information.

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Oskar Fischinger's The Red Bowl at Saks Galleries

The Red Bowl, 1944
oil on celotex, 32 x 39 inches

During WWII, artists began to have a difficult time finding canvas and would often use non-traditional surface for their creations. Around 1943-1944, Oskar Fischinger was able to acquire 20 pieces of celotex (a composition board).

In the excerpt below, William Moritz discusses The Red Bowl in his book, Optical Poetry: The Life and Work of Oskar Fischinger

For about a year’s time, during 1943/ 1944, he painted all 20 celotexes simultaneously, strolling about the studio making a few lines here, a dash there, sponging an area, scraping a bit, painting over something, etc.  What a sight they must have been in 1944 with nearly all complete!

The wonderful “Red Bowl”… consists of a dozen pure geometric forms on a brown background, each of the areas lightly brushed so that the texture of the Celotex shows through, and several of the shapes overlapping so that blue and yellow and cinnabar almost combine to recreate the brown of the background which they cover: while the forms balance each other harmonically as an absolute composition, Oskar’s playful arrangement leads one to speculate if triangles in the upper area might not be pyramids – indeed if one overlapped by a pointed oval might not be the “eye” on the pyramid familiar from Egyptian/ Alchemical/ Masonic mysticism…

For more information on The Red Bowl or other works in our exhibition Abstraction: Reshaping the Natural World, please contact us at info@saksgalleries.com or 303.333.4144.

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Andrew Brown: Rising Abstract Expressionist at Saks Galleries

Working both with oil and acrylic, Andrew Brown enjoys pushing the limits of what can be accomplished with mediums, creating depth, texture, and authenticity in his pieces both abstract and representational.

Terra
oil, 36 x 36 inches

After studying under his father, acclaimed artist Gordon Brown, for a number of years, Andrew has found his own distinct style.

He utilizes layering and destruction; building up and knocking down paint to create vivid lines, striking depth, and detailed texture. Andrew further pushes the limits of his art by hand picking the richest pigments and mixing his own paint, giving him the freedom to manipulate the properties of oil paint itself.

Glacier
oil, 60 x 30 inches

Constantly growing and learning, Andrew Brown never limits himself to one process of painting, and aims to further experiment with various techniques in his craft.

See these new works and more at Saks Galleries! 

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Contact us for more information at info@saksgalleries.com or 303.333.4144.

Sara Noel: Contemporary Abstract Expressionist at Saks Galleries

Sara Noel shares a common thread with Helen Frankenthaler, Elaine de Kooning, Grace Hartigan, Lee Krasner and Joan Mitchell. Like these women abstract expressionist who came before her, Sara Noel is immersed in the art form. While generations separate these artists, Sara found the kindred spirit that binds them - empowering color-drenched expansive compositions.

Hanging Lakemixed media on canvas, 40 x 60 inches 

Sara executes the abstract with energetic strokes of intense color, exploring layers of paint using a series of color palettes. The results express directness, mature gestures, and radical movement in expansive compositions – paintings we can get ‘lost in’.

First Winter Snow Falls Without a Sound
mixed media on canvas, 64 x 55 inches 

Not to leave anyone out, Sara has been influenced by the male counterparts of the American Abstraction Expressionist Movement as well. Willem de Kooning, Gerhard Richter, Mark Rothko, Cy Twombly and Franz Kline, all young passionate thinkers who developed their own sense of creating through the irresolute period of World War II. The darkness and uncertainty of the times brought out the strong emotions of these painters fulfilling a desire to shed the archaic forms of cultural expression.

Lillypond
acrylic on board, 36 x 40 inches

Sara values the very essence of Abstract Expressionism, which to her is spontaneity and improvisation tapping into the collective consciousness. She feels painting is an adventure into the unknown.

Sara executes the abstract with energetic strokes of intense color, exploring layers of paint using a series of color palettes. The results express directness, mature gestures, and radical movement in expansive compositions – paintings we can get ‘lost in’.

See these new works and more at Saks Galleries!

www.saksgalleries.com

For more information, contact us at info@saksgalleries.com or 303.333.4144.