.comment-link {margin-left:.6em;}
   Welcome to my blog! I'll be posting thoughts about art, photos, happenings, and other things that strike me--and hopefully my readers--as interesting. And please visit my website by clicking the link to the right--thanks!

   Also please check out my second blog, The Painting Archives to see older (pre-2004) paintings for sale.


Sunday, March 11, 2018
  my current exhibit
Crossing, 48"x 72", oil on panel

In many years of exhibiting my work there are certain shows that stand out for me, and my  current exhibit (through April 11, with sculptor Christian Burchard) at Telluride Gallery of Fine Art in Telluride, CO is one of those. It's the debut showing for a body of work in a new direction--overall a more stark and angular approach than in the past. It's still very recognizable as my work--I've kept the intricate textures and layers that I've been working with for years, and organic form still sometimes dominates--but the approach and concept have gone through changes.


Light and Shadow, 42"x36" oil on panel, sculpture by Christian Burchard

My main interest now is in dualities--strength and fragility, organic and geometric, dark and light, subtle and bold, color and neutrality, held in dynamic balance.  This is a shift away from previous work that was generally tied to experiences in specific locations, based in memory, and often had a softer, more atmospheric sensibility. What I'm doing now deals with more universal and formal ideas about contrast and the balance of opposites.



Astir 48"x24" oil on panel

The changes in my work have been evolving over the past year and a half or more. At first they were subtle, then more insistent as my ideas began to shift. It's been an interesting journey finding my way-- I've had many frustrating days in the studio, fumbling for answers, older approaches no longer working for me. Yet I've been buoyed along as one after another painting was finally resolved. Each has been a learning experience, and the learning continues. (The triptych at the top of this entry took 7 weeks to complete.)


Ancient Site, 48"x24" oil on panel

The definite shapes in this work have posed the biggest challenges, because I've wanted to keep a sense of fluidity and not allow them to become too tight or solidified. I've also had doubts that such angular and defined shapes can really "be me" after years of using a softer approach. I have wondered where they came from and why they appeal to me so much. But looking back at earlier multiple panel work from 2002 through about 2012 I see that I do have a history with geometric shapes (as seen below in a painting from 2008.) I love the way that over time, earlier ideas can re-emerge in a new way.


Coast, 2008, oil on multiple panels

My new direction has surprised, challenged and even scared me a little, knowing that the work in my Telluride exhibit would be a noticeable departure from what I've shown in the past. (The show includes a couple of transitional pieces from my older style but overall the emphasis is on the newest work.) Considering my trepidation, it was really gratifying that the show has been so well received, with numerous sales and an exciting opening night. Lots of credit goes to the gallery for the spare and sensitive installation, and the beautiful co-ordination with Christian Burchard's wood sculpture--a very compatible pairing.



Passing Through #1 and #2, each 60"x b24", with sculpture by Christian Burchard
Change can be disorienting, but this review of my current show by Susan Viebrock for Telluride Inside and Out reminds me of my roots.

Crowell’s work is the result of a physically demanding, sometime violent process of layers that are scratched, eroded and dissolved to reflect what occurs naturally in the rugged landscapes she loves. Nevertheless her paintings feel quietly intense, almost Zen-like...Crowell’s spare but dense work seems tethered to spirituality.
...it becomes evident that Crowell believes in the transformative powers of art, the ability of a painting to conjure emotions such as happiness, love, beauty, perfection, as well as the experience of a return to childhood vision..

Despite the changes and new emphasis on the formal aspects of painting, my work retains its ties to landscape, memory and experience. This source is a constant and is aligned with my process of working with layers of organic and textured surfaces. Where the source takes me has changed, and will likely continue to change over time. 


Ascent, 42"X36" oil on panel

 

       www.rebeccacrowell.com




     September 2005 /      October 2005 /      November 2005 /      December 2005 /      January 2006 /      February 2006 /      March 2006 /      April 2006 /      May 2006 /      June 2006 /      July 2006 /      August 2006 /      September 2006 /      October 2006 /      November 2006 /      December 2006 /      January 2007 /      February 2007 /      March 2007 /      April 2007 /      May 2007 /      June 2007 /      July 2007 /      August 2007 /      September 2007 /      October 2007 /      November 2007 /      December 2007 /      January 2008 /      February 2008 /      March 2008 /      April 2008 /      May 2008 /      June 2008 /      July 2008 /      August 2008 /      September 2008 /      October 2008 /      November 2008 /      December 2008 /      January 2009 /      February 2009 /      March 2009 /      April 2009 /      May 2009 /      June 2009 /      July 2009 /      August 2009 /      September 2009 /      October 2009 /      November 2009 /      December 2009 /      January 2010 /      February 2010 /      March 2010 /      April 2010 /      May 2010 /      June 2010 /      July 2010 /      August 2010 /      September 2010 /      October 2010 /      November 2010 /      December 2010 /      January 2011 /      February 2011 /      March 2011 /      April 2011 /      May 2011 /      June 2011 /      July 2011 /      August 2011 /      September 2011 /      October 2011 /      November 2011 /      December 2011 /      January 2012 /      February 2012 /      March 2012 /      April 2012 /      May 2012 /      June 2012 /      July 2012 /      August 2012 /      September 2012 /      October 2012 /      November 2012 /      December 2012 /      January 2013 /      February 2013 /      March 2013 /      April 2013 /      May 2013 /      June 2013 /      July 2013 /      August 2013 /      September 2013 /      October 2013 /      November 2013 /      December 2013 /      January 2014 /      February 2014 /      March 2014 /      April 2014 /      May 2014 /      June 2014 /      July 2014 /      August 2014 /      September 2014 /      October 2014 /      November 2014 /      December 2014 /      January 2015 /      February 2015 /      March 2015 /      April 2015 /      May 2015 /      June 2015 /      July 2015 /      August 2015 /      September 2015 /      October 2015 /      November 2015 /      December 2015 /      January 2016 /      February 2016 /      March 2016 /      April 2016 /      June 2016 /      July 2016 /      August 2016 /      September 2016 /      October 2016 /      November 2016 /      December 2016 /      January 2017 /      February 2017 /      March 2017 /      May 2017 /      June 2017 /      July 2017 /      August 2017 /      September 2017 /      October 2017 /      November 2017 /      December 2017 /      January 2018 /      March 2018 /      April 2018 /      May 2018 /      June 2018 /      August 2018 /      September 2018 /      October 2018 /      November 2018 /      December 2018 /      February 2019 /      April 2019 /      May 2019 /      June 2019 /      July 2019 /      August 2019 /      September 2019 /      October 2019 /      December 2019 /      January 2020 /      March 2020 /      April 2020 /      May 2020 /      June 2020 /      August 2020 /      October 2020 /      January 2021 /      March 2021 /      May 2021 /      September 2021 /

       Rebecca Crowell