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Full Schedule:
6:30-7pm | Private gallery viewing & mingling
7-7:45pm | Exhibit walk-through with Margaret Fitzgerald and A’Driane Nieves
7:45-8:30pm | Additional time to view the exhibit & network
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More about the exhibit & artists:
Three Abstract Artists consists of Margaret Fitzgerald’s Crayola-colored creations, rendered with bold markings and graffiti-like expression; A’Driane Nieve’s canvases, built up with linear, yarn-like strokes in earth tones against white backgrounds; and the contrasting calm, near monochromatic paintings of Jane Ehrlich, softly stacked and woven with layers of translucent tones of orange, pale yellow and green.
A’Driane Nieves
Nieves paints to work through past traumas and the suffering that results from reliving distressing events. By using the act of painting as way to process constructively, her emotional journey throughout the past year is cemented in acrylics, graphite, house paints and soft pastels on canvas. In No.2 (2021), solid groups of reds, oranges and yellows rest in the background with frenzied, decisive strokes atop in grey, red and teal. Nieves began to layer heavy body acrylic paint in her latest body of work as an ode to the physicality of painting, both the painting as an object and the act of putting brush to canvas. The layers of paint reflect an excavation of sorts, her smaller work wilder and more chaotic than her larger canvases. Thick, white textured shapes in No.5 (2021) contrast with thinner layers of house paint. For Nieves, working small was/is about survival. Nieves’ action paintings are full of angst, energy, anxiousness, earnestness and discovery. Nieves lives and works in the Greater Philadelphia area.
Margaret Fitzgerald
Fitzgerald’s newest paintings are another example of an artist not unaffected by the pandemic and self-isolation. Her canvases ask the question, “What is it to be human?” in a world threatened by environmental destruction and where technology is ever-omnipresent. During the painting process, Fitzgerald lays her canvases on the ground and walks on them while she paints. She alternates between floor and wall, all while brushing, scraping, rolling and dragging her oils. Deep red oil stick meanders around the drop cloth in Peering Through (2020). Repetitive blue squares sit atop a thick, white background that also supports forest green gestures. Through this organic practice, Fitzgerald has effectively become a part of the painting. By viewing the paintings as an extension of herself, it becomes impossible to detach art from artist. Fitzgerald will forever be enmeshed in the rich, expressive colors and character of her canvases. The artist, born in the UK, lives and works in Albuquerque, NM.
Jane Ehrlich
In contrast to the work of Nieves and Fitzgerald, Jane Ehrlich’s paintings are quieter and more subdued. Starting with a single ground color on canvas, Ehrlich begins the slow process of building up thin layers of white in straight, zigzag and curvilinear lines. Sometimes the paint is applied thickly and other times it is more fluid, resulting in past decisions remaining visible underneath more recent strokes. This method of applying paint informs the viewer of its history and process. The white acrylic brushstrokes in ORwW (2020) weave through each other on top of a bright orange background. They snake across the canvas, following paths of planned randomness. Jane notes that “light is elemental to [her] work. As the series continues, the gestures become more simplified, more minimal, the way I like to live.” When reflecting on her overall approach, Ehrlich says “I search for a space within my paintings that I can coexist with. I want to be in my space and let the painting live in its own space. I don’t want to be overwhelmed. I want to look at the painting and let it evolve, and slowly discover its nuances.” Ehrlich lives and works in Hudson, NY