Wild Horses and Wallflowers. Silent rabbits, deer, giraffes, zebras, and a myriad of animal hybrids emphasize the hyperawareness that comes from listening intently - not just waiting a turn to be heard.
Lori Field’s fine lines and hushed, intimate contours take us quietly by the
hand to lead us into a world where beasts and humans share living spaces
and limbs. Through beautiful, botanical motifs and repeated imagery, the
Artist creates a fantasyland backdrop for her cast of imagined characters.
She harnesses an intensity in her animal figures' direct stares and fluid
gestures that, in combination with the innocence and beauty of their
androgynous and often childlike human attendants, invites a sincere
conversation on vulnerability. Silent rabbits, deer, giraffes, zebras, and a
myriad of animal hybrids emphasize the hyperawareness that comes from
listening intently - not just waiting a turn to be heard.
Compounding on her work in colored pencil and encaustic, this exhibition
continues Field's emphasis on drawing and obsessive detail. One hundred
spectacular new works on paper revitalize the archaic medium of silverpoint,
an exacting and unforgiving medium that forces the hand-eye coordination
and focus the Artist seeks. Originally used to make the under-drawings for oil
paintings, silverpoint is executed with a metal stylus on a prepared, gessoed
surface.
Because the stylus’s lines cannot be erased, silverpoint drawing
requires a steady hand,
concentration, and precision that, for Field, create a
meditative state in which her imagination is unlocked.
As the silver in the drawing oxidizes, the line ripens
from a bright color to a softer, burnished sepia tone.
The organic, changing nature of the work is part of the
allure for the Artist.
In creating her own mythology, Field’s voracious
consumption of pop culture and current events is
hinted at in the content of her work.
The careful viewer
is made privy to a post-apocalyptic romanticism that
exists outside of the cacophony of confusing and
conflicting messages in politics and news media. We
are rewarded with her whimsical reversal of scale, her
subtle interweaving of historical and cultural tropes,
and her idiosyncratic language of form. This is Lori
Field's second solo show at Claire Oliver Gallery.
Opening reception with the Artist Thursday, Oct. 25 from 6-8 p.m
Claire Oliver Gallery
513 West 26th Street, New York
Hours: Tues-Sat 10am-6pm
Free Admission