Cross Contemporary Art

Follow Cross Contemporary Art on Artsy

Garry Nichols “Water Witch”

by

Garry  Nichols:  Water  Witch

 

Garry Nichols solo exhibition of paintings, drawings and sculpture opens Sat, March 7 at Cross Contemporary Art in Saugerties, NY. Mr. Nichols is a prolific artist who plays with the paradox of space: what should be big is very small and what should be small, is enormous creating a fantastic distortion that torques pictorial space. The feeling of far-off lands, of maybe even the most far-off land of Nichol’s native Tasmania lends his art a sense of adventure and discovery of a new state of nature.
Garry Nichols takes over the gallery and transforms the space into an enviroment of nautical and botanical fantasy reflecting his far-ranging fascination with water divining, sailing ships, tropical plantlife and aboriginal art. Adrian Frost writes: “Nichols is now in his stride. Ultimately an epic painter, a man of the long vision, the big picture, he is intimate with painterly detail yet always pushing for the grand yet haunting vision”. Cross Contemporary Art director Jen Dragon says of Garry Nichols “Mr. Nichols is a wordless storyteller whose art follows the flow of form much as the divining rod discovers the unseen stream of subterranean water. Its exciting to surrender the gallery for an installation of such breadth and ambition!” In an interview with Guy Trebay for the NYTimes, Garry Nichols say of his own work “I have no plan when I go into the studio, I just let the drawings flow.” Just like the divining rod also known as the water-witch.

About Garry Nichols:
Garry Nichols, work can be found in many museum and public collections throughout the world including Samuel P. Harn Museum University of Florida, Art Gallery of New South Wales, National Gallery of Victoria, Burnie Museum, University of Newcastle Australia,Osaka Hilton Hotels, Westpac Bank, ARTBank. A recipient of New York Foundation for the Arts Fellowship in Painting, Elizabeth Foundation for the Arts and Gottlieb Foundation Awards, the artist has shown at numerous institutions including The Brooklyn Museum, Marymount Manhattan and Kean University. Most recently, Mr. Nichols’ paintings were published in “I Don’t Poem” an anthology of poetry and art edited by Claudia La Rocco. Garry Nichols currently lives and works in Brooklyn, NY. Garry Nichols currently lives and works in Brooklyn, NY.
More information about the artist can be found:
Video interview: http://vimeo.com/79713584
Artist’s website: http://garrynichols.com

About Cross Contemporary Art: Cross Contemporary Art is a gallery dedicated to showing mid-career and established artists who have a connection to New York City, Hudson Valley and Catskills region. Open Thurs through Mon 12-6, Tues and Wed by appointment or chance. 81 Partition st Saugerties, NY 12477 Phone Gallery Director Jen Dragon 845.399.9751 for more information

sm_rigging_by_garry_nichols_oil_on_canvas
sm_ship_spiral_by_garry_nichols_oil_on_canvas

[Show slideshow]

 

Adrian Frost

by

Adrian Frost has been an artist-in-residence at 11 Cross Gallery and the character of this space took its cue from his energy and work.  In person, Adrian is a powerful, compassionate and  inspiring personality.  He creates an enviroment around himself  that demands participation: there is no such thing as a passive observer in Adrian’s world.  This participation can be by stepping over a pile of salt cushioning a block of driftwood, crouching around a tipped form to view the reverse side or recoiling from the jagged edges of broken glass.

An encounter with Adrian is always memorable as is any encounter with his art.  At first, one is struck by the “arte povera” qualities: chipped plexiglass, broken planks, plateglass “mended” by masking tape  but on closer examination everything is beautifully crafted, deliberate and secure.  The appearance of fragility is purely deceptive as the strength of the artist’s message emerges.

“those who know speak not…” by Adrian Frost upright view courtesty the Image Factory

In his paintings, Adrian combats space forging not so much letters but forms that individually embody the power of the entire word.  Painted phrases such as: “improvised explosive device” or “have a nice day” invoke a new meaning when the space of each painted character is fought for with a passionate brush. In his sculptures, Adrian  chisels cryptic poems into weathered wood.  A long bench states: “those who know speak not, those who speak, know not”  and the interiors of the hewn letters are painstakingly lined in sterling silver leaf.  The installation of this piece, like many others, will shift depending on context and enviroment.  Sometimes, Adrian has exhibited “those who know…” as an upright bench, other times it has been shown face down, barely legible save by looking at a mirror placed underneath and partially obscured by coarse rock salt.   This sculpture, installed as a functional bench, invites body contact yet another placement puts the work out of reach by making its meaning more obscure.  Other artwork can be buried in dirt, shielded behind broken glass or flipped to the wall (“One Man” 11crossgallery Saugerties, NY 13 August 2010), and yet in another incarnation  (“Another Circle” Emerson Resort, Mount Tremper NY 4 June 2010), the same work can manifest a table, exhibit handsome framing or be mounted like a ladder inviting ascension.
Adrian’s next show “Introducing Furies: The Erinyes, Cthonic Deites Supernatural Personifications of the Anger of the Dead” opens September 3, 2011 3-5pm at The Art Colony Eureka Springs , Arkansas.

[Read more…]