ELLIOTT WRIGHT

b. 1984 Junction City, Kansas

In front of a current painting he's working on.

Elliot Wright is a young artist from Richmond, VA who currently lives and works here in Washington, D.C. He received his BFA from Frostburg State University in 2007. I caught up with him at his northwest studio to talk about his works in progress and the direction he's taking them.

Here is an excerpt from his artist statement.

"The influence of this work is on the death of my father on April 2007, and the possibility of his presence occupying my daily life. The work was a means to address this episode and to cope with what had happened that spring. In the works “Lullaby” I use interior space to ground the work in a spatial context of my apartment. The geometric figures occupying the space represent my father’s presence in a particular moment. As for the newer work I wanted to incorporate flesh without rendering the figure. I felt it was necessary to illustrate these episodes in a series called Nausea. Nausea, written by Jean-Paul Sarte is an existential novel in which the main character experiences bouts of nausea and later reflects on his experience. These visions of buildings, grass, trees, people, park gates suddenly loose their definition, their individuality becomes only an appearance a veneer, this veneer had melted leaving soft monstrous masses naked and in chaos."

Many of Elliot's paintings have the juicy texture and blending of oil paint as Cecily Brown and Jenny Saville, both of whom he mentioned as painters he admires. The colors are intense and the thick application of paint is a nice contrast with the representational spaces he continues to depict.

One drawing table displaying his most recent paintings which are about 6" x 6" on wood. The large painting is approximately 60" x 50" on canvas. Another table with his paints and brushes. A wood airplane hangs on the wall which reminds him of his dad who was a pilot.

Elliot taking out an older (2007) piece with the geometric presence (he talks about the symbolism of these shapes in the video clip) imposing into the representational space. The painting he is talking about in the video is wrapped up ready to go to a show. His smaller pieces on wood are juxtaposed next to painted pixelated text. One of them says "Run Boy Run Run". Installing them all at eye level in one neat row lends the work to become more narrative and the textual insertions function like visual pauses.

Although he is busy working for Artex most of the time, he is also showing his work regularly. He has a show this year at the Saville Gallery in Cumberland, MD. He currently has a show at Prince George's County Community College. The opening reception is on Thursday, Sept. 10 from 6 - 8p.m. Elliot's work can be seen on his blog at www.elliottwright.blogspot.com and he can be reached at elliottjw@gmail.com

PAT GOSLEE

Born San Diego, CA

After a long hiatus due to spring and summer craziness, I am happy to resume my posts with a studio visit I had this past spring with DC artist Pat Goslee. I was first introduced to her work back in 2002  and I was excited to see the transformation from the the textured encaustic pieces to now the layer upon layer of delicately painted forms oozing with tons of color on canvas and on gesso board. Combining water based oils with spray paint Pat talks about what makes her tick. You'll be able to see her paintings in person at three venues this fall including two solo shows. The first one at the McLean Project for the Arts www.mpaart.org opens on Sept. 11 and runs through October 25. The opening reception is on Thurs. Sept. 18 from 7 - 9 p.m. The second solo show will be at the District Center Arts Center (DCAC) in Adams Morgan www.dcartscenter.org.

See www.patgoslee.com for more details on these exhibits and her work. 

"I know only one thing, that I know nothing" -- Socrates

Pat:

"Some people can't tolerate this state. It requires a kind of intellectual courage in the face of questions for which there aren't easy answers. Questions that straddle the line between theoretical physics and philosophy. Questions about the nature of existence itself. 

At the same time, there's a freedom in the unknown. Freedom to operate through intuition, tapping into what Jung called the collective unconscious. "

"I never begin with an idea. Rather, I use what I call a shotgun method, working on lots of different paintings at the same time. Some days, I mix up only one color and apply that one color to 24 different paintings. Some days, I simply sit in my studio for a length of time. Because my studio is in my house, I can do this while brushing my teeth, in my underwear. The main focus of my current work is pattern, which I first came to through encaustics 11 years ago. At the time, I had been layering hot wax on top of various materials -- cheese cloth, mesh netting, etc. -- in order to build up surfaces to a sculptural level. Eventually, I put the wax aside. I just picked up some of the materials that I was using to build up the surfaces and I dipped those into paint and applied them directly to the canvas -- a kind of decalcomania, like Max Ernst used to do. In the layered patterns I created, I discovered a kind of infinity that was not just space, but energy. More and more people seem to be making this kind of work: Inga Frick, Carol Brown Goldberg. "

 Pat's garage, where she spray paints.  

Views of her works on paper hanging in her home and Pat talking about her work in her studio. 

"One thing that excites me is how pattern and layering represent how we store "stuff" (information, emotional bagage, awareness). What do we take in? What do we filter out? What layers need to be removed, or rearranged, in order to change? There's a lot of back and forth when I work. Foreground changes to back ground, and background pops in to foreground. I can get lost in the patterns, whether it's cutting stencils or just drawing with colored pencils on a painting on paper. "

Two paintings on paper hanging in her studio.

Showing me the kind of spray paint she uses.

A large painting on canvas titled "Charisma" which is on her website. 

Pat's desk.


 

Works in progress.

"The most important thing is to try and stay open. Knowing that I dont know, but letting knowledge flow through me. We are all energy conduits, blocked to a greater or lesser degree. My paintings are a way of visualizing that energy."

www.patgoslee.com