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by James Elaine
GAR Gallery Project SpaceMarch 2, 2024 - April 27, 2024
"These small 2020-2023 paintings begin as cutting boards underneath papers and felts as I cut out shapes for larger paintings. The 'blind' razor cuts produced on these boards are the beginnings of new independent works. The cut lines are purely non objective but contain vestiges of the process of making other works. I try to uncover what used to be and create something new by adding layer upon layer of different types and colors of paint, sometimes mixing them together on the boards so that the different solutions react to one another in unexpected ways. The layering of paint covers up or erases what was before. In between the layering of paints I enhance certain cut lines with graphite, ink, or metallic paint then sand the surface down revealing hazy images of previous layers. This process repeats itself until I decide to stop." - James Elaine |
A specific focus of James Elaine's work is the act of reclaiming and restoring to a new identity what is lost, forgotten, or broken in life and culture. The materials reflect the body and soul of the individual as well as society as a whole. He is interested in different materials, purchased or found, that are not necessarily associated with painting or fine art, and ways to stretch mediums in new directions. Instead of starting a painting with a blank canvas many of Elaine's materials already have a history of their own, which, to some extent, directs the content of the work. James Elaine is an artist and curator living and working between Celeste, TX and Beijing, China. He holds a BFA from The University of North Texas, Denton. From 1989 to 2008 he served as the curator of The Drawing Center, NY and then the Hammer Museum, LA, as the Hammer Projects curator, a program Elaine founded in 1999. In 2012 he founded Telescope, a nonprofit-type gallery in Beijing, to work with and exhibit emerging artists of China and to demonstrate the benefits of a non commercial alternative system. As both an artist and curator, James Elaine fulfills a role of collaborator, and draws parallels between the two worlds. In his art practice he collaborates with the materials and imagery, and as a curator with emerging artists - helping them to find the best inside themselves as well as giving them exhibition opportunities and voice in the local and international art world. |