Monthly Archives: November 2022

Many may know Sterling Allen from his work over the last decade as one of the foiunders of the OKAY MOUNTAIN Art Collective. I am pleased now to introduce you to the work of Sterling Allen created outside of that collaboration in an exclusive ARTSY online exhibition titled, “Damage Control” – which you can view here now: https://bit.ly/3Cq2rWs

Sterling Allen holds a BFA from the University of Texas at Austin and an MFA in Sculpture from the Milton Avery Graduate School of Arts at Bard College. He is a co-founder of Okay Mountain, a collective and former gallery based in Austin, Texas. He has exhibited, organized, and completed projects at venues throughout the United States and received several residencies including the Artpace International Artist-In-Residence Program in San Antonio, TX and a residency at the Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts in Omaha, NE.

The works in this show were created for an exhibition in Austin, Texas with Partial Shade and Co-Lab Projects titled “A Pit Fire”. The first weekend consisted of a pit fire, followed by an exhibition of the resulting fired ceramic objects. The contents of the fire dictate the surface color and texture of the objects. The methods for creating different surfaces reframe domestic materiality as a series of chemical actions/reactions, compounds, and sensitivities. Vapors from burning sawdust, copper, newsprint, compost etc. enter the open pores of the objects, resulting in a pattern shaped by context and environment— residual evidence of contact.  

The works were then presented in Sterling Allen’s project “Our New Room” – a series of temporary site-specific installations in unsanctioned spaces that address some of the issues inherent in thinking about objects, site, sculpture, and photography. This body of work is presented as a full-color publication, alongside a feature essay by art historian Sarah Hamill, a sequence of poems by Christopher Rey Pérez, a short essay by Emily Lee, and an interview conducted by fellow artist Ian Pedigo. Book design in collaboration with French & Michigan and M. Wright. (http://www.frenchandmichigan.com/store/sterling-allen).

Allen has exhibited at numerous venues including the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston, Utah Museum of Contemporary Art, the Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art, and VOLTA NY. He has been twice nominated for an Art Matters Grant and was recently awarded a Rauschenberg Foundation Residency. His work is in the permanent collections of the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston and the Jack S. Blanton Museum of Art. Sterling lives and works in Austin, TX and is currently an Associate Professor at Texas State University.

#sterlingallen #markmoorefineart #artexhibition #artshow #painting #contemporarypainting #contemporaryart #artcollector #artcurator #artconsultant #artadvisor #abstractart #abstractpainting #laartist #markmooregallery

Special Preview of Todd Hebert: This Way, That Way, Up, and Down  

An Exclusive Artsy Online Exhibition Opening November 16th

VIEW THIS WORK NOW AT: https://bit.ly/3h3z43w

Todd Hebert is known for his playful use of scale and focus in paintings and works on paper that depict objects within distilled outdoor settings. “This Way, That Way, Up, and Down” finds Hebert continuing his unique synthesis of still life and landscape traditions, as well as ushering in a new material direction for his work.

While Hebert has always employed a variety of materials in his works on paper, the illusionistic effects in his paintings have been achieved largely through the use of an airbrush. In recent years, he has turned to a more traditional method for developing the indistinctness and depth associated with his work: he applies brushy layers of paint over rough surfaces of hemp, jute, or linen canvas. The resulting interplay of color, shape, and texture characterizes the work in the show. 

Those acquainted with Hebert’s work will notice familiar imagery throughout the exhibition. But instead of finding his subjects displayed before identifiable scenery, viewers will discover them set within monochromatic fields that seem at once vast, and very close. 

The icebergs, snowmen, and plastic water bottles that populate the works are realistically rendered, yet they attain an abstract quality due to disparities in their scale and spatial position. In one work, an out-sized water bottle appears leaden, anchored to the bottom of a blue expanse. In another, a diminished iceberg hovers weightless atop a white plane. In compositions such as these, Hebert presents a world where figurative distinctions like heaviness and lightness; surface and depth; mundanity and monumentality; are suspended, primed for reconsideration. 

For additional information, please contact: info@markmoorefineart.com

#laart #laartist #losangelesart #losangelesartist #losangelesartists #abstractart #modernart #contemporaryart #dailyart #instaart #artcollectors #artcollector #artcritic #collector #modernartist #contemporaryartist #abstractartist #artcollective #arte #kunst #toddhebert #markmoorefineart 

Special Preview of Todd Hebert: This Way, That Way, Up, and Down  

An Exclusive Artsy Online Exhibition Opening November 16th

VIEW THIS WORK NOW AT: https://bit.ly/3h3z43w

Todd Hebert is known for his playful use of scale and focus in paintings and works on paper that depict objects within distilled outdoor settings. “This Way, That Way, Up, and Down” finds Hebert continuing his unique synthesis of still life and landscape traditions, as well as ushering in a new material direction for his work.

While Hebert has always employed a variety of materials in his works on paper, the illusionistic effects in his paintings have been achieved largely through the use of an airbrush. In recent years, he has turned to a more traditional method for developing the indistinctness and depth associated with his work: he applies brushy layers of paint over rough surfaces of hemp, jute, or linen canvas. The resulting interplay of color, shape, and texture characterizes the work in the show. 

Those acquainted with Hebert’s work will notice familiar imagery throughout the exhibition. But instead of finding his subjects displayed before identifiable scenery, viewers will discover them set within monochromatic fields that seem at once vast, and very close. 

The icebergs, snowmen, and plastic water bottles that populate the works are realistically rendered, yet they attain an abstract quality due to disparities in their scale and spatial position. In one work, an out-sized water bottle appears leaden, anchored to the bottom of a blue expanse. In another, a diminished iceberg hovers weightless atop a white plane. In compositions such as these, Hebert presents a world where figurative distinctions like heaviness and lightness; surface and depth; mundanity and monumentality; are suspended, primed for reconsideration. 

For additional information, please contact: info@markmoorefineart.com

#laart #laartist #losangelesart #losangelesartist #losangelesartists #abstractart #modernart #contemporaryart #dailyart #instaart #artcollectors #artcollector #artcritic #collector #modernartist #contemporaryartist #abstractartist #artcollective #arte #kunst #toddhebert #markmoorefineart 

PREVIEWED: Mark Moore Fine Art is very pleased to present an Exclusive ARTSY Online Exhibition of new work by artist BEN WEINER titled “Colors Of You” on view now through February 5, 2023.

VIEW THIS SHOW NOW AT: https://bit.ly/3sqflxq

Weiner’s large-scale paintings combine elements of process-abstraction and still life painting to create a material history of his own existence.

By photographing paint and luxurious ephemera at close range, then using the resulting image as his subject, Ben Weiner creates works that pose a confusion of object, subject and medium. Weiner’s paintings harness the idolatrous fetishistic desire of consumer culture, the fashion industry, and the art world. Thus, his paintings self-critically describe the duality of their own identity as both transcendent creation and commercial item. Likewise, all of the themes and references in the paintings reinforce their status as consumer/art objects. Roland Bathes’ application of Freud’s concept of “the uncanny” to landscape photography is the pertinent reference.

Art Critic David Shapiro writes of the work: “Meditating on the rapturous designs of the ephemera of our time, Ben Weiner transforms prosaic objects such as aluminum foil, paint, and hair gel into ambiguous, often erotic landscapes of the mind. Weiner’s images are enlarged to the point of near unrecognizability, making the paintings hover on the brink of extreme representation and abstract sublimity. The altered scale combined with dramatic lighting and subtle photographic distortions produces an uncanny effect characteristic of the digital age.”

“Weiner’s large paintings are technically flawless and strikingly realistic, living up to still life’s reputation for naturalistic realism set by Parrhasios in ancient Greece. His involvement in the genre of still life is, however, not based merely in its ability as an effective vehicle for delivering realism but also for the power of objects to communicate metaphorically. In Weiner’s visions, styrofoam can be the ruins of commodity culture, while gold covered mannequins conjure fantasy narratives of transcendence through the decadence of love. The abstract method of communication inherent in still life painting reflects Weiner’s strongly felt belief in the power of implication.”

“While Weiner’s paintings are contemporary, particularly in his interest in the experience of visual disorientation, his techniques reflect an interest in preserving the most effective and archival artistic methods of the Old Masters. He uses Dutch paint and clove oil over Belgian linen to ensure images of great permanence. But, just as Weiner updates the ancient art of still life with photographic distortion, he also adds to his nearly scientifically-mixed palettes a number of prismatic synthetic hues.”

Ben Weiner (b. 1980, Burlington, VT) received his BA from Wesleyan University (CT). He also studied under Mexican muralist José Lazcarro at Universidad de las Americas (Mexico) and has worked closely with artists Jeff Koons, Kim Sooja and Amy Yoes as an assistant. He has exhibited his work widely across the United States and in Mexico with solo shows in Los Angeles, New York and Puebla, and group exhibitions in Chicago, New York, Miami, New Haven, Ridgefield, Los Angeles and Riverside. His paintings can be found in the Sammlung/Collection (Germany), the Progressive Collection (OH), and the Frederick R. Weisman Foundation Collection (CA). The artist lives and works in New York City.

#benweiner #markmoorefineart #artexhibition #artshow #painting #contemporarypainting #contemporaryart #artcollector #artcurator #artconsultant #artadvisor #abstractart #markmooregalllery

PREVIEWED: Mark Moore Fine Art is very pleased to present an Exclusive ARTSY Online Exhibition of new work by artist BEN WEINER titled “Colors Of You” opening November 2nd.

VIEW THIS SHOW NOW AT: https://bit.ly/3sqflxq

Weiner’s large-scale paintings combine elements of process-abstraction and still life painting to create a material history of his own existence.

By photographing paint and luxurious ephemera at close range, then using the resulting image as his subject, Ben Weiner creates works that pose a confusion of object, subject and medium. Weiner’s paintings harness the idolatrous fetishistic desire of consumer culture, the fashion industry, and the art world. Thus, his paintings self-critically describe the duality of their own identity as both transcendent creation and commercial item. Likewise, all of the themes and references in the paintings reinforce their status as consumer/art objects. Roland Bathes’ application of Freud’s concept of “the uncanny” to landscape photography is the pertinent reference.

Art Critic David Shapiro writes of the work: “Meditating on the rapturous designs of the ephemera of our time, Ben Weiner transforms prosaic objects such as aluminum foil, paint, and hair gel into ambiguous, often erotic landscapes of the mind. Weiner’s images are enlarged to the point of near unrecognizability, making the paintings hover on the brink of extreme representation and abstract sublimity. The altered scale combined with dramatic lighting and subtle photographic distortions produces an uncanny effect characteristic of the digital age.”

“Weiner’s large paintings are technically flawless and strikingly realistic, living up to still life’s reputation for naturalistic realism set by Parrhasios in ancient Greece. His involvement in the genre of still life is, however, not based merely in its ability as an effective vehicle for delivering realism but also for the power of objects to communicate metaphorically. In Weiner’s visions, styrofoam can be the ruins of commodity culture, while gold covered mannequins conjure fantasy narratives of transcendence through the decadence of love. The abstract method of communication inherent in still life painting reflects Weiner’s strongly felt belief in the power of implication.”

“While Weiner’s paintings are contemporary, particularly in his interest in the experience of visual disorientation, his techniques reflect an interest in preserving the most effective and archival artistic methods of the Old Masters. He uses Dutch paint and clove oil over Belgian linen to ensure images of great permanence. But, just as Weiner updates the ancient art of still life with photographic distortion, he also adds to his nearly scientifically-mixed palettes a number of prismatic synthetic hues.”

Ben Weiner (b. 1980, Burlington, VT) received his BA from Wesleyan University (CT). He also studied under Mexican muralist José Lazcarro at Universidad de las Americas (Mexico) and has worked closely with artists Jeff Koons, Kim Sooja and Amy Yoes as an assistant. He has exhibited his work widely across the United States and in Mexico with solo shows in Los Angeles, New York and Puebla, and group exhibitions in Chicago, New York, Miami, New Haven, Ridgefield, Los Angeles and Riverside. His paintings can be found in the Sammlung/Collection (Germany), the Progressive Collection (OH), and the Frederick R. Weisman Foundation Collection (CA). The artist lives and works in New York City.

#benweiner #markmoorefineart #artexhibition #artshow #painting #contemporarypainting #contemporaryart #artcollector #artcurator #artconsultant #artadvisor #abstractart #markmooregalllery

PREVIEWED: Mark Moore Fine Art is very pleased to present an Exclusive ARTSY Online Exhibition of new work by artist BEN WEINER titled “Colors Of You” opening November 2nd.

VIEW THIS SHOW NOW AT: https://bit.ly/3sqflxq

Weiner’s large-scale paintings combine elements of process-abstraction and still life painting to create a material history of his own existence.

By photographing paint and luxurious ephemera at close range, then using the resulting image as his subject, Ben Weiner creates works that pose a confusion of object, subject and medium. Weiner’s paintings harness the idolatrous fetishistic desire of consumer culture, the fashion industry, and the art world. Thus, his paintings self-critically describe the duality of their own identity as both transcendent creation and commercial item. Likewise, all of the themes and references in the paintings reinforce their status as consumer/art objects. Roland Bathes’ application of Freud’s concept of “the uncanny” to landscape photography is the pertinent reference.

Art Critic David Shapiro writes of the work: “Meditating on the rapturous designs of the ephemera of our time, Ben Weiner transforms prosaic objects such as aluminum foil, paint, and hair gel into ambiguous, often erotic landscapes of the mind. Weiner’s images are enlarged to the point of near unrecognizability, making the paintings hover on the brink of extreme representation and abstract sublimity. The altered scale combined with dramatic lighting and subtle photographic distortions produces an uncanny effect characteristic of the digital age.”

“Weiner’s large paintings are technically flawless and strikingly realistic, living up to still life’s reputation for naturalistic realism set by Parrhasios in ancient Greece. His involvement in the genre of still life is, however, not based merely in its ability as an effective vehicle for delivering realism but also for the power of objects to communicate metaphorically. In Weiner’s visions, styrofoam can be the ruins of commodity culture, while gold covered mannequins conjure fantasy narratives of transcendence through the decadence of love. The abstract method of communication inherent in still life painting reflects Weiner’s strongly felt belief in the power of implication.”

“While Weiner’s paintings are contemporary, particularly in his interest in the experience of visual disorientation, his techniques reflect an interest in preserving the most effective and archival artistic methods of the Old Masters. He uses Dutch paint and clove oil over Belgian linen to ensure images of great permanence. But, just as Weiner updates the ancient art of still life with photographic distortion, he also adds to his nearly scientifically-mixed palettes a number of prismatic synthetic hues.”

Ben Weiner (b. 1980, Burlington, VT) received his BA from Wesleyan University (CT). He also studied under Mexican muralist José Lazcarro at Universidad de las Americas (Mexico) and has worked closely with artists Jeff Koons, Kim Sooja and Amy Yoes as an assistant. He has exhibited his work widely across the United States and in Mexico with solo shows in Los Angeles, New York and Puebla, and group exhibitions in Chicago, New York, Miami, New Haven, Ridgefield, Los Angeles and Riverside. His paintings can be found in the Sammlung/Collection (Germany), the Progressive Collection (OH), and the Frederick R. Weisman Foundation Collection (CA). The artist lives and works in New York City.

#benweiner #markmoorefineart #artexhibition #artshow #painting #contemporarypainting #contemporaryart #artcollector #artcurator #artconsultant #artadvisor #abstractart #markmooregalllery