5 November – 3 December, 1998
Exhibition
Opening reception Thursday November 5, 6-8 pm
The Spencer Brownstone Gallery is pleased to announce the opening of Amorpheous, an exhibition of recent paintings by British artist, Oliver Marsden.
In his exhibition last year entitled Liquiform, Marsden created what he calls “Virtual Liquid Sculptures.” These paintings assert a virtual relationship to the viewer in that spatial points appear and disappear before an acquiescent eye. The attempts to position these points create a multidimensional environment that the viewer becomes integrated into.
In his works, Marsden continues exploring the notion of “Liquid Reality.” Drawing upon concepts of biological structures, and morphogenesis as well as eastern religions and contemporary music, Marsden achieves a psychedelic minimalism. The paintings appear to fluctuate, emulating the ways that microscopic phenomena or nanotechnology may evolve. There is an increased intimacy inherent in Marsden’s new series of work that results from the dialogue between Marsden’s created world and the viewer’s interpreted world. Although vaguely identifiable, the imagery resonating on canvas quickly changes and leaves one uncertain of what was seen or encountered. Scale, form and space are relative to the experience of the viewer. In addition, the painting’s flat surfaces belie the three dimensional effect they radiate, while the painting’s smooth “photographic” quality acts as a reference anchored to reality, the images beneath the surface are abstracted from ideas rather than actuality. The resulting attempts to link the perceived image to reality become a rumination upon dissolving dimensions.
Artist Bio
At 25, Oliver Marsden has an impressive exhibition record that includes; The Cleveland Institute of Art, Beaux Arts, London, and the Courtauld Institute, London. To date he has received the William Gilles Travel Scholarship, the George Jackson Memorial Prize for Most Outstanding Painting and the Arthur Anderson Prize for Best Young Artist.