Joseph Gross Gallery presents From Here, an exhibition of new works by Oakland, CA based artist John Felix Arnold III. This is Arnold’s first solo show with Joseph Gross Gallery. The gallery will host a reception for the artist on November 5th at 548 W. 28th St. from 6 to 9 p.m.
New Works by John Felix Arnold III
Exhibition Dates: November 5-25, 2015
Opening Reception: November 5th | 6-9 p.m.
From Here is a turning point in Arnold’s career. These stark pieces define themselves sharply against Arnold’s previously maximalist, densely detailed work in painting, collage, print, sculpture, and installation. This time around, Arnold is working by paring down. Utilizing twelve mixed-media pieces on wood panels and paper, he’s created a series that builds off of his earlier style by the process of effacement; a release of past convention necessary to regeneration.
Arnold is working within and simultaneously against his trademarks. Many pieces remain rooted in an older style of painting, but done-over in white paint, the ghosts of letterforms, panels from Akira, and giant robots linger in the background behind raw, red pastels and scribbled automatic writing. Others are dustbunny-like voids, black holes in the psyche that seem to tunnel themselves out of their frames.
The divergence in Arnold’s recent work is a direct outcome of intense personal growth for the artist. Created quickly in a two-month period, these smaller, more controlled pieces offer a sense of loss and isolation, but also that of trajectory and possibility – a departure from his past work exploring a post-apocalyptic vision between the organic and the mechanic. From Here addresses an entirely new kind of painting for the artist alongside his fresh worldview.
