Judith Shapiro

Paintings

In this Judith Shapiro’s exhibition, shaped canvases are layered with thick acrylic paint, and then chiseled to create textures that reveal the stratification of the paint. This topographic context then lends itself to geometric scoring that establishes a grid-like complexion giving the painting zonal reference points.
Irregular shapes are chosen for these works as a means of escaping the limitations on creativity that are inherent to the conventional rectangular format.

These works are intended as sculpture. The wall itself is intrinsic to the composition (much as the concept of “negative space” is intrinsic to appreciating three-dimensional sculpture). Thus, the positioning of the work upon the wall establishes an important relationship or context for viewing the piece.

Nevertheless, such positioning is not rigidly imposed. Although there is a preferred perspective, the way that the works are seen in this exhibition, it is also possible to make alternative presentations. The concept of kinetic or dynamic context is part of a work’s spatial relationship with the adjacent wall.

The possible range of principal compositions that can be created on each canvas is usually understood from the beginning. But it is also sometimes possible to circumvent these dominant shapes as well as the delimitations of the canvas itself and to work fortuitously on a particular area thereby creating a broader scope of themes and nuances.

Topography is important in these works. The surface of each canvas is coated with multiple layers of paint of different colors and thicknesses. Occasionally, strips of wood are introduced. Eventually, these strata of matter cause the canvas to assume the characteristics of a place on the face of the earth. As with the discovery of many terrestrial locations, there is then a quandary: to build up, or to dig down? Both options are available, but often excavation is the more inviting. There is an archaeological impulse. But rather than dig to expose the mysteries of some ancient civilization, the topography of the work is excavated to expose the hidden color tones, textures and forms that lied beneath the surface.
This process has a mystical quality. It establishes an intimate locus, a meeting place where the art and the artist touch.