Exhibitions
Starting Square
by SELENE SANTUCCI

JAN 5 - 28, 2017
Opening Reception:
Thursday, Jan. 5th, 6 - 8pm

Even though squares have been a regular feature in my paintings for many years, for this exhibit I consciously started with the square in mind and worked forward. Having many meanings, from the geometric to the common language of describing someone dull or out of touch, to meaning righting oneself or one’s life, to an adjective describing political conservatism, or even a case of beer (Canadian), squares are interesting to organize formally and their manipulation inexhaustible. In some paintings I tried to give them a sense of place, in others I composed them formally and more abstractly to trigger an emotion or to elicit a memory. In others, my objective was to offer a thread of some kind, allowing the viewer to create a story, and in one or two I deliberately tried to hide or destroy them.

I began each piece with the same process I generally use, that of having no idea about what will finally emerge, but the initialization had the thought of using the square to either begin the painting or to develop it.

Painting is gloriously hard work, and sometimes I fear it is a selfish pursuit, but seeking existential beauty is, in my opinion, an essential need in all of us.