Scott Olson
04 May - 19 Jun 2010
SCOTT OLSON
May 4 - June 19th, 2010
Opening reception Thursday, May 6, 6 -8 PM
For his third solo exhibition at Taxter & Spengemann, Scott Olson will present a group of small abstract paintings.
These new works continue Olson’s rigorous exploration of the manifold historical strategies of non-representational painting and once again demonstrate his eye for mysterious beauty.
Painted on panel, linen, and canvas, the new works are characterized by complexly layered and fragmented bands, blocks and swaths of color and, frequently, an incongruously photographic surface sheen. Areas that have been taped midway through completion expose byzantine underpainting and lend a kaleidoscopic depth whose fractured geometry serves both to anchor and unhinge--a crucial factor in any successful improvisation.
Olson builds on his calculated tendency to create frames within the frame of the picture plane, demarcating areas of focus while simultaneously calling attention to the monochromatic handling of paint “outside” of them. Considerations of surface and texture, created through abrupt change-ups in paint handling; active attention to composition and cropping (sometimes on a table saw long after the paint has dried); and a chemist/alchemist’s zeal for arcane admixtures of pigments, glues, sizing agents and primers, all coalesce in the service of paintings that are ordered and expeditionary in equal measure.
Scott Olson received his BFA from Alfred University in 1998, and his MFA in painting at Ohio State University in Columbus in 2008. He recently mounted solo exhibitions at Overduin and Kite, Los Angeles and Galerie Nordenhake, Stockholm, Sweden.
Recent group shows include a two person exhibition at Misako + Rosen, Tokyo, Japan; A Tale of Two (Other) Cities, Galleria Massimo de Carlo, Milan, Italy; The Living and the Dead, Gavin Brown’s Enterprise, New York, NY; Abstractionists Unite! Who Give You Just Enough To Last a Lifetime, Glendale College Art Gallery, Glendale, CA; Modern Modern, curated by Pati Hertling, Chelsea Art Museum, New York, NY. In 2002 Olson completed a two-year residency at the Center for Contemporary Art in Kitakyushu, Japan. He also produced an audio CD, Liam Gillick Meets Scott Olson in Japan on the Whatness label in 2002.
NEW YORK GALLERY WEEK
As founding committee members and participants in the inaugural New York Gallery Week taking place May 7 - 10, 2010, the gallery will be open through the weekend and Monday 11 - 6 PM and with extended hours, 11-8PM, on Friday the 8th.
As a culmination of that event, and immediately following the official NYGW closing party at the Maritime Hotel, Taxter & Spengemann will present an evening of music and performances featuring Hex Message, Union, DJs and special guests at Santo’s Party House, 96 Lafayette St., Monday, May10th from 10:30PM onward
May 4 - June 19th, 2010
Opening reception Thursday, May 6, 6 -8 PM
For his third solo exhibition at Taxter & Spengemann, Scott Olson will present a group of small abstract paintings.
These new works continue Olson’s rigorous exploration of the manifold historical strategies of non-representational painting and once again demonstrate his eye for mysterious beauty.
Painted on panel, linen, and canvas, the new works are characterized by complexly layered and fragmented bands, blocks and swaths of color and, frequently, an incongruously photographic surface sheen. Areas that have been taped midway through completion expose byzantine underpainting and lend a kaleidoscopic depth whose fractured geometry serves both to anchor and unhinge--a crucial factor in any successful improvisation.
Olson builds on his calculated tendency to create frames within the frame of the picture plane, demarcating areas of focus while simultaneously calling attention to the monochromatic handling of paint “outside” of them. Considerations of surface and texture, created through abrupt change-ups in paint handling; active attention to composition and cropping (sometimes on a table saw long after the paint has dried); and a chemist/alchemist’s zeal for arcane admixtures of pigments, glues, sizing agents and primers, all coalesce in the service of paintings that are ordered and expeditionary in equal measure.
Scott Olson received his BFA from Alfred University in 1998, and his MFA in painting at Ohio State University in Columbus in 2008. He recently mounted solo exhibitions at Overduin and Kite, Los Angeles and Galerie Nordenhake, Stockholm, Sweden.
Recent group shows include a two person exhibition at Misako + Rosen, Tokyo, Japan; A Tale of Two (Other) Cities, Galleria Massimo de Carlo, Milan, Italy; The Living and the Dead, Gavin Brown’s Enterprise, New York, NY; Abstractionists Unite! Who Give You Just Enough To Last a Lifetime, Glendale College Art Gallery, Glendale, CA; Modern Modern, curated by Pati Hertling, Chelsea Art Museum, New York, NY. In 2002 Olson completed a two-year residency at the Center for Contemporary Art in Kitakyushu, Japan. He also produced an audio CD, Liam Gillick Meets Scott Olson in Japan on the Whatness label in 2002.
NEW YORK GALLERY WEEK
As founding committee members and participants in the inaugural New York Gallery Week taking place May 7 - 10, 2010, the gallery will be open through the weekend and Monday 11 - 6 PM and with extended hours, 11-8PM, on Friday the 8th.
As a culmination of that event, and immediately following the official NYGW closing party at the Maritime Hotel, Taxter & Spengemann will present an evening of music and performances featuring Hex Message, Union, DJs and special guests at Santo’s Party House, 96 Lafayette St., Monday, May10th from 10:30PM onward