Pasadena Museum of California Art (Venue Partner)
490 E. Union Street
626-568-3665
This event has passed.
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Ray Turner, composite of paintings from Population series, c. 2008, courtesy of the artist
- When
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Sunday Nov 8, 2009 (2–3pm)
- Where
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- Price
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Free withAdmission: $7 adults / $5 students & seniors / FREE for PMCA members
- Links
Artist Ray Turner talks to friend and colleague artist Kenton Nelson about his work in the current exhibition "Population".
Featuring approximately 150 paintings, each portrait in the series evinces a slightly different approach by the artist. A prescient interpreter, Turner fashions a uniquely seductive and engaging fusion of lyrical realism and abstraction in his work. He is able to capture his sitters during “privileged instants” with skill and intimacy.
Although each painting is distinctive, Turner’s format in Population remains consistent and can be read as variations on a theme. Beginning with a square piece of glass, Turner paints the backgrounds a single color on the reverse side of the glass, turning the picture space into a shiny, flat monotone. The background colors he uses from painting to painting are tonal variations on a few colors, from pale pink to vibrant fuchsia, as well as shades of blues and grays, much like paint swatches. Then on the front of the glass, his masterful application of paint renders an individual’s face with all its particular quirks, occasionally simplifying details through expressionistic strokes, but all the while maintaining the essence of his sitter’s unique features.
