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Comment by Matthew Mazurkiewicz on October 29, 2012 at 8:44pm

Thank you for the kind words.

Comment by Resident Curator on October 27, 2012 at 7:42pm

Curator’s Comment:  

 

(Disclaimer: I know Matthew socially, encouraged him to join the site, and own one of his drawings.)

 

I’m going to second James MacMahon’s comment about black billboards forever.  It makes me very happy to see your work on the site.  There’s a vital raw quality to these drawings that comes across as very sophisticated, but with a critical folk/Outsider quality.  Think Gary Hume meets Basquiat.  This piece formally exemplifies the trajectory of economically reducing form, but the sardonic humor comes through clearly.  That duality in your work intrigues me- I find it very brave, and often very funny.   Here, the background space in Advertising is painterly and expressive.  But the sensitive white mark making is kept in check by the top edge revealing the corrugated cardboard.  It’s as if the painting can’t be allowed to descend into preciousness.  Likewise, I find the vertical black shape of the billboard starkly elegant.  I also respond to the scribbled handling of the ubiquitous billboard in Westshore. The blurred movement of traffic is viscerally expressed through line, but visible energy in this scene overcomes calligraphic simplicity.  Color seems to play a less significant role in object description, but allows layering of information to be revealed through the final abstract surface. Working in a manner that nakedly reveals vigorous process, I wonder if there is a conscious intent on some level to mimic childhood abandon, or if there’s anger below the surface.  Or maybe there is the taboo of recognizing a vital connection between these ideas?  Maybe childlike wonder, love, and rage aren’t so far apart.  Whatever your thoughts, I appreciate you sharing your work, and look forward to it.

Comment by James MacMahon on October 27, 2012 at 7:01pm

Happy to see this. Black bill boards forever.