TIC
Reading June 2, 2007
"Embedded With Mangoes
in the Garden of Duelling Delights"
"What
Happens Here Stays Here:" painting
Nicole Gordon
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larger image
Artist statement
My paintings and installations
combine figures and/or landscapes from Medieval to Renaissance
periods often sampled from historical genre paintings, injected
with contemporary imagery. I intentionally reuse images
that, regardless of their original context, speak across
time and space. The work reflects on cultural displacement
and seeks to cut through the viewers’ complacency
by drawing the viewers in with a studied prettiness of luscious
and decorative surfaces. The images are both beautiful and
uncomfortable at the same time.
Closer inspection reveals them to be rooted
in history, challenging the viewer to dissect the layers of
the painting and question historical and contemporary ideals.
Some of my paintings are combined with installation elements
in which parts of the painting are recreated in three-dimensional
form in front of the work. Bringing the work into the surrounding
space serves to seduce the viewer into the work, giving the
imagery an unsetting mix of realism and fantasy.
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nicolegordon.com
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