Fragments of a likeness transpose and merge, memories are revived and forgotten, and enduring landscapes are swathed in patinated palettes.

 

     PATINA investigates the fickle nature of time and memory, delineating corporeality from intangibility, concreteness from abstraction. A collection of 30, two-dimensional works (paintings, drawings, and woodcut prints) invite viewers to explore the convergence of past and present realities. Through reflections of the self, interpersonal relationships, and the natural world, the artists encourage the audience to consider how observation, both from life and imagination, contribute to the perception of reality. 

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     PATINA unifies three investigations. Through self-portraiture, Erica Tedesco searches for the fine line that “separates naturalistic representation from observed abstraction.” Her oil paintings and pastel drawings, a curious amalgamation of ephemeral shapes and intersecting lines, attempt to engage the analytical mind, extracting a tangible likeness from chaos. Gabrielle Patrone’s oil paintings reestablish visual order in an exploration of her deceased relatives. Careful studies of family photos from the late 1950’s produce impressions of the past that waver between the fully and partially remembered. Observation in the present informs her fabrication of faded memories. Serene Lincoln captures moments of “timeless appreciation” for the natural world through watercolor landscapes and woodcuts of a former Cistercian Monastery. Serene uses a palette that reflects a “sense of perpetuity – a graceful aging.” Each piece pays homage to the monks who worked the land for decades. 

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 We want viewers not to see separate bodies of work, but instead, components that build off one another and contribute to a cohesive synthesis of our collective investigations. We have chosen works that reflect varying levels of visual clarity. The self-portraits and landscapes, both rendered from immediate observation, present wildly different depictions of reality–ambiguity versus distinction. However, the familial, “memory” paintings mediate these perceptions, for they are neither personal recollections nor direct studies. We are also partial to works with muted or limited color palettes that envelop each piece in a warm patina. 

 

      Upon entering the space, visitors will first encounter, on their right, several representational paintings. The subjects are familiar, recognizable, relatable; the anonymous figures could be anyone’s grandmother, aunt, father, cousin etc., inviting audiences into a nostalgic embrace. Then, landscapes will be interspersed, leading viewers through time, a reflection of the winding pathways they depict. However, the wall occasionally will be punctuated by a fragmented portrait, a jarring stop in the procession of representational imagery. As a visual juxtaposition to our own imagined realities, an assortment of photographs–familial and images of the functioning monastery, will be displayed on several pedestals in the center of the gallery. Viewers will conclude their journey back at the gallery entrance where a cluster of ghostly family members bid them a tender farewell.

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