June 5 - 26, 2021
From the Art Studio, Inc.:
“Every now and then, some critic will stand up and declare, “Painting is dead!” Dario S. Bucheli begs to differ. Painting is far from dead, no matter how much technology seems to dominate modern art. Painting evolves, he says, and his latest exhibition, “Semantic Web,” on display at The Art Studio, Inc., June 5-26, shows how painting cannot only thrive in the face of technology, but also embrace it. A gallery talk will be held on June 19, 2021 with the artist.
The TASIMJAE 2020 (The Art Studio, Inc. Member Jurored Art Exhibition) winner will present a series of acrylics on canvas inspired by artworks he pulls up on his phone. “I’m looking for moments where the images of the work interact in a harmonious way with the internet environment in which they exist,” he says. Bucheli, a native of Monterrey, Mexico, looks specifically at paintings by artists he admires and is influenced by. By zooming in to look at the details, the phones frame the works in interesting ways, with pop-up ads, shadows and menu bars. “(It) brings the attention back to the fact that there are images existing within the internet environment,” he says. “My phone works as a compositional tool.”
Bucheli custom makes his canvases to reflect the phone’s 9:16 ratio, although they are on a much larger scale. The image used on his invitation, titled “Survey,” is 70-inches wide. The way viewers react to the works in the physical space is part of the work, he says, and while the exhibit will be able to be seen virtually, in-person viewing will bring rewards.
“I personally find it very rewarding to be open to, like, being in tune with the work and try really figuring out — how is this making you feel? And how does it do that? Why does it do that again? Is it something about the work itself? Is it something that I am bringing into the work first? Is it the environment? Am I hungry, am I tired, does my back hurt? Those things all matter,” he says.
The exhibition comes from a place of love for painting and a place of interest in knowing how do we read paintings. “How do they speak to us? What do we pay attention to?” Bucheli says. “And what is missing, perhaps, or what is needed when you’re experiencing works as digital images on your computer or on your phone?”
So painting is not dead, and Bucheli’s art reflects its ability to evolve. “I guess I have hope or faith or belief or belief that painting can really push the envelope and you can really like doing something new and different,” he says. “
Artist talk: June 19, 2021 | 12–5 pm
The Art Studio, Inc - TASI Gallery
720 Franklin Street
Beaumont, 77701 TX
409-838-5393
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