M Gallery, CICA Museum
November 10-14, 2021
The still life paintings in this exhibition are made entirely from invention. I do not set up an arrangement of objects in my studio to paint from, but rather, I rely on memory and improvisation. I use the still life motif as a vehicle to explore issues of form, space, and dynamic plasticity. When starting a painting there is no specific vision in mind. Forms and shapes are added and removed in a repeated cycle until something emerges from the materials that embodies and evokes a particular presence. The paintings are made with oil paint, cold wax, sand, and powdered marble dust. Incorporating various materials allows for a more tactile surface. I frequently use a palette knife to apply the paint in thick layers, which also allows for a more unpredictable mark making approach. These paintings are clearly made in the character of abstraction, but they greatly rely on the undertones of a perceived world.
Sam Kelly is an artist and educator, currently residing in Dayton, Ohio. He earned a BFA in Painting from Wright State University and an MFA in Painting from the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth. He attended the Chautauqua Institution School of Art and participated in a Drawing Marathon with the New York Studio School. He has exhibited his work nationally and internationally including the CICA Museum, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea; THE ROOM Contemporary Art Space, Venice, Italy; Surface Gallery, Nottingham, United Kingdom; Blue Mountain Gallery, New York, New York; Bowery Gallery, New York, New York; Prince Street Gallery, New York, New York; Bromfield Gallery, Boston, Massachusetts; and 3 Square Art Gallery, Fort Collins, Colorado. His work has also been featured in numerous magazines including Blue Bee Magazine, Envision Arts Magazine, Murze, and Warm Milk. During the summer of 2020, Sam was a Four Pillars artist-in-residence and Guest Critic at the Mount Gretna School of Art. He currently teaches as an Adjunct Faculty member at Indiana University East, University of Dayton, and University of Maryland Global Campus.
