by Aliene De Souza Howell (MFA 2011)
We were all a little nervous when, just as the Opening for our exhibition in Leipzig began, it started pouring cats and dogs outside… but then the storm let up and the plethora of guests we were all hoping for inundated us. The hours of preparing food and cleaning and months of artmaking all fell into place. It was so satisfying to see the work up on the wall.
Tyler has embarked on a new mark-making technique on his flowers. By utilizing a brush to work the charcoal the layers of application with the charcoal become more expressive, deliberate and crisp. These soft and rich darks set off the light, giving it a luminous quality.
Rabecca has also experimented with color and brushwork, inspired by the works of Lucas Cranach. This more saturated color adds another dimension into her work, enriching the atmosphere and giving the viewer a more playful subtext to take in the melancholy subject.
Ian’s photo series morphed from gauging the intentions of others by using the eyes as an acumen to a series of Leipzig landscapes reflected in his own eyes. This witty approach inverts how we see, giving the viewer unlikely access into the artist’s own eye.
I have been pursuing a new stylistic harmony in my work, complimenting more linear areas of drawing with areas of both energetic and tight brushwork striving to create an enigmatic landscape.
We did have one last special treat yesterday – tea and a studio visit with Rosa Loy. It was an excellent opportunity to see her work and hear her ideas independent of her husband, Neo Rauch. She is also working within the New Leipzig School of artists. An overarching theme in her work is about the female perspective in the male dominated art world in the socialist and free political climates of Germany.
Now with all of our critiques and experimentation we have much to consider as we prepare to depart Leipzig. From this artistic flurry we have moved to a packing frenzy as we are all preparing to board planes trains and automobiles. Tyler, Ian and Rabecca head back to the United States tomorrow and I’m delaying my re-patriation a little longer with a backpacking trip into the Swiss and German Alps before returning to our beloved New York.