Landscape Painting

Exhibition Dates: March 11-19, 2021

“There is big talk of “changing the landscape of painting” but what does this really mean? Challenging tradition or forgoing traditional altogether? Spencer Molnar and Cooper Gibson both work with/out paint in ways that challenge traditional methods of painting. Molnar’s paintings question our perceptions of depth and therefore what is really important in a painting. The background and foreground are confused through thickly layered paint, pattern and texture that make up Molnar’s colorful and tactile paintings. Gibson forgoes paint all together in favor of materials you could find in the craft section of a dollar store. Beads, plastic gems, glitter, fake flowers, manufactured butterflies, etc. By using these mass-produced decorative goods, Gibson challenges what it means to paint, and like Molnar, what is important in a painting. Through these seemingly mundane and purely decorative objects, Gibson elevates the painted surface beyond a painting and into the realm of the adorned object. What does it mean to adorn an art object with things that are seen traditionally as cheap craft supplies in an effort to beautify it? Through the juxtaposition of these two bodies of work the artists hope to create an environment where the viewer is free to consider painting in a new way without fear of repercussion. Painting can be fun! Art can be decorative!”