Classical Underground is proud to showcase the work of one of the leading figures in serious contemporary realism - Michael Klein.
It's a rare treat to see the works of this superb artist on the West Coast, so when the Maxwell Alexander Gallery of Culver City assembled a sizable collection of his recent still lifes for a show, it was an opportunity not to be missed.
In his work, Michael steps much beyond just the scene in front of him - he uses his subject matter as the starting point in a personal and complex visual expression. Much like in any great work of ART, it is not the scene that affects us in Michael's works, but the experience brought up by the aesthetics of its presentation and by the level of its execution.
Michael's thoughtfully arranged harmonies balanced just enough by well-decided contrasts, a sensation of space between the shapes of his objects, the delicate transition of colors -- all together bring the poetic feel surrounding Michael's work, delivering a magic sensation and a mood of underlying lament. His good, "in-its-place" use of impasto, and the combination of decision and spontaneity in well-measured alla prima passages within a multilayered paint world, create an optical feast for an engaged viewer.
Michael's elegant, fluid and exciting use of paint fully and authentically informed by a cool-headed visual decision making are remarkably rare and welcomed qualities in the field saturated with track-loads of "photo finish" attempting fare on one side, and sloppy trick-chasing on the other.
In his paintings, life just slowed down to remain still, and this is a kind of still life that is very hard to come by. The trembling petals of a flower or wet scales of a fish are transformed into elegies in paint by Michael's work.
Michael Klein's works are sophisticated expressions of a tall order. This is why they will always find themselves at home next to the most sophisticated and highest ART expressions of any style and of any time.
in ART we trust!
Reconciling two important aesthetic impulses, Form and Color, was for a very long time one of the most exciting areas of refined representational art as well as one of its most hotly debated topics.
At the last CU showcase, we explored the influence of the emerging strong California figure school on the venerable California plein air tradition.For our second installment on the subject, we are fortunate to showcase the new work by one of the best living American figurative painters, Adrian Gottlieb. Within the classical representational vernacular he mastered, the human figure remains the highest and most complex expression of Form. Effectively depicting it with elusive and complicated outdoor lighting is crucial in order to achieve the authentic experience, as well as the specific mood, and requires a remarkable degree of artistic prowess.
Processing the great California plein air tradition of California's leading figure painters is uniquely important in attaining such rare ability. In his recent paintings Adrian is exploring new levels of coloristic subtleties that greatly advance their impact.
Effectively combining the expressive potentials of both Form and Color was long considered the holy grail by generations of representational masters. It is remarkable and exciting to see the cutting edge California artists today writing a new chapter in this quest.
in ART we trust!
Figure and Color
Classical Underground is very happy to present the esteemed California plein air painter and passionate Undergrounder Stephen Mirich's new work "The Grunion Hunters". It is significant in a number of ways.
There are two great trends in California's serious contemporary representational art: a historically strong plein-air tradition, and a relatively recent classical figure movement.
California experience informs both venerable branches of the representational school. The strength of color tradition of the California plein air school informs the classical understanding of figure, while strong contemporary figurative representation influences the plein air approach, signifying the exciting phenomenon of this specifically Californian artistic "knowledge spill-over." Both trends inform each other, making them expand their boundaries and turning California today into the hotbed of a new representational movement.
The doors open at 7 p.m. and music starts at 8 p.m. Unassigned seating. Directions and address are below:Stephen's new work is an exciting example of such vibrant interaction. While successfully reconciling difficult coloristic problems, it ventures into capturing multiple figures embedded in moonlight.
in ART we trust!
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