I am very happy to announce my upcoming solo exhibit at Susan Eley Fine Art, NYC. These In-Between Days: New Paintings by Rachelle Krieger will be on view from November 3, 2020 - January 12, 2021.
Source, 2020, Acrylic, spray paint, oilbar and oil on linen, 70 × 60 in. (177.8 × 152.4 cm)
From the Press Release:
“Susan Eley Fine Art is pleased to announce These In-Between Days, a solo exhibition featuring new paintings by Rachelle Krieger. The show opens November 3, 2020 in our Upper West Side gallery and features over 20 mixed media paintings on paper and linen in a wide range of sizes. This will be Krieger’s third solo show with Susan Eley Fine Art, after “Rocks and Rays” in 2015 and “Of Earth and Sky” in 2018. The gallery will host a virtual artist talk with Rachelle Krieger mid-show, more details to follow. “These In-Between Days” will be on view by appointment only through January 12, 2021. To schedule a viewing, please contact susie@susaneleyfineart.com.
Rachelle Krieger’s return to painting en plein air came about a few years ago as she began to examine her life and what it means to be at a “mid-point.” Mid-career and mid-life, Krieger began to reinstate more physical elements into her work to accompany the atmospheres she captures so masterfully—sunshine, wind, fog and so on. The recent pandemic reinforced her practice of outdoor painting, which helped to provide a soothing balm for Krieger during these uncertain and challenging times.
As the weather gets colder and people become more concerned about what the fall and winter months will bring, many of us are returning to consuming art through screens again. Krieger’s work offers relief with vivid, day-glow colors and deep perspectives that take viewers into the work. In Source (2020), the solid, shadow-y tree trunks offer a stabilizing symbol to steady oneself and find footing in Krieger’s world. At almost 6 feet tall, it’s easy to immerse oneself in these very large paintings—one can sense the warmth of the sun and the gentle breeze the artist may have experienced while painting.
Krieger’s smaller paintings feel like precious gems, each radiating a warm glow. The plant life in Night Blooms (2020) emerges from the ground and reaches towards the sun. Teals, reds and yellows pull forward from the earthy brown background. By painting these scenes, Krieger honors and memorializes one singular moment in time and nature.
This new series signals hope and change. As our planet hurdles towards the unknown, these landscapes provide a foundation, yet remind us of the constant changes in climate occurring all around us—both the visible and invisible. Wind sweeps across the plane while new life grows and trees sway in Transformations (2020). Krieger’s introduction of spray paint as a medium offers an element of unpredictability—much like our current circumstances, the drips and drops “can only be controlled so much.”
Each piece is complex, dynamic and layered. As Krieger worked to express her feelings of being at a mid-point, she also inadvertently captured what many of us are experiencing right now. The world is at a crossroads and uneasy about which path we’ll go down. Krieger illustrates this anxiety and hope in her bright, ever-evolving, living, breathing paintings.”
> VIEW exhibition page
> SEE works available on Artsy
> LISTEN to accompanying Spotify playlist
> SIGN-IN to receive an invitation to upcoming virtual art talks