Locks Gallery is pleased to present an exhibition of new paintings by Philadelphia artist Neysa Grassi, along with a selection of works that marked the development of her art in the last decade. The exhibition will be on view September 1 through October 8, 2011. There will be a reception for the artist Friday, September 9, 2011 from 5:30 - 7:30 pm.
The idiosyncratic technique of Grassi creates a tormented, multi-layered surface that “owes much to destructive forces – abrading, scraping, running out – to the extent that what has been removed from the linen support, what was once there but can no longer be seen, significantly contributes to the power of the work.” (Jonathan Binstock) The artist’s new paintings unveil an inner radiance in old rose and grey hues or in shades of blue, from cobalt to steel color. Here, the meditative abstractions mistily evoke water, rosebushes, stones, or clouds, but Grassi’s paintings “neither exclude resemblance nor rely on it. Its point is to aid us in approaching the singularity of the pictorial sensation, not lead away from it.” (Barry Schwabsky)
The exhibition will be accompanied by a fully illustrated catalog with an essay by poet and critic Susan Stewart.
Grassi, a recipient of a Pew Fellowship, has had solo exhibitions at several museums, including the Pensacola Art Museum, FL and the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, PA. Since 1990 the artist has had over 18 one-person exhibitions in galleries in Philadelphia and New York. Her work is in the collection of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts.
