RECENT PAINTINGS
INSTINCT BEYOND THE PROCESS OF THINKING
Place St. Charles, 201 St Charles Ave #132, New Orleans, LA 70170 Phone: (504) 568-9050
ANTONIO CARREÑO
Instinct: Beyond the Process of Thinking By
Dr. Eloisa Johnson Ph.D. Trust your instinct to the end, though you can render no reason. Ralph Waldo Emerson When someone shows you who they are, believe them the first time… Maya Angelou All great artists draw from the same resource: the human heart which tells us that we are all more alike than unalike… Maya Angelou
Stella Jones Gallery is hosting a new body of work by Antonio Carreño entitled Instinct: Beyond the Process of Thinking, which highlights a new direction for his art. The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines instinct as “a behavior that is mediated by reactions below the conscious level.” This reaction does not come from our rational intellect, but somewhere deeper. Carreño sees his work as a journey with small discoveries along the way, ever moving through time and space into the deepness of the soul. Works in this show signal a new development in the journey of experimentation that is a hallmark of his art. He is a seeker, a spiritualist, who tries to find meaning through his work to our interconnectedness as human beings. Our pathways connect us in many ways. In this exhibition, Carreño pays homage to Maya Angelou by selecting some of her famous poems to accompany these works.
Reflection, oil on canvas, 24 x 24 Inches, 2017
Born June 13, 1963 in Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic, he attended the National School of Fine Arts in Santo Domingo from 1976-1982. He also studied at the Art Students League in New York in 1988 and 1999. Carreño recalls that he was always drawing as a child, but is not quite sure when he began the actual activity. His father worked for the local newspaper in Santo Domingo as an editor, and his mother was a housewife who had certain “artistic abilities.” His mother encouraged his interest in the arts and provided inspiration to him
as a young child. She was the one who took him to the National Art School at a very early age. The family consisted of three brothers and three sisters, none of the others entered the visual art field. A younger brother, who studied philosophy, now writes beautiful poetry. Carreño has inherited this poetic soul, as well, but in a different genre. Carreño describes his work as very “personal.” However, he admits that “It does follow certain styles and personalities.” Theoretically, it remains quite autobiographical in the sense that it reverts back to his remembrance or recollection of his place of origin. Each layer of paint on canvas uncovers the multiple layers of his life and the tropical landscape that dominates his native country. The Dominican Republic has a rich artistic history that combines indigenous traditions and modernism. Santo Domingo, the oldest city in the new world, has the oldest street, cathedral and university in the country. Much of this history is infused into Carreño’s richly colored paintings.
Instinct, oil on canvas, 52 x 48 inches, 2017, the painting that shares the exhibition’s title, is a brilliant piece of abstraction. In this new work, Carreño uses broad strokes that slide across the canvass; while other strokes seem haphazardly applied in jerky strokes. Bright colors of yellow and red hues predominate here, with a touch of blue. The composition of colors imposes its will on a dark blackish surface that is neither dull nor completely dark, yet gives the painting a more somber note. Instead of the play of colors that suggest sun and sky in previous works, this painting is quiet and subdued; more inward-looking. It seems to be an offshoot of the ‘Sublime” series that the artist created earlier in his career.
Carreño explains this new direction:
I was changing the title of this year’s paintings to the process of which they are made, which there is a flow to, that is uniquely you…. Since 2007, I have been using both, traditional brushes and the spatula, so in theory that…I use the spatula\and the palette knife, I use the brushes for lines and on the surface of the painting… the “Sublime” series and most of these works were in 2010. So, somewhere around 2010, 2011, 12, and 13, 14, I was finished with this work and then started on the “Gravitational” series.
In his earlier work Carreño sometimes built up the composition with sand or added layers of paints like encaustic to acquire the translucent quality that this technique affords. But he does not stop at experimentation.
I don’t necessarily disregard any of my works and the style that I have developed and continue to work on, on a contingency basis... just that I suppose I might be interested in experimenting on just the process of the material itself, or something that might grab your interest.. or put you into the experimentation process that you create another series…And I like that ability to be able to understand that experiment and go in and out and around thstyles. I have used others that have an inheritance to that pictorial…pictorl, I would say groups that I have worked with or created. Unlike some artists who work through a process and feel like they have reached some mode of perfection or conclusion, he does not. He continues to experiment until his recent work borders on the non-representational.
I think that somewhere in the subconscious there is an interest in the artist, in the arts, and I think that there is an interest in human-
ity, the self writes, that goes to the highest level of spirituality. For me experimenting and going into a series of paintings give me the opportunity to write. I think about that, about the more or less you have, to the outer world the more you take less of the material world and more of a relationship with yourself, which comes to less writing. Coming into, oil on canvas, 52 x 48 inches, 2017; When the bird sings, oil on canvas, 24 x 30, 2017; Still rising, oil on canvas, 48x 48 inches, 2017; Glory rise, oil on canvas, 30 x 24, 2017; Catalyst, oil on canvas, 72 x 96 inches, 2017, all seem to be a celebration of color, form and texture. They are filled with creamy layers of paint guided by a six-inch spatula that create Interview with the artist August 26, 2017. Ibid. Ibid. Ibid.
Halves, oil on canvas, 24 x 24 inches, 2017
Ardor # 2, oil on canvas, 52 x 48 inches, 2017, is a bold composition that is replete with all the elements of a great painting. There is balance with dark areas on one side and brilliant colors on the opposite. The perceptible spatula strokes slide to the right across the painting only to be counteracted by broad vertical strokes in thick white paint at the top. Spatial tension is created by constructing visual holes in the painting that signify distance. Distance is also created by areas of lights and darks. The green in the lower left corner suggests terra firma. The blacks infused with blues and green give impressions of water. Divine rising, oil on canvas, 52 x 48 inches, 2017, another beautiful composition has similar attributes.
Carreño uses a few of Maya Angelou’s poems to accompany his new work. This is not a novel idea. A book of Maya Angelou’s poems entitled Phenomenal Woman: Four Poems Celebrating Women was published in 2000 by the Random House Publishing Group. In it are works by Paul Gaugin (1848-1903), the French Post-Impressionist artist who painted beautiful Tahitian wom-
en. The book is a celebration of these women of color through the poetry of Angelou. If you assumed that the works presented in this show reflects these particular poems selected by Carreño, you would be completely wrong. The artist explains that he is not using Maya Angelou’s poems literally as representational entities that mirror his painting; rather, he shares a spiritual kinship with her work.
Well, it’s all artistry, what I like about poetry is that it’s artistry. It doesn’t try to be more than what it is
Visual
art and literary works have often been explored together.
Marion M. Tangum and Majorie Smelstor in their article “Huston’s and Angelou’s Visual Art: The Distancing Vision and the Beckoning Gaze,” talk about the importance of this pairing in African American literary history:
Integrating another fine arts into a literary text, so that one artistic medium comments upon and provides an infrastructure for the literary, is, of course, a valued technique of American literature, particularly of African American literature. Slaves like Frederick Douglass, who wrote narratives, as well as W.E.B. DuBois and Richard Wright, have all contributed to a rich tradition of the appropriation of other genres to create literary texts, a tradition that is legacy for other writers to call upon. These two writers believe Hurston’s and Angelou’s work “have built upon the tradition in a way that is new, creating verbal art that is thoroughly visual in technique.” They surmise that these writers’ literary works have “defied classification to any single genre, the construct of visual art becomes sometimes the text’s subject, sometimes it’s strategy, in ways that significantly alter the reader’s participation in the text.” Like abstract art, we the viewers become outsiders to a process created by the artist’s inner consciousness. An invitation has to be issued for us to enter into the work. Tangum and Smelstor see this happening in literary texts as well:
Through visual artistic techniques applied to language, Hurston and Angelou alternately hold the reader outside the text, offering a vision of aesthetics at work, and then, abruptly, through the starkly personal and riveting gaze of their characters or personae, compel the reader to enter—to experience—their works reality. Maya Angelou’s poem speaks to the reader in a particularly universal way. In a sense, it challenges us to see life the way that she does in forceful language that is simplistic; it speaks to the soul. We cannot help but see ourselves as participants or interested observers of the “other.” She has the ability to share kinship with us and draw us in. We no longer need the distance of the “gaze.” Maya Angelou’s use of figurative language in her poetry is a kind of visual language of the masses. Perhaps Carreño feels a spiritual kinship with Angelou, in that the simplicity of her Targum, Marion M. and Majorie Smelstor, “Hurston’s and Angelou’s Visual Art: The Distancing Vision and the Beckoning Gaze.” The University of North Carolina Press, 1998.
Celestial plains, oil on canvas, 12 x 12 inches, 2017
visual language connects on a universal level to his abstract paintings. It has a textuality that writes a coded language for the viewer, no matter the race or nationality, in both poetry and the visual arts. Just like moons and like suns, With the certainty of tides, Just like hopes springing high, Still I’ll rise. Carreño is not trying to represent or define Angelou’s poetry; his work runs parallel to hers, each with its own trajectory. Parallel but sharing a basic tenet of belief: that we are more alike than we think. Angelou’s poetry, her language, can be deceptively simple. So can Carreño’s abstract paintings. If examined closely, though, assuredly they are not. Like most postmodernist artists Carreño is not beholden to any particular style or movement. He is quite aware of them, yet he does not want to be labeled or constricted by any. In his experimentation with technique, he seems to be hurtling toward the non-representational, and like Obi-Wan Kenobi, the fictional character in Star Wars, he is asking us to trust the “force,” our “instincts.” But as hu-
man beings we resist, peering into his work like a Rorschach test, trying to find the familiar, the recognizable, and discovering only a reflection of ourselves, not him. But there is little disappointment. Carreùo is asking us to trust the spiritual, the celestrial, for deeper meanings. Then and only then, perhaps, we will see what he sees and know what he knows—that there is always something deeper to explore and learn; we just have to trust our instincts. Dr. Eloysa Johnson Ph.D. Art historian and Critic. Sept, 2017
Black and White, oil on wood, 48 x 48 inches, 2017
Plains-wanderer, oil on wood, 12 x 12 inches, 2017
Cayenne, oil on wood, 12 x 12 inches, 2017
Instinct, oil on canvas, 52 x 48 inches, 2017
Ardor # 2, oil on canvas, 52 x 48 inches, 2017
Coming int, oil on canvas, 52 x 48 inches, 2017
Ascending in, oil on canvas, 48 x 52 inches, 2017
White night, oil on canvas, 52 x 48 inches, 2017
Light cycle # 3, oil on canvas, 48 x 52 inches, 2017
Divine rising, oil on canvas, 52 x 48 inches, 2017
Spetrum, oil on canvas, 52 x 48 inches, 2017
Intersection # 2, oil on canvas, 52 x 48 inches, 2017
Passing lights, oil on canvas, 52 x 48 inches, 2017
Divine, oil on canvas, 52 x 48 inches, 2017
Clear waters, oil on canvas, 52 x 48 inches, 2017
Through the light, oil on canvas, 52 x 48 inches, 2017
Perpeception # 2, oil on canvas, 52 x 48 inches, 2017
White night, oil on canvas, 52 x 48 inches, 2017
Profusion, oil on canvas, 52 x 48 inches, 2017
Still waiting # 6, oil on canvas, 78 x 78 inches, 2016
Late at night, oil on canvas, 52 x 48 inches, 2017
Crossing through, oil on canvas, 52 x 48 inches, 2017
Softly, oil on canvas, 48 x 52 inches, 2017
Still waiting, oil on canvas, 78 x 96 inches, 2016
Cathalyst, oil on canvas, 72 x 96 inches, 2017
First sight, oil on canvas, 52 x 48 inches, 2017
Transition # 4, oil on canvas, 52 x 48 inches, 2017
Transition # 4, oil on canvas, 52 x 48 inches, 2017
Deep sea, oil on canvas, 48 x 52 inches, 2017
Spring lights, oil on canvas, 52 x 48 inches, 2017
Phase, oil on canvas, 48 x 52 inches, 2017
Black and white colored, oil on canvas, 48 x 60 inches, 2017
Passing moon, oil on canvas, 52 x 48 inches, 2017
Blue sea, oil on canvas, 24 x 30, 2017
When the bird sing, oil on canvas, 24 x 30, 2017
Glory rise # 2, oil on canvas, 30 x 24, 2017
Glory rise, oil on canvas, 30 x 24, 2017
Balancing #5, oil on canvas, 48 x 48 inches, 2017
Still rising, oil on canvas, 48x 48 inches, 2017
Seafaring, oil on canvas, 48 x 48 inches, 2017
Ice, oil on canvas, 52 x 48 inches, 2017
Blue path, oil on wood, 12 x 12 inches, 2017
Far Beyond, oil on canvas, 24 x 24 inches, 2017
Celestial # 3, oil on wood, 12 x 12 inches, 2017
Emanation, oil on canvas, 24 x 24 inches, 2017
Great-plains, oil on wood, 12 x 12 inches, 2017
Euphoria, oil on canvas, 24 x 24 inches, 2017.jpg
EDUCATION 1976 - 1882
Messineo Art Project, New York, NY
National School of Fine Arts, D.R.
2007 Peg Alston Fine Art, New York, NY
Art Students League, New York, NY
Madelyn Jordon Fine Art, Scarsdale, NY
1988, 1990
Messieno Art Project, New York, NY
SELECTED SOLO EXHIBITIONS:
Wyman Contemporary, New York, NY
2017 Stella Jones Gallery, New Orleans, LA
2006 Sande Webster Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
Madelyn Jordon Fine Art, Scarsdale, NY
Peg Alston Fine Art, New York, NY
2016 Stella Jones Gallery, New Orleans, LA
Parish Gallery, Washington, DC
2015 Madelyn Jordon Fine Art, Scarsdale, NY NNamdi Contemporary, Miami, FL
2005 G.R. N’Namdi Gallery, Chicago, IL JoySmith Gallery, Memphis, TN Madelyn Jordon, Scarsdale, NY
2014 Stella Jones Gallery, New Orleans, LA
Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN
2012 Madelyn Jordon Fine Art, Scarsdale, NY
2004 Morris Museum, Morristown, NJ
The Allentown Art Museum, Allentown, PA
G.R. N’Namdi Gallery, Chicago, IL
2011 Messineo Art Project, New York, NY
Concordia University Museum, MI
Wyman Contemporary, New York, NY 2010 G.R. N’Namdi Gallery, Chicago, IL
Stella Jones Gallery New, Orleans, LA 2003 JoySmith Gallery, Memphis, TN G.R. N’Namdi Gallery, Detroit, MI
2009 Sande Webster Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
Stella Jones Gallery, New Orleans, LA
Wallace Fine Art, Long Boat Key, FL
Parish Gallery, Washington, DC
2008 Sande Webster Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
2002 Corbino Galleries, Longboat Key, FL
G.R. N’Namdi Gallery, Chicago, IL
2001 Corbino Galleries, Longboat Key, FL
Parish Gallery, Washington, DC
Simon Gallery, Morristown, NJ
Infinity, Art Gallery, New York, NY
Bomani Gallery, San Francisco, CA
1987 Centro de la Cultura, Santiago, DR
2000 Leonora Kreiger Gallery, New York, NY 1999 Simon Gallery, Morristown, NJ G.R. N’Namdi Galleries, Chicago, IL Stella Jones Gallery, New Orleans, LA Bender Gallery, Atlanta, Georgia J.Rainey Gallery, Detroit, MI 1998 Corbino Galleries, Longboat Key, FL Parish Gallery, Georgetown, Washington, DC Virgina Miller Gallery, Miami, FL Bender Gallery, Atlanta, GA 1997 Parish Gallery, Georgetown, Washington, DC Stella Jones Gallery, New Orleans, LA Sindin Galleries, New York, NY Corbino Galleries, Longboat Key, FL 1996 Corbino Galleries, Sarasota, FL La Vita Gallery, Philadelphia, PA Drew Cryst Gallery, Sparta, NJ 1995 Arden Gallery, Boston, MA
1985 Dominican American Institute of Culture, Santo Domingo, DR 1982 The Reserved Bank of the Dominican Republic Santo Domingo, DR
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS: 2015 Madelyn Jordon Fine Art, Scarsdale, N.Y. NNamdi Art Center, Detroit, Michigan Peg Alston Fine Arts, New York, N.Y. 2011 Philharmonic Art Center, Naples, FL Parish Gallery, Washington, DC Sande Webster Gallery, Philadelphia, PA 2010 G.R. N’Namdi Art Center, Detroit, ML 2007 G.R.N’Namdi Gallery, Seven Voices, New York, NY Parish Gallery, Group show, Washington DC 2004 G.R.N’Namdi Gallery, Art Miami, Miami, FL G.R. N’Namdi Gallery, New York, NY Henoch Gallery, New York, NY
Medicci Art Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
Stella Jones Gallery, BAF, New York, NY
Drew Cryst Gallery, Sparta, NJ
2002 Morris Museum, Morristown, NJ
1993
A.A.F. New York, G.R. N’Namdi Gallery, NY
Stella Jones Gallery, New York, NY Kenkeleba Gallery, New York, NY 2001 Corbino Galleries, Longboat Key, FL Stella Jones Gallery, New York, NY Stella Jones, Gallery, New Orleans, LA
1994 Carib Art Gallery, New York, New York 1993 Arden Gallery, Boston, Massachusetts 1992 Jacob Javitts Center, New York, New York 1991 Museum of Modern Art, Santo Domingo, DR
Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ Madelyn Jordon Fine Arts, Scarsdale, NY 2000 Corbino Galleries, Longboat Key, Florida Bender Fine Art, Atlanta, G.R. N’Namdi gallery, Chicago, IL Parish Gallery, Washington, DC 1999 Corbino Galleries, Longboat Key, Florida Ira Pinto Gallery, Washington, DC Parish Gallery, Georgetown, Washington, DC Amalia Mahony, Chicago, Illinois 1988 Ringling Museum of Art, Sarasota, Florida Philharmonic Center for the Arts, Naples, FL Simon Gallery, Morristwon, New Jersey Brenda Kroos Gallery, Cleveland, Ohio Art Vancouver, BC Stella Jones Gallery 1987 Sindin Galleries, New York, New York Simon Gallery, Morristown, New Jersey 1995 Corbino Galleries, Sarasota, Florida
SELECTED PUBLIC COLLECTIONS: Arizona State University Art Museum, Tempe, Arizona Dillar University, New Orleans, Louisiana Dominican America Institute of Culture, Santo Domingo, DR Latin American Museum of Modern Art, Washington, DC Museum of Modern Art, Santo Domingo, DR Morris Museum, Morristown, New Jersey The Reserved Bank of the Dominican Republic, Santo Domingo, DR
ANTONIO CARREÑO
INSTINCT
BEYOND THE PROCESS OF THINKING
STELLA JONES GALLERY 201 St. Charles Avenue, New Orleans, LA 70170 Phone: (504) 568-9050 www.stellajonesgallery.com