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This â‚Źrnerging drtist is d.edicated to quality, craftsrnanship arud
traditiondl
style. he inspiration
for
Eric Hammert new exhibition at Arcadia Fine Arts in New York comes
from those shows
that
preceded it.
"I
come into each new
series as a reinvention of my previous work, it's a personal
ladder that I keep building," says Hammer. "I develop my
paintings from what comes before, Everything. \7hat I loved and hated From previous
shows
all come together to
develop my current work."
Hammer's new show involves portraits oFwomen in uhar he:ees a: small, intimatc
moments that people usually
dont
share
with one another.
"There is a sense of humanity in these works," says Hammer. "Something
quier and gentle, a lrroment immortalized
riny
in
an
instant. And there is no eye contact, so it gives you that sense that you
dont know
if
you should look at it or not."
Hammer
re
fers to
his
image: as modcrn day saints
and believes that
the
anonymity of the models in the works reinforces his beliefs
of them serving as a sort of symbol or icon of something larger than life. SarNr No. 43,
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CANVAS,
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"I'm painting women that no one knows, so I'm using them as an ideal," says Hammer. "You can never get away from the feeling that this is a person,
and you
re
alize the power
another person has, and how an expression can be a source o[por,rer. People usually ignoLe
the most important thing about anothcr person."
Hammel began
his
education as a painter at the Museum School of Fine Art in
Boston, but soon found out that what he was learning had no impecr on his painring
career. Hc soon
became
disenchanted with the style of painting he was being taught and decided to leave and learn on his own. "School should be a place
where you gct rhe tools you
need ro become a good painter, and every ar-tist rebels against what they are being taught, but at the school we were being taught rebellion, so
how do you rebel againrr rebellion?" says Hammer. "You do so by painting with quality, with craftsmanship and with a tladitional style. I was angry at whar I was secing and wanted to do something in the opposite direction."
And this quality is what Hammer would like people to look for in his new show. "I want people to see rhe
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craft involved
in the work," says Hammer. "I want them
dusry in the studio."
to be able to understand
something that
the language ofpainting, to learn all the words. "You don't need
a text to
appreciate these
paintings, what
I
wanted to say isnt supported by theory. I want them to see the qualiry, to think that it reminds them of somebody beautiful. I want
to
produce something they love, not something that gets
For Hammer, painting
hours a day, everyday of is
is a
chore, he works at
something that everyday of his life.
"I'll
be doing this forever," says Hammer. "There is an incredible amount of intensiry that goes with my work, a lot
of blood and
torment. I'm never satisfied with what I do. I'm constantly working and reworking.
I do this sixteen
my life." Hammer believes that his
paintings lose
a little
in
translation from a painting to a printed image, so he thinks they need to be seen in person
to appreciate their true color and complexity. "In person, there is much depth to them because the darks are glazes ofblack paint,
but to print that
"depth"
all midrangehappy and gray. Photos cant show the full spectrum that makes them
oil painting can. A photo of my work will always only be
hint of the true
a
painting. They are proud paintings, but shy when a camera comes out," says Hammer. O For a direct linh to tbe exhibiting gallery go to
The Gallery Says .
.
"'$7hat Eric's paintings have is soUL AND TRUTH. He is able to strip away the cosmetic, physical beauty of the women who pose for him and reveal the raw, emotional truth of the subject."
-
Steue
Diamant, Director, Arcadia Gallery