Hill Art Foundation, Jordan Casteel: Field of View
Jordan Casteel’s exhibition, Field of View, captures subjects across her years of practice through New York’s diverse backdrops from Harlem to bustling gardens in the Hudson Valley. Her large scale oil paintings take over every wall, displaying portraits of Black subjects meeting the gaze of the viewer. The eyes of her subjects are soft and inviting. An emphasis is shown on familial dynamics with multiple representations of fathers with infants. Scattered seating areas accompany Casteel’s work bringing the viewer into the domestic environment displayed across the paintings. The armchairs and rugs were made up of a variety of floral patterns reflecting the colorful palette and vegetation in her works.
The figures and thriving gardens in Casteel’s works are brought to life with her choice of vivid colors and bold brush strokes. Her assured hand taking up only one layer of paint highlights her deep connection to her subjects. She paints them easily, confidently capturing their essence. She leaves the underpainting to shine through like specks of light, letting the viewer peer into the layers of each work, mirroring how the viewer is let into the intimacies of the subject's internal life. She uses her brightest colors in these breaths of transparency.
Within Casteel’s work she lets the Black subject shine aiding in representation of Black people in domestic environments especially those like gardening and presentations of loving Black fathers. It seems Artists of Color are pressured to discuss profound narratives about their struggles as minorities through their art. This pressure leaves out moments of representation which are just as important as societal commentary.
ReplyDeleteI have found your emphasis on the techniques used by the artist in making the work very useful. It makes for a learning experience for the reader. I could connect with the artist’s attempt to infuse life into her work through her vivid color palette and bold brushstrokes. The review is easy going, evokes a feeling of warmth and reflective of casual, mundane, daily life. (Priyanka Dey#)
You create a very clear image of her painting technique and work in general which is helpful when imagining the work, specifically the mention of brush strokes and inclusion of underpainting. I also enjoy how you explain how the gallery is set up and how this aids in the feeling created by the work.
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