On the Curve

On the Curve is a group exhibition exploring curvilinear works by Constance Lowe, Jesse Amado, Andrés Ferrandis, Nicolás Leiva, Nate Cassie, Laura Anderson Barbata, Ricky Armendariz and Ethel Shipton.

In the history of art, the circle, sphere, and oval have represented many things such as the cosmos, cycle of life, infinity and renewal. In 1933, the Argentinian-born artist Lucio Fontana explains his series of punctured oval canvases, entitled End of God, as “infinite, something inconceivable, the end of figurative representation, the beginning of nothing.” Previously, the same elliptical form had been used for centuries as spiritual expressions of Christianity in mandorlas, vesicas, and halos.

In contemporary art, circles are prominent in works such as Damien Hirst’s Spot paintings, a systematically spaced series of color harmony studies, and Anish Kapoor’s monochromatic and concaved circular forms that give an illusion of limitlessness while encouraging audience participation. The eight artists in On the Curve delve into curvilinear shapes and forms with a bold intellectual and playful practice using art history as an impetus.

Constance Lowe works in the legacy of formalism and geometric abstraction and infuses her practice with the influences of her Midwestern upbringing. Jesse Amado utilizes forms and materials as commentaries on the ambiguities of modern society. Andrés Ferrandis' new works are part of an installation made of organically circular abstractions on paper. Nicolás Leiva’s new round aluminum works are painted repoussés that use a vocabulary of pure fantasy and cosmic inspiration. Both Nate Cassie and Ethel Shipton’s artworks carry innate, intuitive systems accompanied with a formal and conceptual practice. Laura Anderson Barbata’s drawings and sculptures are full of vibrancy and are a platform for explorations of cultural perspectives. Ricky Armendariz melds contemporary cultural symbols with icons of an ancestral past using figurative and animalistic expressions. On the Curve combines a group of artists all approaching creativity in a sinuous fashion.

View Exhibition on Artsy

On the curve interviews:

jesse amado

ricky armendariz

ethel shipton

nate cassie

constance lowe