VISUAL ARTS + MUSEUMS

Buchanan Gallery presents  Margaret Smithers-Crump:  Open Endings, on view 10/9/2010 - 11/20/2010. The exhibit features new mixed media paintings on acrylic by Houston artist Margaret Smithers-Crump for ArtWalk, Saturday, October 9th, 6-9PM. We will also be hosting a Special Patrons' Preview Evening Friday, October 8th, 6-8PM.

We are also, proud to announce a new partnership with Del Papa Distributing. Each Artwalk, we will be offering a sampling of a particular artisianal beer. This month, in celebration of Oktoberfest, we're featuring Warsteiner Oktoberfest.

Artist Statement:
A Clear Choice…..

Time and change are concepts that haunt and fascinate me. I am fascinated by the endless variety of living things in motion and how they alter over time. I am haunted by the certain knowledge that this process will end with death. My work focuses on arresting or slowing down the progression of change and results in imagery appearing in a state of suspension. This approach allows ones' senses the luxury of fully exploring a unique visual experience. For me, the floating imagery I create becomes a kind of magical place; a kind of theater that creates its own rules.

I achieve this illusion of suspension by working with clear acrylic or what most people call 'plexiglas'. The translucent nature of the acrylic is an ideal material for expressing conditions of time and change and its depth and dimension creates the theatrical effect of an interior space. I begin by altering the surface so that it resembles polished beach glass and often use chemicals, heat and abrasives to add character. I then paint and draw on both sides of the acrylic using a variety of media. Viewed from the front, the two sides optically fuse creating a wonderful sense of movement and depth.

Shapes, lines and colors shift back and forth moving through space like forms in a kaleidoscope. The thickness of the plexiglas enhances the dimensional quality and also creates an unexpected, intriguing tension. Although the lines and shapes appear to move inside the material, they are simultaneously frozen and suspended within it like objects in ice. Much of my work contains imagery of water, air and light. Their buoyant, floating nature allows for motion, yet stalls gravity. Atmospheres are often misty and ambiguous attempting to confound the sense of time and place.

Transitions of light and allusions to seasons are usually depicted at their most elusive moments. Light is crucial to my work and I often use it metaphorically. Even the physical presentation of the artwork is designed to capitalize on the perception of light and gravity. The works appear to hover weightlessly over the support surface or wall. I achieve this effect by mounting the work with offsets. This approach also enhances the luminosity of the plexiglas and creates a softly diffused effect. With the clear acrylic, I am able to push my thematic interests to new dimensions with endless possibilities. It is indeed the clear choice.

Margaret Smithers-Crump, 2010

Pictured above:  Seeks Its Own Course, 2010.