JOURNEY LINES, la bipersonale ad Avellino (English version)

Dal 16 MAGGIO AL 16 GIUGNO 2019, la Mostra bipersonale degli artisti statunitensi Caroline Geys e Brian Murphy, curata da Anna Dusi,  presso AXRT Contemporary Gallery di Avellino, in via Mancini 19

Intervista a Anna Dusi, Caroline Geys,  Brian Murphy  (with English version)

Si è svolto sera il vernissage della mostra dei due artisti americani. Li incontro durante l’allestimento della mostra e mi concedono un po’ del loro tempo per una intervista.

Cominciamo con la curatrice Anna Dusi

Come mai ad Avellino? Nasce dal contatto con i TTZOI questa mostra?

Certo. Abbiamo da due anni una bellissima collaborazione anche se li conosco da diverso tempo. Curo artisti sia italiani che internazionali e ho sempre avuto la voglia di portare arte in città di provincia o in realtà nelle quali c’è bisogno di promuovere anche gli artisti internazionali. Così, quando a Stefano è piaciuto il mondo di Brian and Caroline e mi ha proposto di fare una loro personale ho accettato volentieri.

 Leggo dalla sua presentazione che è la prima volta che i due artisti espongono insieme.

Si, questa è la prima volta. Il mondo di Caroline è legato a questo rigore geometrico e quello di Brian è invece più spontaneo, più informale, più organico per cui unirli mi sembrava un bel contrasto. È come avere due vie parallele che, però, ad un certo momento, si incontrano in un unico punto che è poi l’astratto.

 La mostra che cosa comprende?

Abbiamo dei lavori di acrilico su tela di Caroline, invece quelli di Brian sono molto materici, sono creazioni formate da strati di varie pennellate di acrilico, di gesso. In ognuno ci sono almeno cinque strati.

Ci saranno altre tappe in Italia?

Lo spero. Questo per noi è un inizio. Brian ha già fatto un’esposizione a Milano lo scorso anno e se riusciamo a fare un discorso itinerante anche con Caroline sarà una bella cosa per entrambi.

Loro sono americani?

Caroline è nata in Belgio ma è da quando aveva un anno che vive in Florida. Brian è californiano puro. Io sono di Milano ma vivo da 17 anni a Los Angeles.

Nell’intervista agli artisti essi mi raccontano qualcosa delle loro opere. Caroline trae ispirazione dal modo in cui gli elementi che compongono le città si combinano in maniera differente e da come essi possano avere sguardi differenti. I colori vivaci, che lei usa nei suoi quadri, vogliono rappresentare la positività mentre le forme geometriche sono i diversi componenti delle costruzioni e i tanti tipi di strutture che si incontrano.

L’opera di Brian è, come ha già anticipato la curatrice, molto diversa da quella di Caroline. Brian mi racconta di usare un materiale molto duro che costituisce una scultura in formato di pittura. In particolare chiedo qualcosa in più su Wound: ferite, e mi spiega che vuole essere un suggerimento di un processo emotivo. Si parte da una linea imperfetta che è una traccia. In genere lavora su un pezzo dalle 15 alle 17 ore e a volte lo lascia per poi riprenderlo. Poichè devono asciugarsi, ne crea diversi nello stesso momento.

Interview to Caroline Geys e Brian Murphy

Caroline, what is abstract painting for you?

For me it’s a combination of architecture  and topography and elements that make up a city and how there are different connnections between the different elements. You’re walking down the street and you see a building, you see the people walking on the streets;  if you’re in an airplane you look down on the city and see how everything is connected all into one.

In fact I can see a lot of geometrical figures, a triangle  for example. The colours are really brilliant as life is beautiful.

Thank you. For me colour is  something that gives me a positive feeling that I want to translate into my work. The bright, vivid colours give a feeling of brightness and positivity.  Also as  far as this  series goes there is a combination between these paintings which have layers and layers of different  paintings ; so what the painting was originally was completely different from what the end result is as opposed to something like this that is more contrived. I’m Belgian  from the old city of Antwerp,  but from the research I did on Avellino  I feel that in an old  city like Avellino there are so many different layers from all the years the city has been standing.

What city is this?

A city in the USA has been around for about  200 years while a city in Europe has been around for centuries. So I feel that these pieces have more of a history because there are layers and layers of painting whereas this is  more like a new part of the city or a new city where the architecture for instance  is all new.

If I have understood well, as the landscapes change your paintings change. Am I right? Are you an architect?

No,but I worked for architecture firms in marketing for 12 years.  Alongside I was always painting and creating and so it had a really big influence as well as my father being a land developer.  Architecture and design have always  been a big part of my life.  I feel that as  Brian and I are both from Los Angeles and we are in Avellino, a beautiful city that has been around for centuries, these paintings that have more layers and layers remind me of a city that has so much history versus you know L.A. that has  only been around for a hundred  and something years, it has something of more new; look to what the city is in comparison to a city like Avellino.

These are different sites. This is higher than this one; that is a rectangular form while this is square.  Is there a meaning in this?

I think variation of sizes and of depths give the creation of a city being made up of so many different components. In my works I think there is importance of consistancy with colours and shapes but there is  still so much  density and volume like there is in a city, for instance in the States or in certain parts like the suburbs where you go into a development of houses and all the houses are the same and I don’t like that. I like that cities that can be made up of all these different components and types of architecture and structures that are made up of different shapes.

Which types of colours do you use when you paint?

Acrylic and also markers and pens.

Do you draw with a pencil before you paint?

No, most of them are  with tape. Look, you just  tape it off, at least these kinds of shapes. The bottom layers are more abstract  when you look at the more organic shapes versus the linear; my work is always a combination between organic and linear and it depends on my mood. I feel that when I don’t want to be restricted  I have more of the organic shapes and when I feel like I want to be more structured in my surroundings that I have more of the linear shapes.

Why are you here in Avellino?

Anna and I started working together last year, she presented us with  the opportunity to show in Avellino and show us the curriculum from Stefano. I said absolutely yes. I came to Italy for the first time in 1996 with my father and while we  we  didn’t visit Avellino we went to various cities in Italy: we went  to the vernissage in the Venice Biennale in 1996. I also was with someone from Torino for four years and we were in Miami together but I also came out to Italy. I have always  felt very connected to Italy and to the culture, the people and the history.

After looking at his works I ask Bryan if they are painted?

They are paintings but in essence they are sculptures in a painting format. The materiali is epoxy which is a very hard glue I used to doing other jobs. It was initially an experiment. I started using this by accident and liked it; it worked out very well. So the process as well as the paintings are very organic, very in the moment.

How much time do you take to create one of these?

An average piece takes 10-15 hours probably more, 17 to more, plus or minus.

Do you leave for a moment or for some days and then go back again?

I work on a lot of pieces at the same tme, part of this is because of the process: you have to wait it to dry. The other part is because I just get tired of one and I just keep working in circles.

What about this? Why is it empty here?

So, the title of the piece  you are asking about is “Wounds”.   The direction Anne, our curator,  gave us. My work is the beginning of geometry, the beginning  of the lines. So in the beginning it’s not perfect, so  traces  of geometry , traces that  means it was  eithor before or after , it’s worn out, you can’t see it. So this is a line, a line,……imperfection.  So a wound, emotional wounds, physical wounds. It’s a suggestion of an emotional process, a physical action.

Thanks a lot.

I would like to thank  Giuseppina Maria Manganelli for her valuable collaboration in transcribing the English language.

La mostra rimane aperta dal martedi al venerdi dalle 17 alle 20, e sabato e domenica dalle 10 alle13 e dalle 18 alle 20.30.

Maria Paola Battista

@riproduzione riservata WWWITALI.EU