Bowery Gallery is pleased to announce an exhibition of new paintings by Nagib Nahas Sept. 5 – 30.
This is the artist’s third solo show at the gallery, Nagib Nahas’ previous two shows featured urban and suburban street views. Now Nahas has turned his gaze to Nature specifically scenes of Maine. More than half of the works on display are of the Boothbay region and Mount Desert Island in Maine where he alternates vacations. This follows a long standing preference to depict locations that he has a connection with.
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Cabin—Boothbay, 2014, oil on canvas, 30”x40”
The artist considers the depiction of natural forms—trees in particular—and their harmonious integration in a pictorial composition to be the dominant concern of his recent work.
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View of Cadillac Mountain—MT Desert Island, 2016, oil on canvas, 30”x40”
In describing his process, Nahas says he works primarily from photographs that he takes with the intention that they will be used as source material for a painting. He takes many photos of a location before he goes to work on the painting. He says, “The process starts by selecting an image that corresponds to my current formal or representational interests. This is followed by exploratory drawings in which I try to acquire a thorough understanding of the pictorial volume and the forms that occupy it”.
Ship Ahoy—Boothbay, 2015, oil on canvas, 30”x40”
In landscape painting, Nahas says that he is interested in qualities of climate and of atmosphere ….that which we normally sense with our skin as much as with our eyes. For him this is the foundation. It is the concepts formed from the felt experience that determine the chromatic composition of the painted image. For Nahas this is more authentic than the tonal data recorded in the photograph. Which is to say, there is no comparison!
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View of Cadillac Mountain—MT Desert Island, 2016, oil on canvas, 30”x40”
Nahas states, “ I ultimately paint an idea of a landscape subject. At best, it is a synthetic activity of study and imagination. At worst, it is an exercise in transcription. Sometimes, the outcome of this activity may seem vivid enough to suggest that a painting is a direct, or even spontaneous, response to a present subject. But the actual process is more deliberate and complicated”.
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Ocean Point—Boothbay, 2016, oil on canvas, 32”x40”
Nahas admits that Nature and natural forms are hard to capture. “I have tried different approaches, in search of more effective solutions, but they continue to resist the effort and to stand aloof in their inscrutable perfection.”
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88 Street—Bay Ridge, 2016, oil on canvas, 30”x40
The work may come out of deliberation and study but there is an exuberance and vitality in Nahas paintings which captures the essence of Nature. It is what Matisse talked about in an often quoted letter to Robert Clive. “An artist must possess Nature. He must identify himself with her rhythm…”
On the other hand David Smith the American abstract expressionist sculptor and painter had his own thoughts about Nature. In a prepared list of questions meant to challenge his students he posed the question: “ Are you saddled with nature propaganda? Are you afraid to exercise vision, seek surprise?”
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In Nagib Nahas new show, we see a contemporary response to David Smith’s challenge. With these new paintings Nahas honors Nature while simultaneously exercising his vision, and sharing surprises he found along the way. This highly personal interpretation of Nature is brilliant.
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Street—Allentown, 2015, oil on canvas, 30”x42”
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The show dates are: September 5 – September 30, 2017.
The opening reception is 5 – 8 PM Thursday September 7, 2017.
530 West 25th Street, 4th floor
NY, NY 10001
Gallery hours: Tues-Sat 11-6pm. For more information, call 646-230-6655
–DIANE DRESCHER
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