Georgi Tushev
Magnetized paintings expose eerie abstractions
Bulgarian artist Georgi Tushev creates magnetic landscapes, his forms simultaneously recalling nebulous cells and galactic moonscapes to strike a precarious balance between painting and sculptural art. With a body of work that ranges from pixelated paintings of vintage porn stills to portraits of Victorian-style rock stars, Tushev now presents “Ace of Spades“, a collection of new work at the Fitzroy Gallery in SoHo that explores the exotic landscapes of his signature look.
Tushev begins by taping the perimeter of his canvas to create a kind of sealed holding tank into which he pours oil paint with a high concetration of iron before exposing the black soup to a high-powered magnet. After the paint smokes and settles, bizarre formations settle on the canvas. The result is a combination of skillful artistic control and sheer chance, leaving circular fields of monochromatic topography.
For his works on paper, the artist likewise magnetizes watercolor paint, allowing the forces to separate his material into pure blacks, grays and whites. Concentric rings come together to create spectral forms which seem to reveal ghostly portraits, protean nuclei and terrestrial craters within the arrangement of pigment on canvas.
“Ace of Spades is on view at the Fitzroy Gallery through 13 July 2012. See Tushev at work in this video, and find more images from the exhibition in our slideshow
Fitzroy Gallery
77 Mercer Street
New York, NY 10012
