Chace-Randall Gallery proudly presents Chop Wood, Carry Water, new works by Grant Collier, Oct 1 – Nov 14. A Reception for the Artist is Saturday. Oct 2, 5 - 7 p.m.
Working in oil on canvas, Mr. Collier’s gorgeous figurative paintings capture both Catskill Mountain life and light. Brushy and varied in hue, his large scale portraits are minimalist in imagery, yet powerful and deep. His more intricate portraits dip deep into the soul of his subject.
The theme of this exhibition, Chop Wood, Carry Water, stems from Indian ideals of enlightenment. “When I returned to India last summer I was revisiting some of the commonalities of both my western ideals with those of my new-found excitement for Buddhist enlightenment tales,” explains the artist, adding that it is these tales, rather than Hindi and Buddhist religious imagery that truly excite him. Collier poured through texts and attended classes at a nearby Temple, finding that religious images of these cultures stimulated him on an intellectual level only. “I would go home a bit confused and disappointed that I hadn't felt the ‘ah-ha!’ I had felt on my previous trips,” he notes.
Feeling a bit defeated, Collier checked into the Taj Mahal for a night a pure luxury. “While in my terrycloth robe, having tea, I was shuffling through the endless photos of poverty I had just experienced in northern India. I then picked up the paper next to me and saw an article entitled ‘Nothing Extraordinary Happened Today.’ A few paragraphs in I found the quote ‘Before enlightenment, chop wood carry water. After enlightenment, chop wood carry water.’ In whatever way these paintings came from that experience,” he concludes.
The extraordinary is to be found in this new body of work.
Grant Collier was raised in a family of artists and holds a BFA from the Art Center College of Design, Los Angeles. He is the winner of the Mary Pickford Portrait Competition in Los Angeles which began a short career as portraitist to Buddy Rogers, Roy Rogers, Buddy Ebsen, and Mary Pickford for the Mary Pickford Foundation. He has exhibited in Los Angeles, Dallas, Houston, Austin, TX, and New York City. In 1996 he became interested in the digital and interactive arts and followed the new medium to New York where he became Creative Director in several design agencies. For the past 6 years Collier has returned to fine art and was awarded studio space at the Elizabeth Foundation for the Arts in Manhattan.
Chace-Randall Gallery is located at 49 Main Street, Andes, New York. Gallery Hours: Friday - Sunday and Holiday Mondays 11 - 5, and by appointment. For more information call 845.676.4901 or visit www.chacerandallgallery.com.
