Transitions of Time
October 5 – November 11, 2017
Preview Reception: October 5, 5:00 – 8:30 pm
First Friday: October 6, 5:00 – 8:30 pm
“John David paints the landscape in a way that has always encouraged us to take a closer look at the beauty of the planet – even on those days when tension or conflict among the elements takes residence.”
Of all the concerns involved in putting together a show, I would rank agreeing on a title not only one of my least enjoyable tasks, but usually one of the most difficult. John David paints the landscape in a way that has always encouraged us to take a closer look at the beauty of the planet – even on those days when tension or conflict among the elements takes residence. That means all of the elements. It seems ironic that we choose the name “landscape” when the sky and light have equal roles, and without them, our landscape is not balanced or sensible.
The selection of work for this show began with a visit to the artist’s studio, always an honor. With this particular visit, we seemed to be drawn to those paintings and drawings where the horizon line sinks, the land becomes secondary and is represented with only those marks necessary to make the suggestion that it exists. The sky and light is what these paintings are about. That seemed obvious, and so the title Wissler: Sky and Light was natural and fitting. For once, the title task – easy and accomplished…but not complete.
During our first gallery work session, the paintings were being seen as a single entity for the first time. The youngest member of our team, Samantha, unknowingly brought the title to life and completion. Her observation was a simple and honest notion. These paintings are of that time between the changing of day to night or vice versa that has no definition, no expectations, no boundaries or realities except the inevitableness that there will be surprises, gone quickly as either day or night takes it place. They are a visual poetry of Transitions of Time.
Maybe that transition is a horizontal moment as in the “Above Spring Meadows” paintings or the emergence of depth and spontaneity of an abrupt moment as seen in the studio painting “Air and Storm”( which denies any typical perception of a studio painted landscape). It’s not always tangible, the drawings “Rising” or “Westward” say everything without the need to define anything. There is no need to explain why, there is no plan for the transition to happen, it simply does.
If we allow ourselves to remember, we have seen these moments. In these times, when our days are filled with anguish, our nights with anxiety, I look to paintings such as these to take me to the moments in between, to defy how history will record these days and nights. These paintings will be live beyond our time. I am confident that they can change the course, if we choose to live by their poetry. John David, those artists, all speaking to you… never stop listening!