CJ Lori at the Lyman-Eyer Gallery: Tally-Ho

The Lyman-Eyer Gallery is pleased to present CJ Lori's new work. You may peruse all of CJ's neosurrealistic paintings on our web site http://www.lymaneyerart.com/. CJ Lori shares her thoughts with the viewer... "I paint a tree or landscape as a metaphoric portrait in which we can see ourselves. In branches, fields and water are patterns of repetition and cycles of time that echo in our lives on levels both visual and innate. Through my paintings, I try to reconcile the strength and beauty with the vulnerability and decay faced by all living things – to simultaneously celebrate splendor while acknowledging its inevitable ruin. I also explore issues of perception and memory. The desire to have another see through my eyes is a compelling motivation. To me, painting is a form of communication through which I try to convey my experience in a way that the viewer will see what I see and feel what I feel. I exaggerate or distort color, form and composition to emphasize sensations and elicit questions. Memory distorts reality by its very nature, shifting, selecting and discarding without conscious decision. The process of painting is like visual memory in action, with the ability and motivation for more deliberate choices. For example, I juxtapose the image of a sculpted human head in front of a landscape. It is painted with the same color palette, yet the head is so close in the foreground that it appears separate. Is it confronting the viewer or a passive element in a scene? Is it part of a figure standing in the landscape or is that head in a different plane of existence? Similar questions are raised when the underground is made visible and by the squares within the composition of certain paintings. The image in the square relates to the rest of the landscape, but it has been altered. The proximity, season, time of day or mood has shifted. Which are we to believe? How can either one be true if they exist together? If they are both true, then what else is true that we cannot see? Do we feel confused or delighted by the addition? These “windows” are reminders of both subjective perception and infinite possibility. My primary medium is oil paint on canvas, wood or panel. Paint is applied in many layers, building and adding nuance through color. Occasionally I layer acrylic paint with texture gels and crushed mica to create the effect of looking beyond a rock wall in the foreground. I often work with tiny brushes for fine detail. I find satisfaction in intricacy, because it appeals to me viscerally, and because it parallels some of the complexities I am trying to capture and express in my work."