January 17- March 31, 2017
AREA Gallery
This winter we are pleased to highlight Clint Fulkerson’s geometrical investigations by complementing his recent public art commission on the Gorham campus with an exhibition of his two-dimensional art in the AREA Gallery in the Woodbury Campus Center on our Portland campus. Fluid Geometry abstract paintingThe exhibition Fluid Geometry includes a new linear wall drawing as well as 15 paintings. It is no surprise that tech companies, the general public, and art critics respond to his imagery suggestive of neural networks, the earth’s organic formations, and the dynamics of motion observed in a drop of paint. Curator and painter Mark Wethli states ”Reminiscent of early Renaissance perspective drawings by Piero or Uccello, or the wireframe drawings used today in computer generated imagery, Fulkerson employs his own version of this graphic language to create his signature compositions of obsessively drawn, improvisational, and volumetric designs.” Fulkerson improvises off his own rules much like the processes of nature he depicts. Perhaps thus is why his linear compositions teem with life. —Carolyn Eyler, USM Director of Exhibitions and Programs
Artist Statement:
My artwork features complex patterns and forms made by an accumulation of hand-drawn marks. Each new mark is applied in response to the previous one and so on. For each piece, I set up a starting condition and devise a set of rules, which are much like algorithms, that limit what and how forms develop. Beginning a piece is a moment of unlimited potential, and the final results are often unexpected, which I find extremely exciting. I use this emergent process regardless of the media I choose, and I typically make drawings, prints, and paintings closely related to the artistic tradition of geometric abstraction.
As I work, I force myself to slow down and consider each moment in the present. This allows me to contemplate a myriad of influences and integrate them both intentionally and subconsciously in the placement of the marks. Some of these influences come specifically from science, math, and information technology, but more generally from my innate curiosity about the fundamental aspects of existence. My concerns are similar to those of the theoretical physicist or metaphysical philosopher, but I explore my ideas through the intuitive manipulation of art materials. –Clint Fulkerson