Jean Feinberg: Paintings

The work of Jean Feinberg was exhibited at the John Davis Gallery from December 4th through December 22nd.  

 "This work, representing a new direction for me, merges minimalism, construction, and my ongoing interest in abstraction, with some of my deepest experiences of color as it relates to place. It has been decisively influenced by my move to the Hudson Valley with its ever-changing light and color. Though I am not interested in expressing this grandeur as the Hudson River painters did a century ago, I am attempting to capture and hold in a modern way, through color, that light and beauty.

 The lyrical translations of color, value, and intensity represent what became a growing interest in the intricacies and subtleties of the color/light experience.  Initially notated as landscape watercolor sketches done during a period when I was not working in the studio, I did not have any particular intention or way of using them or a thought as to how this activity might influence my studio work.  However when I resumed working, I found I was able to bring the color observations made in direct response to the light in the landscape into a non-objective form. This delight in the play of value and color intensity manifests itself whether I am using the landscape notations, or “found” color in the form of paint chips and colored papers, which I also use while working.

My intention in making the oil paint very matt and light absorbent is to give it a more physical presence and intense saturation. In contrast to the found wood, the color is often a decisive reiteration and/or elaboration of the colors imbedded in those wooden pieces.

 The fascination with using salvaged wood pieces also began with my move to West Taghkanic. My house was built two generations ago and when I moved in I found a basement full of tools, the property full of old out buildings, and a house pretty much intact as it was left. Little by little the salvaged wood, old windows, and found colors, began to creep into my work.

 I think there is a sparse sense of geometry and a lush, rich, and complex color sense to this work. Though the term “constructions” probably best describes what I am doing, I consider the pieces more related to painting than sculpture because of the relationship to the wall plane and the frontal orientation characteristic of traditional painting."

Jean Feinberg, 2008