Layered work at Riverviews
By Casey Gillis on Jan. 03, 2008
Richmond-based artist Valerie Bogdan says she likes to work with drips and splashes to add texture to her colorful abstract paintings.
“When you stand in front of them, the surfaces are really detail-oriented and are complex because you have all these layers,” she says. “All my paintings are very texture-oriented. Lumpy and chunky, and soft and smooth. They are very tactile.”
A selection of Bogdan’s work will be on display at Riverviews Artspace from Jan. 4 through Feb. 17 in an exhibit called “Valerie Bogdan: Recent Works.” An opening reception is scheduled for 6 to 8 p.m. Friday as part of First Fridays.
The majority of the art that will be on display is part of Bogdan’s “Summer Paintings” series, which she made using three large paintings cut into smaller panels.
The surfaces of the older paintings had hardened over the years, so Bogdan used tools like sandpaper, razor blades, chisels, a saw and wire brushes to remove the old paint.
“Sanding and going back through the painting, all these different layers start to come out and all these bits of color,” she says.
Then she’d paint over the canvas or use a wash to create a new painting.
In addition to that work, Bogdan will also show a series of works on paper, which she makes using water-based media like charcoal, acrylics and graphite on heavy, print making paper.
“Working on paper, I felt like I could experiment more, and take more liberties and risks that I might not in a painting,” she says. “And it just sort of evolved.”
Bogdan previously showed her work at Riverviews in 2005 as part of a traveling exhibit called “Pivot Points.”
This will be her first solo show at the venue, and she said she’s excited about the space.
“It’s hard to find a space that’s really big and intimate at the same time,” Bogdan says. “It’s really warm and inviting, but it’s not cavernous. That’s an incredible environment to look at art in.”
It’s also giving her a chance to display some larger pieces.
“I haven’t had the chance to show (them) because they’re so big,” she says. “It’s a rare opportunity for me to show these paintings that otherwise are wrapped up in cardboard in my studio.”
This show is Bogdan’s first since moving back to Virginia from New York, where the Pennsylvania native relocated to after graduating from Virginia Commonwealth University in 1997.
After spending almost 10 years living and working in New York, “we had just had enough,” says Bogdan, who moved back to Richmond in August 2006.
“For me, the change in the cost of living is so significant,” she says.
While living in New York, she constantly had to split her time between earning money and spending time in the studio painting.
“In coming here, I can live off of savings,” she says. “I don’t have to have a job, which is great for my painting.”
Other First Friday Events
The Academy of Fine Arts. The Academy Gallery is closed for renovations in January and February, so First Fridays will be held in the Arts and Education Building at 5th and Commerce streets. Music by Paul Burnett from 5 to 7 p.m. Hors d’oeuvres and light refreshments catered by the Academy Café. Call (434) 528-3256 for more information.
Blackwater Creek Gallery, 845 Belmont St., will present new work by local outsider and visionary artists. Open from 6 to 9 p.m. For more information, call (434) 846-0403 or e-mail .
Hardwick’s in the Galleria, 915 Main St., will be open until 7:30 p.m. Their newest painting is one of Beaufort, S.C., by Dennis Johnson. For more information, call (434) 528-5808.
921 Main Street Fine Art Gallery will be open from 5 to 7 p.m. and will be serving refreshments. Artists currently on exhibit include Debbie Berger, Karen Bowden, Basil Burke, Jim Brewer, Joe Collins, Barbara Cornett, Pat Dougherty, Peggy Kiley Dillon, David Eakin, Jane Garrett, Jill Jensen, Dave Keebler, Nancy Laurent, Kaye Lipscomb, Bruce Mabry, Kelly Mattox, Michael Mewborn, Purnell Pettyjohn, Katie Vaden, Rosalie Day White and Seymour Woodnick. For more information, call (434) 455-4336.
The GLTC “Art” Trolley will run between the Academy of Fine Arts, Riverview’s Art Space, CJMW Architects Gallery, and the Beeswax Candle Co. – An Artisans Gallery, the Mezzanine Gallery, Hardwick’s in the Galleria, the Lynchburg Art Club, Heritage Crafters Gallery at Lynchburg Community Market, 921 main Street Fine Art, The Amherst Art Society in the James River Conference Center and participating downtown restaurants, from 5-8 pm. Free parking at the Midtown Parking Deck, located at 9th & Jefferson Streets.
COMMENTS