The conception of my paintings, collage works on vellum and large sheets of Arches paper begin with research into art history, nature and current events. I am interested in meeting points, where the fragility of the environment, the effects of technology and social crises, unfold across space and time.
Each work is made with a high key palette composed of thin layers of acrylic, metallic and interference paint, to achieve a particular optical depth. In some of the paintings, I use negative space to highlight and activate a void or gap. In others, the brushwork and painterly marks attempt to immerse the viewer in the pictorial space. What emerges are quasi-abstract still lives, fragments of text or landscapes that hover in a space of physicality or disembodiment. Lisa Blas | 2013 - present
Lisa Blas, Installation view, Group exhibition “Emergency Eyewash”, Tanja Grunert Gallery, New York, NY, 2017
Rousseau, after the flood, Acrylic and interference paint on watercolor paper on Canson paper, 28.75 x 20.5 inches, 2018, Private collection, New York
Golden, v. 3, after Carleton Watkins, Acrylic and interference paint on card stock on Arches paper, 26 x 40 inches, 2013
Private collection, New York
Miracle (v. 1-4), Archival pigment ink print, 23.4 x 33.1 inches, 2013, Limited edition of 5 + 2 Artist Proofs | Artist Edition for Material Press, Los Angeles 2013