Color is important to me. I see it first. It makes me take notice. It can be visceral and powerful. If the colors are combined with a compositional, lighting or textural element, its power grows. This observation of ordinary objects can become remarkable in a painting by using scale, composition and color. I strive in my art, through elements of reality and abstraction, to make visible what most people would not even bother looking at.

I spend a good amount of time at the local Home Depot in a part-time job selling HVAC products. My recent work has been inspired by my hours there. As I walk around, in my mind’s eye I see colors, shapes, patterns, lighting and objects that come to together to create what I call a “paintable moment.” I photograph this image with an iPhone and then use it as a tool to re-create these everyday retail objects as bold expressions of color and composition. I work mostly in acrylic on canvas, but have recently begun investigating gesso treated board, paper and pastels. My intent is not to portray an exact interpretation, but to create a sense of delight in having the viewer see the object(s) and the abstraction. I seek to maintain a painterly quality to the work, while sometimes using a ‘mash-up’ composition to avoid a realistic tag.

My background is that of a graphic designer, with 30 years experience in the field. About ten years ago I started life drawing classes at the Art Students League of New York. Drawing, through observation of the human figure, is the best way to train your eyes and hands. I continue to do so today at local workshops.

It was through drawing that I discovered the use of pastels and my sense of color. My earlier work is comprised of mostly street views and still lifes that utilize the same smart composition and realize my expressions of color and emotion. I started painting in acrylic about five years ago.

In my art, I want to express something positive, artistically serious, and perhaps a little whimsical. Qualities that speak of me and to me. Sharing that with others is a privilege I aspire to, in the hope that people will see a little part of the ordinary world differently. And it all starts with the color.

bennett@ggraph.com
www.bennettgewirtz.com