I am very pleased to have made the cut for a review on Artvetting.com and by Isaac Lyles. Thank you for your time and kind words of insight and encouragement.

2014 started out for me with recovering from an accident… and two new series developed within two days of the hit. I was well into the images (at least 16-some in progress) by the time I realized there might be a connection with the series images and concept, and the accident… I submitted for review to Artvetting in August and at that time was finally feeling more free from the trauma of the incident. I am now on to a new series Precious Gold which is giving me quite a bit of joy… life is precious… like gold.

“Lyles explains what he looks for: “In art, I look for intensification of life and an expression of a contemporary anxiety. Aesthetic experience demands subjectivity: this is its danger and its joy. For me, only the unknown is worth exploring.” (taken from http://hyperallergic.com/132753/art-vetting-round-14-isaac-lyles-from-derek-eller-gallery/ )

Reviews
Reviewed by Isaac Lyles
on Monday, October 27, 2014

Your work occupies a fertile space between earnestness and play. I enjoy to the explosive contrast between the filigree lines and the riotous splashes of color. This occillation from order to disorder generates a seductive energy and draws me in to their psychological space.

You have found a language to effectively communicate your personal experience to the broader world. The work has both gravity and pleasure; nuance and a range of interpretive possibilities.

I think the works combining representation and abstract qualities are best;  “Energy Impact Crater – #5”, in contrast, to me falls flat. It appears as little more that an ab-ex doodle. I do however see that developing an abstract language would be an exciting direction for you and the history of using abstraction to convey interior states is rich. Continue exploring what abstraction can do for you, but also expand on your use of representation elements. Try being less literal (i.e.: egg=egg-shell case), and more sophisticated in your metaphors.

(Karrie, I am so sorry to hear about your accident and can only imagine it’s effect on you. I am glad that art offers you an outlet to confront and transform your experiences, and that you have shared them here on Artvetting.)

Isaac Lyles: currenty at the Tilton Gallery, NY

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