David Thomas: Canyon Passages at UForge Gallery

Date: January 2013
Skills: Writing
Client: Artscope Magazine

Jamaica Plain, MA – “Canyon Passages” sits along the back wall of the UForge Gallery, inviting you in from the sidewalk through the clear glass. There are eight paintings in all, completed with deep dripping reds and oranges that expose passages of canyon wall without ever revealing the canyon itself. It’s both a study and a celebration of nature, each identically shaped canvas showing a completely different formation of fault lines and indentations, shadows and weather marks.

By zooming in and placing the rock out of context, you find yourself looking for shapes in the lines. Some find organic abstract compositions and others have more purposeful outlines that resemble figures or faces often hinted at in the title. “Horse Canyon #2” shows a passage of sharp jagged rock with dark deep-cut crevices that run horizontally across, resembling the surreal skeleton of a horse.

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