Carrie Moyer’s solo show Timber! is her debut with the renowned Alexander Gray Associates gallery in New York City. Her signature vibrant abstractions shine in the airy rooms of the Tribeca gallery space. Centering around “social and environmental instability,” this new body of work offers greater complexity and a more somber tone than Moyer’s previous work.
This stark contrast in tone and style from Moyer’s previous work reflects an overarching anxiety-driven mood, with layered compositional choices saturated with complexity. The large paintings that draw the eye complement Moyer’s smaller works on paper, where she employs watercolor techniques and more subtle transitions. In particular, an 18” x 24” piece titled To the Barricades, with mixed media with watercolor techniques, presents a turbulent arrangement of flag-like shapes, waves possibly alluding to the catastrophe of rising waters. She treats the paper surface with salt effects and marbling, offsetting bold splashes of red, which bleed and fracture into what’s left of the blue sky. The piece is one of the smallest in the show but packs a big punch.
Her large acrylic paintings are loud declarations of seductiveness, alarm, and rebellion. The playful, multi-layered surfaces transform as one moves through the gallery. Her signature style of adding glitter and various acrylic mediums to her paint—juxtaposing matte colors against gloss—complements her application of acrylic in such a way that it creates 3D elements in the painting. Carrie Moyer is an unapologetic and gutsy painter who has her own flair and isn’t afraid to show it. The surfaces of her paintings are captivating when viewed up close or across the ends of the gallery. Her strong design choices are then embellished by the finesse of various acrylic mediums.
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