Jaik Faulk:Theoretical Place
NATIONALE, Portland Oregon Sunday August 4, 2019
Crammed within these modest sized oil paintings are opposing extremes - there is shallow flatness of weaving, at other times they are informed by the depth of a landscape painting of a night sky; the closer the proximity of the two the better. Jaik Faulk has long been fascinated with the visual space within painting and this a show of new works that takes as its task to undermine these traditional understandings.
Longer Statement
The works in Theoretical Place are the results of a long and thoughtful developing period within the studio. In some cases the painting has been rattling around in the artist’s mind for years. Other works take their cues from the portrait painting tradition a long-time favorite genre for Mr Faulk.
The fascination of depth in a painting; how an artist may meander around and through this space is of particular interest in the creation of these works. In ways the title Theoretical Place aludes to this mindfully created space. One key to thinking about painting is to realize that within its bounds a viewer can be tricked into thinking that there is a window through which they are looking. The experience is automatic but the crafting of such space takes a dedicated practice and when an artist plays about with abstraction it becomes a theoretical practice. It becomes a subjective space shared though not agreed upon by the viewer and maker.
Studio Notes:
Much of the ideas that I have been toying with in this body of work are derived from my interests in understanding painting. As a practice in the studio, the craft of painting but also theoretically as I was teaching in my various Art History classes. I was particularly drawn to the development of illusionistic space within the practice of painting, how that evolved through ancient times; Greek Vase Painting and Roman Wall Painting to the Renaissance and artists like Giotto and Masaccio. Now also I think about painting in relation to the “theoretical space” of the gallery, the “white cube”. I think about what it means for paintings to be flanked by white walls, I consider what the border of a painting means and try to give these thoughts a space for dialogue within my paintings.