  |
Luminous Shadows
Preview by Debra Koppman, ARTWEEK
Holly Downing’s Luminous Shadows emerge from darkness to revel
points of light, creating what can be read as a visual metaphor for
a philosophy of life. While light emerges from darkness in each of
her works, it is particularly highlighted in the mezzotints. These
small-scale, black-and-white works are mysterious despite their
familiar content – faded cloth, plants, doorways or drops of water.
Downing is a master of the mezzotint process, a slow and tedious
printmaking technique popular in the eighteenth century. To the rare
contemporary practitioner it offers rich velvety tones unique from
those achieved by other processes. Mezzotints tend to be small,
forcing an intimacy that adds to the sense of mystery and heightened
awareness, even, as in Downing’s works, through the depiction of
simple subjects. Although her images are representational, the
primary inquiry that informs this body of work is the nature of
lightness and darkness. What is hidden? What is revealed? What is
suggested beyond the obvious? How does perception change, based on
variations of light?
Knotted Drapery: Anguish and Grace (2002) at 18 by 22 inches, is
actually large for a mezzotint, and features, as suggested by the
title, simple drapery that has been transformed into an
anthropomorphic form through the careful articulation of limited
light and the crafting of shadows. Taking on human form, the cloth
hangs in a Christ-like position, seemingly at the mercy of our
interpretation.
A focus on the binary of dark and light, together with highly
saturated imagery and complex handiwork, contributes to the works’
lack of specificity with respect to time. The frequent use of cloth
and images of portals add a sense of theatricality and lend the
exhibition a stage-like presence. As seemingly ordinary subjects are
transformed into staging grounds for varied moods and meanings, the
simplest of structures appear swollen with possibility. The most
successful of these images transcend their identify as object and
become stand-ins for something else, a question completed by the
viewer in the works’ reception.
Debra Koppman
ARTWEEK
March 2009
Luminous Shadows:
Mezzotints and Paintings will be on view April 17 through May 25 at
Quicksilver Mine Co., 7771 Front St. (Hwy 116), Forestville.
|
|
