November 8 to 29, 2012

Hedy O'Beil: Recent Paintings

Hedy O'Beil 

The paintings on paper, “The Black Night Series,” created in the gray days of this past winter, are in black ink and color oil sticks. These densely black abstract paintings, however, are more than just dark drama.  O’Beil’s interest in capturing the moment or act of creating is revealed in these spontaneous gestural quality of the work, replete with overlaying spontaneous strokes and marks.

The artist, inspired by de Kooning, Gorky, and ancient Chinese calligraphers’ use of brushstrokes, creates canvases full of color, emotion and movement. In the large canvas Moonglow, a burst of white brushstrokes evoke a huge sphere, or cloud merging from a mauve and green sky, similar to performer on a stage; while a thin curvy line dances across the bottom of the canvas. This movement carries through O’Beil’s other works on canvas, further extending the invitation to the viewer to engage in the performance.